The Museum of Ordinary People: The uplifting new novel from the bestselling author of Half a World Away

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Before I went to university I wanted to be a social worker — I have no idea why. It didn’t last long.

The Museum of Ordinary People is a heartwarming, addictive, charming story about a young museum curator and her discovery of everyday items that carry great meaning for people. Her efforts to start her museum and wade through her personal loss have the reader cheering her every move. The story also raises the interesting question about whether some truths are better left uncovered. I loved this! Highly recommend for all lovers of life. I enjoyed getting to know Jess and everyone else in the story, she is thoroughly likable and I was rooting for her success throughout. Although it's pretty obvious from the beginning what will happen romance-wise in the book, it's still fun to watch unfold as you read. Many parts of the story were predictable, like Jess's relationship with her boyfriend and the new owner of the Museum, but what made the predictably tolerable was Jess'' dialogue and how she chooses to navigate those moments.In this “pure, unadulterated feel-good” and warmhearted novel, an old set of encyclopedias leads a young woman to a curious museum and one profoundly moving lesson: that every life is an extraordinary life ( Kirkus ). The story has a few big surprises and interesting characters with their own dilemmas. I was drawn to Jess's desire to keep her mother's memory alive. It felt relatable.

Museums are unique places to tell extraordinary stories through ‘ordinary’ objects. The various objects in museum stores across the country, many of which may be considered ‘ordinary’, may be utilised to tell real and emotionally engaging stories. These stories reflect a diverse range of audiences, engaging with the communities in which they are centred. Inspired by a box of mementos found abandoned in a skip following a house clearance, The Museum of Ordinary People is a thought-provoking and poignant story of memory, grief, loss and the things we leave behind. Jess's grief over her mother's passing comes a close second. These sections were very heavy on the emotions and some of the content got to me. I ended up taking unplanned breaks whenever these sections came up because my mind constantly wandered into thoughts of what I would do when I inevitably have to handle the same situation in the future for my parents. I loved the writing but hated the way it stirred up sad musings. Jess after losing her mum hasn't got room for the things she would like to keep and it brings her to the museum of ordinary people where they can be stored. All in all, there are many enjoyable attributes to the book, and if you avoid using your inner critic too much, you'll certainly like it a lot more. My inner critic unfortunately refuses to die. As such, I liked it but didn't love it. The slow pace didn't help.The story moves between Now and Then, told in Jess’ voice. Along with an excellent cast of supporting characters, Jess was engaging and likeable, as was Alex. Both had damaged histories, the full extent of which came out as the story progressed. Jess is clearing out the home she shared with her mother. Being a single mother they were very close. There are things for the dumpster, things for the charity shop and things with a question mark. But a set of ratty outdated encyclopedias gifted to Jess by her mother is the one thing she can’t part with but has nowhere to keep them. When she hears about Barclay and Sons and their collection of unwanted items it seems like the answer for her encyclopedias. This is where she meets Alex. They hit it off even as Jess is startled by the fact that one side of Alex’ face is badly scarred. The Museum of Ordinary People is a heartwarming, addictive, charming story about a young museum curator and her discovery of everyday items that carry great meaning for people. Her efforts to start her museum and wade through her personal loss have the reader cheering her every move. The story also raises the intere In addition to the characters being problematic, the writing was also repetitive in places (for example - the word “anyway” was repeated at so many points in the story that I lost count after the first couple chapters), there was way too much “telling” rather than “showing” (the writing actually came off awkward in places), and the plot was a bit too contrived for my liking (there were some “twists” added near the end that were convenient but unnecessary in my opinion). While it might be true that some things are thrown away for good reason, it's equally true that some things are saved for a purpose."