The Girl Who Reads On The Metro by Christine Féret-Fleury

Synopsis
When Juliette takes the métro to her loathed office job each morning, her only escape is in books – she avidly reads on her journey and imagines what her fellow commuters’ choices might say about them.

Then she meets Soliman – the mysterious owner of the most enchanting bookshop Juliette has ever seen – and things will never be the same again. For Soliman believes in the power of books to change the course of a life, and he’s about to change Juliette’s forever . . .

Review
I came across The Girl Who Reads On The Metro whilst browsing through Waterston’s online, looking for a new and differentread. This appealed to me on several fronts; I like reading translated books, the central character rides the metro to work reading and taking note of what others read (I used to read on the Newcastle Metro going to work and was always looking at other people’s books) and the central character is called Juliette. How could I not buy this, and an added bonus is that it was a wonderfully enchanting love letter to the power of books.

I think Juliette represents a lot of people going to work in a morning, using the time to catch up on some reading, before going to a job that they don’t particularly enjoy but it pays the bills. Juliette, is dissolusioned with her job at an Estate Agents, selling the fantasy of the perfect life in a new house. One day, she decides to get of the Metro a stop early and providence steps in, taking her into Books Unlimited, and the lives of Soliman and his daughter Zaid, a meeting that changes her life, and opens more possibilities. Books Unlimited is not your regular bookshop, people don’t come into the shop to buy books, but to pass them onto others as a ‘Passeur’. Passeurs carry a bag of books and choose who to give them to, who they feel would benefit from a particular book, a book that may change their lives.

The Girl Who Reads On The Metro is a booklovers dream to read, and an ode to the importance of books in our lives. Soliman, the owner of Books Unlimited, is a recluse, living with his young daughter, in his own words he doesn’t need to go outside, or travel the world as he can travel in his mind through his books. Books transport us to new destinations, different lives and meet new people in another place and another time. Christine Féret-Fleury’s prose is poetic, taking the reader on a journey of self discovery with Juliette, whilst she makes changes in her life, finding new challenges and steps towards a more fulfilling life. She captures the essence of books in her writing, the smell, the feel, the words and the emotions they illicit from us.

At two hundred pages, The Girl Who Reads On The Metro isn’t a long read, but it is a book that deserves to be savoured, and enjoyed. This beautiful read enchants and bewitches you, and will definitely bring a smile to your face. This is the ultimate love letter to reading books, sharing books, feeling books, smelling books and the power they have to change our lives. I highly recommend this book, you won’t regret it.