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A Novel
by Jeannine Cook
A bewitching novel within a novel—a blend of romance and magical realism, part The Lost Bookshop, part A Love Song for Ricki Wilde—a magical world in which a bookseller becomes a reluctant matchmaker, bringing soulmates together through books.
It's Me They Follow is a meta-romance about love in the time of mass upheaval and uncertainty. It follows The Shopkeeper, a bookseller and reluctant matchmaker. Helping others find love through books comes easily for The Shopkeeper, except when it comes to finding someone for herself.
She secretly yearns for her first customer, ME, who took both her most prized book and a piece of her heart when he left. But just when she begins to lose hope, she discovers her magical bookshop may hold the key to her own happily ever after as well.
Bookseller and writer Jeannine Cook has conjured a magical love story that is a book within a book—penned by the Shopkeeper herself. Soon, readers will find themselves falling under the same love spell that the Shopkeeper's books cast on her customers. In this magical bookshop where the line between fiction and reality blurs, stories and real life intertwine in an enchanting and moving narrative about human connection, the power the of storytelling, and the elusive spirit of love.
"Romance is only part of the payoff in this quirky yet humane story of a lonely shopkeeper conquering her fears." —Kirkus Reviews
"Bookstore owner Cook delights in this inventive metanovel that explores the ways books and stories connect us...Bibliophiles will be captivated by this magical tale of community." —Booklist
"While far from a traditional romance, at the heart of Cook's lightly allegorical debut is a love letter to storytelling itself. Readers eager for something out of the ordinary will be enchanted." —Publishers Weekly
"There's something in your book that touches people," one character tells another in Jeannine A. Cook's debut novel, It's Me They Follow. And it's true, on Cook's pages, words touch, sometimes tenderly, always urgently, even when ordinary touch is impossible. The main character, the Shopkeeper, molds her story out of her own blood, memory and bones. The reader is gifted with shelves full of lives to fall in love with. Turning these pages is as delightful as it is necessary. Cook's is a story and a voice to remember." —Nomi Eve, author of Henna House and The Family Orchard. Director, Drexel MFA in Creative Writing.
This information about It's Me They Follow was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Jeannine Cook is the founder and owner of three bookstores, Harriet's in North Philadelphia; Ida's in Collingswood, New Jersey; and Josephine's, a roaming bookstore in Paris. In addition to a holding a master's degree from The University of the Arts and an MFA from Drexel University, Jeannine is also a Leeway Art & Transformation grantee and winner of the Black Girl Magic Award, and other awards.She builds communities and is a proud educator and mother with years of experience teaching creative storytelling in alternative environments from bodegas to city blocks. Jeannine lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It's Me They Follow is her first novel.
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