Bear Among the Books

I should probably start this review by mentioning that I am a librarian. For that reason all the details about working in and the running of a library entertained me as much as the romance did. On several occasions I found myself thinking ‘oh yes, that’s how we do it too’ and that invariably brought a smile to my face. Something else that made me grin was the fact that I would probably describe myself as a cross between Debbie and Ben; while I love welcoming new members to the library and love seeing them peruse the shelves, I find it very hard not to frown when they disturb the order on those shelves.

But, this review is supposed to be about the book and not about my day job, and Bear Among the Books touched my heart in many ways. It contains a wonderful romance, it’s a declaration of love towards libraries and, maybe more than anything else it’s an ode to words, books, stories, writing, and reading.

“I had always felt sorry for people who didn’t read and never experienced the joy of getting lost in a well-written story.” – Ben

My heart ached for Jason. To love books so much and not be able to read. Scratch that, just to not be able to read is a nightmare scenario to me. A nightmare that Jason is consciously living, as his words about being/working in a library so beautifully reflect.

“It’s like being inside the biggest, richest treasure chest in the world. It’s like a bank vault for people’s dreams and experiences.”

Of course Jason’s illiteracy wasn’t the only thing about him to break my heart. His back-story is horrendous and brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion. He’s such a gentle, kind and big-hearted soul despite everything he has endured and his insecurities are as understandable as they are heartbreaking.

Ben was the sort of person I could fall for myself in a heartbeat. Kind, generous, patient, and always putting others first, he is exactly what Jason needs even if everybody else realises that long before Ben is willing to entertain the idea.

Jason’s grandmother was a breath of fresh air and I loved her attitude. The age difference between Ben and Jason is large —28 years to be precise. And while Ben does initially have some understandable concerns about it, I love that it wasn’t turned into a huge belly-ache or an issue for any of the other characters in the story.

“The heart has no wrinkles.” – Alice / Nan

In fact, this is not an angsty read at all. Despite Jason’s past and Ben’s reservations about a relationship, this is mostly a sweet tale about healing and books, about people coming together to do the right thing, and about embracing new opportunities and love when they come your way.

Bear Among the Books is a charming and touching feel good story. Yes, there are one or two moments that will tug at your heartstrings and bring tears to your eyes, but overall, this tale will leave you with a huge smile on your face and a love for the written word that is even stronger than it was before you started reading it.

Reviewed by Meredith for Diverse Reader

It’s always a joy to read a book from an author you haven’t read before and truly fall in love with it. Bear Among the Books is a comforting read. It’s filled with books and love. Two things I love more than anything. Ben owns a library, he has great friends, a beautiful home, and a love for books that is incredible. His knowledge of the written word is breathtaking. I’m not sure even I could ever know as much as he does of the classics.

It’s of course all of these things that brings Jason, a library patron, to fall for him. Jason however is quite the opposite of Ben. He’s 19 and Ben is 48. Jason visits a library but cannot read. Though both have a past; Jason’s is truly horrific and heartbreaking. Seriously, Jason had me in tears when he told Ben his story.

The evolution of Jason was something to behold though. He is a light from the very beginning. Even though he’s horribly hard on himself all the people around him embrace him, love him, and lift him up higher than he ever believed himself possible of. I admit I shed a few tears when Jason overcame obstacles and stared down challenges.

I quite enjoyed this book. It did drag a few times on daily mundane details. Nothing too horrible and nothing that would stop me from reading all of TJ Master’s books. I realized these details were warmth. They were filling the tale with comfort… with home. And soon those moments of making coffee, of watching TV, of being a real person made me smile.

This is a terrific read. A love story. A book come to life. For the book lover in me it was the truest of fairytales.

*I received this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review*

Ok.... so this is the first book I've read by this author, I wasn't sure what to expect; but as someone who has recently been introduced to the "bear" trope and loving it; I couldn't wait to jump into it. I mean, have you seen the cover?....point made.
So; here we have Ben, widower since his long-time partner, Colin had passed some years back. He's 48 but in some ways he seemed much older to me, I'm not sure why.... He has lots of friends that works for him and even though Daisy grew on me; I didn't much care for her personality. She was judgey and hateful at times and I didn't like that. I loved Jess and Jake though, they were such good friends to Ben and they welcomed Jason with open arms.

Jason... that boy broke my heart, the things he'd been through at such a young age... sigh... you couldn't help but want to scoop him up and give him a giant hug. He was so sweet.
He came into the library every day and Ben and judgey Daisy noticed him right away; Daisy because she was a judgey cow, but Ben because he thought he was gorgeous, even though too young. After a childrens reading day at the library; Ben found something out about Jason and made it his personal mission to help him; what he didn't count on was Jason stealing his heart.... Cheesey? Yes, but true.

I love how Jake and Jess as well as Daisy who eventually came around, accepted Jason into their small little family. Jason's Nan, Alice, also fit right in and they gave Jason a sense of family and love that he'd never had before but deserved wholeheartedly. He was so genuine and sweet and loveable; I hated so much that his parents got away with the things they done to him. The blurb made it seem like Jason was kicked out because he was gay and that wasn't the case at all; I believe he was kicked out because his step-dad was sick and his mother was jealous. They were the worst kind of people and I cried for this fictional character because you couldn't not....It didn't let it defeat him though. He was still such a sweet boy, a great carer for his Nan and the way he loved Ben was amazing for someone who'd been through as much as he had. I loved seeing them together, I loved the way Ben took care of Jason but also the way Jason took care of everyone he cared about.

Through Ben, Jason got to grow into self-esteem and self-worth. He didn't just teach him to read, he taught him the importance of his own worth and what he had to offer the world. He had talents and wisdom for someone far beyond his age; he could easily do anything he set his mind to and I was not only glad that Ben taught him that, but also that it was Ben who taught him. sigh... I just loved reading about them both. I wouldn't mind another book or two that was just all about them and their extended family of friends... and of course Nan :) she was a spitfire, for sure.

If you like lovable but broken men who get put back together by their endlessly patient, caring, understanding, thoughtful and loving "big bears"... then you'll love this story. I know I sure did.
The only reason at all I couldn't give it a full 5 stars is simply because the mother and step-father got away with the awful things they done and put Jason through. I can't handle someone so evil and awful not getting the karmatic justice they deserve and I didn't feel like I got any closure with that and I needed it and felt like Jason deserved it.....
Other than that, it was an awesome and emotional read and I'm so, so lucky I got the chance to read it.

Definitely one I'll be recommending!