4.3
-
45,564 ratings
An Amazon Charts bestseller
From New York Times bestselling author Alice Hoffman comes a heartfelt short story about family, independence, and finding your place in the world.
Isabel Gibson has all but perfected the art of forgetting. She’s a New Yorker now, with nothing left to tie her to Brinkley’s Island, Maine. Her parents are gone, the family bookstore is all but bankrupt, and her sister, Sophie, will probably never speak to her again.
But when a mysterious letter arrives in her mailbox, Isabel feels herself drawn to the past. After years of fighting for her independence, she dreads the thought of going back to the island. What she finds there may forever alter her path—and change everything she thought she knew about her family, her home, and herself.
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Print length
36 pages
Language
English
Publisher
Amazon Original Stories
Publication date
October 31, 2022
Tuesdays were meant for accidents, disappointments, and bad news. Long ago, the day was considered to belong to Mars, the god of war and blood.
Highlighted by 1,642 Kindle readers
Oh, you’re moonlight, he’d said. Harder to see, but there for those who look.
Highlighted by 1,594 Kindle readers
She was good at forgetting; she had practiced for years, and it was now a skill at which she excelled.
Highlighted by 1,449 Kindle readers
ASIN :
B0BB52CCND
File size :
7049 KB
Text-to-speech :
Enabled
Screen reader :
Supported
Enhanced typesetting :
Enabled
X-Ray :
Enabled
Word wise :
Enabled
When I open a hefty novel, I know I’m essentially moving in. Reading a short story, on the other hand, is a quick getaway, a visit to another world in the space of an afternoon. In Alice Hoffman’s short story, The Bookstore Sisters, readers plunge into a world so vivid that you’ll imagine a salt breeze blowing through your house as you read.
Isabel Gibson has been dreaming of escaping since she was a child: leaping over the barrier of the ocean surrounding Brinkley’s Island. But even after she made it to New York City, she never felt satisfied. When she receives a letter from someone on the island asking for help, she has a chance to find out if crossing back over the water will be a step backward or forward in her life.
Alice Hoffman’s writing transported me as I read Isabel’s story, conjuring the dusty back room of the Once upon a Time Bookshop, the heirloom flowers that climb the walls of Red Rose Cottage, and the lupines that turn the whole island blue in summer. One image, though, sticks with me: Isabel and her sister Sophie as young girls, reading outside by the light of the summer moon until they fall asleep in the grass. I found myself willing Isabel to remember the child she was and the trust she and her sister once shared. In my short visit to Brinkley’s Island, I found a second home.
—Kjersti Egerdahl, Editor
Alice Hoffman
Alice Hoffman is the author of thirty works of fiction, including Practical Magic, The Dovekeepers, Magic Lessons, and, most recently, The Book of Magic. She lives in Boston. Her new novel, The Invisible Hour, is forthcoming in August 2023. Visit her website: www.alicehoffman.com
Customer reviews
4.3 out of 5
45,564 global ratings
Kathleen
5
wonderful
Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2024
Verified Purchase
For such a tiny story, it was packed with everything it needed to say. It was very heartfelt and a lovely story.
Lanna Lucky
5
Meaningful short story
Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2024
Verified Purchase
This is a meaningful short story. A very good work of art, using meaningful descriptions, painting a very wonderful setting. A very memorable read in a very fast paced world.
3 people found this helpful
Obsessed Reader
5
OMG
Reviewed in the United States on June 9, 2024
Verified Purchase
This snippet of a story was incredible. I had put in my Kindle bookshelf months ago. I love any book that has book in the title. I happened to run across it early yesterday morning, say around 4 am. I'm one of those bookish chicks that's sleep with her Kindle. OMG this novella back an emotional punch for me. Having lost my amazing mother in 2016, God rest her beautiful soul and being super close to my sister I was touched by this story. I loved it. I loved every word. Every description and every character. I didn't think it was possible to adore a novella, but as The Monkees sing but I'm a change the lyrics and say the I read a page now Im a believer 😘. Just perfection. Im on to the next Installment. Why did I wait so long?
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15 people found this helpful
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