Interview

A letter from Freya Sampson about her debut novel, The Last Chance Library, a story about unlikely friendships and what a community can achieve when it comes together to fight to save their library from closure.

Dear Reader,

I've always loved libraries. As a young child, I would go to my local library every week to borrow books, and as a student I spent many late nights squirreled away in the university library trying to hit an essay deadline. But it wasn't until my early thirties, and the birth of my first child, that I began to appreciate just how important libraries really are.

Despite living in a bustling city, I found the early months of motherhood isolating. I didn't know many other people in the area with babies, and I was too nervous to go to cafes in case my colicky baby started to cry, disturbing paying customers. When I finally plucked up the courage to leave the house with my daughter on our own, the first place I went to was my local library. There was a children's nursery rhyme session on, and as I sat surrounded by parents and carers from all walks of life, small children running around the place, I felt welcome and unjudged.

The more time I spent in the library, the more I began to recognize the same faces that visited regularly. One particular older gentleman came in to read the newspaper. He would often try and start conversations with other people, but most avoided eye contact and ignored him. One day, I ...