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Book Reviewed by:A woman receives an unexpected gift from the man she loved and lost—a year of books, one for every month—launching a reading-inspired journey to live, dream, and love again in this glimmering and heart-stopping novel.
Twelve books. Twelve months. One chance to heal her heart…
When Tilly Nightingale receives a call telling her there's a birthday gift from her husband waiting for her at her local bookshop, it couldn't come as more of a shock. Partly because she can't remember the last time she read a book for pleasure. But mainly because Joe died five months ago....
When she goes to pick up the present, Alfie, the bookshop owner with kind eyes, explains the gift—twelve carefully chosen books with handwritten letters from Joe, one for each month, to help her turn the page on her first year without him.
At first Tilly can't imagine sinking into a fictional world, but Joe's tender words convince her to try, and something remarkable happens—Tilly becomes immersed in the pages, and a new chapter begins to unfold in her own life. Monthly trips to the bookstore—and heartfelt conversations with Alfie—give Tilly the comfort she craves and the courage to set out on a series of reading-inspired adventures that take her around the world. But as she begins to share her journey with others, her story—like a book—becomes more than her own.
One
January
BOOK LANE RECOMMENDS
BOOKS TO READ WHEN YOU DON'T FEEL LIKE READING
Dear Reader: The Comfort and Joy of Books, Cathy Rentzenbrink
Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
Tilly and the Bookwanderers, Anna James
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, Sangu Mandanna
The right book in the hands of the right person at exactly the right moment can change their life forever. At least, that's what Alfie has always believed. It's hard not to when you spend six days a week in a bookstore and have witnessed more times than you can count the magic of someone entering your shop as one person and leaving with the possibility of becoming another held in paper between their palms.
But Alfie isn't thinking about changing lives when he pulls up outside Book Lane on his battered red bicycle early that January morning. He's thinking about the fact that his glasses are misted with rain, his trousers are drenched, and there are three enormous and very soggy cardboard boxes waiting for him on the ...
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (2/26/2026)
I LOVED Libby Page's book - THIS BOOK MADE ME THINK OF YOU!!
-Elizabeth
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (2/12/2026)
I finished "Is This a Cry for Help" by Emily Austin (loved the library aspect which I found very realistic) & "The Secret Christmas Library" by Jenny Colgan which was exactly what I expected & is a fine example of a holiday rom com. I've just started "This Book Made Me Think of You" by Libby Page...
-Carol_Ann_Robb
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (1/1/2026)
I just finished WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS by Kaira Rouda. An ok mystery/thriller. Started THIS BOOK MADE ME THINK OF YOU by Libby Page. A sweet read with wonderful characters.
-Elizabeth
Six months ago, Tilly Nightingale's husband, Joe, died after a brief battle with cancer. In her grief, Tilly's world has narrowed to work and survival; she's lost touch with most of her friends, and her love of reading deteriorated along with Joe's health. But a call from a local bookstore conveys a surprise: Joe handpicked one book for Tilly to read each month during her first year without him. As she reads Joe's picks, Tilly rediscovers herself, and is inspired to explore the world and chase the dreams she'd let die. Told over the course of one year, This Book Made Me Think of You is an emotional journey of grief and hope, love and loss, bravery and adventure. Page does a wonderful job of showing Tilly's personal growth, starting slowly but then moving by leaps and bounds as she regains her confidence and pushes past previous limitations. Blending grief, humor, romance, and self-discovery, this is a heartwarming and optimistic novel that will have readers turning the page to see what Tilly will read and experience next...continued
Full Review
(908 words)
(Reviewed by Jordan Lynch).
Abbi Waxman, USA Today bestselling author of The Bookish Life of Nina Hill
A delightful, deliriously bookish book, filled with romance and wonder, I loved it. As befits a novel about books, this one is all about endings and beginnings and the transformations that lie in between. Victoria Henry, bestselling author of One Night at the Chateau
Libby's big heart, emotional intelligence and love of reading shine through every page of this beautiful book. And like all the best books, it will make you laugh, make you cry but above all it will give you hope. A book to treasure.
In Libby Page's novel This Book Made Me Think of You, Tilly Nightingale receives an unexpected gift from her recently deceased husband, Joe: before he died, he hand-picked one book for each month of the first year she would be living without him. These books help Tilly rediscover her love of reading, and in a way, herself. Joe's selections inspire Tilly to try new things, explore the world, and chase after dreams she'd long forgotten. Below is a selection of the books that make up Joe's gift.
Matilda by Roald Dahl
Joe knew Tilly was in a reading slump and thought that a book about a girl who shares her name (Tilly is short for Matilda) and loves to read was the perfect remedy. Dahl's Matilda is a precocious child with a love of ...
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