Published By: HarperCollins
Pages: 192
Released On: 12/03/2026
Where the shelves are endless. The books, strangely familiar. And where memories are bound in pages.
When Jiwon cautiously crosses the threshold, she’s met by Manager K and offered no explanation, only a mysterious hourglass and a rare opportunity: to travel back to three chapters of her life.
But returning to the past isn’t without risk. In exchange, Jiwon has to give up time in her future.
As she wanders between the shelves, the bookshop humming with memories and regrets, she must ask herself: can the past truly be rewritten? Or does the real magic lie in the life she’s yet to live?
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I love Korean fiction; in my experience they tend to be fantastical, whimsical, but with a big heart, and this is the same. They also (in my experience) tend to be set around books which I also love. This didn’t hit the heights of some of the others I’ve read but it was still an enjoyable book.
Song has really shown us the importance of books and memories. She also asks difficult questions about life, death, depression, grief, and suicidal thoughts. It touches upon the idea of grief in a sensitive but powerful way that I think anyone who has gone through it will identify and understand.
There is very little plot, it’s more based on the memories and emotions than actual action. I can’t even say the characters are written with much depth. And so overall that doesn’t sound that enjoyable does it? But it was. This is less plot and character and more emotion. Which makes it moving and thought-provoking. It makes us take a look at ourselves and our pasts and our futures.
The ending was a nice touch and really goes to show what is most important when it comes to parent/child relationships and what we can help with and what we can’t an what we feel guilty about.
Is it anything new? No. But I didn’t really mind that. It makes it familiar and comforting.
It’s a short book, nice and quick to read, you can fill an hour or two. There’s not much to get your teeth stuck into and I could probably go as far as saying its not very memorable now I’ve finished it. But nothing takes away from the fact it is a very lovely, moving story about love, grief, memories, and hope.
Books By Your Bedside 