Dear Dear Fahrenheit 451 by Annie Spence,
Since you are a book of letters written to other books, I feel like it’s only fitting that my review of you is also in the form of a letter to a book. (Wow, that was a lot of letters and books.)
To be honest, I never even knew you existed until I randomly stumbled upon you while scrolling through my Libby app. I was hoping to find a fairly quick, fairly light nonfiction book to listen to while packing. And you were exactly that, and so much more.
You are genuinely one of the funniest, wittiest books I have ever read. The narrator seemed to get your sense of humor just right, because every joke landed perfectly. And the best part? All of your jokes were bookish. How often do you get to read an entire book where the humor is that of an excited librarian? Unfortunately, far less frequently than I would like.
You also stirred up a lot more emotion than I was expecting. There were the letters to books associated with ex-boyfriends, the book that sparked Annie Spence’s love of reading, and even a letter to ANNE FRANK. You were trying to make me cry, weren’t you? Well, you kind of succeeded (I only teared up).
And can we talk about how motivating you are? All those book recommendations! So many new book titles to check out, and so many that I have renewed interest in after hearing Annie’s exuberant letters to them. Chief among these is Jeffrey Eugenedes’ The Virgin Suicides, which Annie repeatedly categorized as her favorite book ever (such high praise coming from a librarian!). You make me feel motivated to take a trip to the library, to dig out those unread books that have been collecting dust in my bedroom, to strike up a conversation with a friend about their favorite book.
I loved your variety, your humor, your heartfelt anecdotes and witty charm. You made me think about all the moments in my life that I associate with books. Even when a situation didn’t have anything to do with books—as most situations don’t—I can often still remember what book I was reading at the time, what book would have been sitting on my bedside table when I got home that night. When I first entered college I tried rereading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice to make me feel more at home—before running out of free time and then accidentally forgetting my copy in my dorm room when I moved out at the end of the year. On my way back to Oxford for the second half of my year abroad I listened to Mary Karr’s The Art of Memoir on the seven hour flight. Throughout my spring break trip around a handful of European cities that year I read Philip Pullman’s Fairy Tales from the Brothers’ Grimm. The first book I read after a break up earlier this year was To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han. Many people seem to associate certain memories with songs or scents, but for me it has always been books. And you reminded me of how important that is to me.
Long story short, you are an excellent, excellent book, Dear Fahrenheit 451. And you can be sure that I’ll be letting all the other bookworms I know that you’re a fab read. That’s what fellow book lovers are for, right?
Yours,
HOLLY
amaaazing review. i swear you always have the coolest / most unique reviews on the coolest / most unique books
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AHHHH THANK YOU!!! ❤
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What a lovely review, Holly! It’s quite a touching manner of writing about the book, especially about the books that really make an impact on you.
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Thank you!! ❤
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I love Fahrenheit 451 so the title caught my eye immediately. This sounds like an amazing book!
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It’s so lovely!! ❤
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Wow, this makes me want to write my reviews in letter forms to books from now on!? 🤣 I am also 100% sold on picking this up as an audiobook and giving it a listen. I do associate a lot of memories with food, music and movies, but there are some that I do associate with certain books too. Reading this made me a little wistful for those books in my life 🥰 Such a wonderful review, Holly!
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Thank you!!!! YES I thought the same thing, writing book reviews as letters sounds like so much fun. ❤ Hope you enjoy this if you pick it up!
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Oh, I love your review so much! and it really makes me want to know more about Dear Fahrenheit 451 and other books 🙂
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Thank you!! I definitely recommend this book, it’s so lovely ❤
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OMG YES, I LOVE THIS BOOK!
Literally half of its pages have been tabbed by me because of the amazing book recs. IT was kind of emotional but short and sweet and oh god the bookish jokes! This is literally a bookworm’s dream book ❤
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YES!!! OMG that’s such a perfect description, so many good book recommendations and SO many feelings ❤ I want her to write another book ASAP!
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