The Book That Matters Most

By: Ann Hood

Narrated by: Nina Alvamar

Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

An enthralling novel about love, loss, secrets, friendship, and the healing power of literature, by the best-selling author of The Knitting Circle.

Ava's 25-year marriage has fallen apart, and her two grown children are pursuing their own lives outside of the country. Ava joins a book group, not only for her love of reading but also out of sheer desperation for companionship. The group's goal throughout the year is for each member to present the book that matters most to them. Ava rediscovers a mysterious book from her childhood - one that helped her through the traumas of the untimely deaths of her sister and mother.

Alternating with Ava's story is that of her troubled daughter, Maggie, who, living in Paris, descends into a destructive relationship with an older man. Ava's mission to find that book and its enigmatic author takes her on a quest that unravels the secrets of her past and offers her and Maggie the chance to remake their lives.

©2016 Ann Hood (P)2016 Recorded Books

'Our lives are our own to ruin as we. may"

That sentence revealed to me how much control we have. in our lives to choose and not blame others for our decisions to take our selves,,,,,,,,, out of the picture.

I Am Weeping

Exceptional Ann Hood ...I want the hard copy to read the printed words...I am Weeping is all I can say...Ann has moved me to tears again. the narration got better with each performance
of each of Anne's charecters. For any aspiring writers ..or even established authors..after u read this and all Anne's other novels, and her short stories, and memoirs about her lste dad.
and her faughter who died so uoung. and then her book about character emotions named , Creating Character Emotions, something she is a master at, as well as inducing every emotion a reader can possibly ask of a masterpiece ...

Rose Heredia, Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY..August 14, 2016.

Wow

I would have never picked this book for myself, but as part of a book club it was suggested and it was interesting as the story is based on a book club. What an amazing book, so sad and so real. It is a beautiful story of life, tragedy, grief, and finding yourself. The performance by the narrator was amazing as well. Highly recommend this book to young and mature audiences. ❤❤❤

Loved the concept, not the book

The underlying concept of this book - choosing the book that matters most to you in your life - was what intrigued me most, and it was probably what kept me reading throughout the story. It made me reflect on what books have really had that kind of impact on me throughout the different phases of my life. I really enjoyed seeing what books the members of the book club in the story selected and added a few to my to-be-read list.

"Could a writer understand how her book had saved someone long ago, when the world was a fragile, scary place and the people she loved weren't in it anymore? Could a writer understand that her book had mattered more than anything?"

Unfortunately, for most of the book I was distracted by so many subplots, back and forth in time, undeveloped characters, and loose pieces of the story the author doesn't tie up. The entire storyline of Ava's daughter in Paris had me skimming pages and fast-forwarding past those pieces. Had it not been for the decent story buried throughout, I probably would have put this book down early on.

A MUST read

If you could sum up The Book That Matters Most in three words, what would they be?

This is just a great feel book. I love the cast of characters. I love the twists and turns and surprises. But what i liked most was, it was real life. unpredictable and this is how we deal with life.

If you could rename The Book That Matters Most, what would you call it?

Perfect title

Unrealistic ending

If the ending is unrealistic, I'm extremely disappointed in the whole story. I found it very interesting and entertaining...but the ending annoyed me very much.

Unpleasant

The story just became sadder and uglier the more I listened. I finally quit and regret the 2 hours of my life that I lost to this depressing book.

lovely book

good book. narrator was perfect for this novel. very easy to listen to. I would recommend, but don't know if I'd read again.

Wow

Just wow. That's all I can say. Any information will spoil this book. You just have to read it (or listen to it).

Wow

Did not draw me in at first but while I’m the leader of a book club and choose this book for our group to read I persevered and kept reading. I became so drawn in I could not put this book down. It is A Book That Matters.