The perfect book for any book lover! A great read, this is a new author for me so very exciting! It was a bit of a slower read for me, I found that it took me a while to get into it but 4 stars overall!

This is the second book on bookish habits from Mangan and though I hadn't read her tale of reading from a young age, this book carries on detailing her life as a reader from her late teens onwards.

Mangan writes about her life as a reader, her favourite books, and how her reading habits have changed throughout the years including going off to university, leaving home, getting a job, getting married and having her son as well as how reading happened during the pandemic.

I'd not read a book like this before and in some ways it felt like a memoir of books, her favourites and how she has changed as a person as she deals with post-natal depression and grief. At the same time, it was nice to see a discussion of how book buying habits have changed, how COVID affected our reading habits and those universal things known by all readers.

Some of her favourites have been my favourites; she writes about The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and its lack of attention compared to Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. She mentions that our own favourites change as we grow older as well as the reasons for reading younger classics as a way to escape the mundane lives we might lead in middle age.

All in all, a great little bookish memoir if you like reading about other people's habits and favourites 🥰

The perfect book for any book lovers out there! Lucy Mangan's writing is the perfect blend of joy, nostalgia and passion for books (as well as some cracking recommendations along the way!) and I loved every second of it!

Bookish by Lucy Mangan does what every great bibliomemoir should do: it reminded me of lots of books I would like to reread, helped me discover lots of books I now want to read and gave me a new appreciation of books I will probably never read. While Mangan’s previous bibliomemoir Bookworm covered the nostalgia of childhood reading, Bookish is a sequel about reading habits in adulthood and how different genres can be appreciated at particular stages or challenges in life from adolescence to middle age. Unsurprisingly, Mangan’s taste is eclectic and she writes persuasively about what she enjoys, such as devouring Lee Child novels during maternity leave. Reading Bookish made me feel very seen - in particular, Mangan’s holidays browsing bookshops in Hay-and-Wye and north Norfolk with her partner Christopher in tow sound remarkably like mine. Many thanks to Random House UK, Vintage for sending me a review copy via NetGalley.

I don’t read a lot of non-fiction, but could not resist Bookish by Lucy Mangan. I always enjoy her newspaper columns and reviews, and like her am a lifelong bookworm, so it was not a difficult decision to make. Each chapter covers a particular period in her life, and the books that she enjoyed at that time. I remember seeing an article in the Guardian about the room where she has now collected all 10,000 books in her collection in one place – her own library and reading room at the bottom of her garden – and I wished I had the space for one of my own.
The glimpses into her life are fascinating, and I always enjoy her dry humour. I found that we loved some of the same books , especially the Jack Reacher series, but she also recommended some new ones. Like everyone, her taste changed depending on what else was going on in her life. Some old favourites provide solace in times of distress, while discovering a new writer means wanting to read everything they have written. Like me, she has more books than she could ever read in her lifetime, but isn’t that the whole point? Her writing style is easily accessible, and I recommend this to anyone who loves to read; there is something there for everyone. Though I received a digital copy to review, I also bought a hardback copy so that I could dip in and out more easily.

Hier hat mich der Titel direkt angesprochen. Der englische Begriff klingt für meine Ohren so viel schöner als deutsche Begriffe wie "büchersüchtig" oder "bücherverrückt". Beim Untertitel wusste ich dagegen zuerst nicht, was mich erwarten würde. Ich hatte schon Bücher übers Lesen gelesen, bei denen die AutorInnen Bücher vorgestellt haben und in denen ich viele wunderbare Titel für mich gefunden habe.

Lucy Mangan nimmt einen anderen Ansatz. Sie erzählt wie sehr das Bücher und das Lesen schon immer ein großer Teil ihres Lebens waren. Gleich am Anfang hat sie mich mit der Aussage abgeholt, dass sie nicht liest um andere zu beeindrucken, sondern rein zu ihrem eigenen Vergnügen. Da habe ich mich wiedergefunden und ich konnte auch ihren Unmut darüber verstehen, dass sie für die Schule lesen musste. Nicht wegen des Lesens selbst. Aber die Lektüre vorgeschrieben bekommen, das wollte sie nicht, Ihre Leidenschaft macht Lucy oft zur Außenseiterin und auch nicht alle in Lucys Familie sind gleich verständnisvoll, was ihre Leidenschaft angeht. Aber diese Menschen werden immer weniger wichtig für sie, je älter sie wird.

Ihr Leben dreht sich um Bücher, alles andere ist zweitrangig, auch die Überlegungen zu Studium und weiterer Arbeit. Als Lucy ihr Studium beginnt, erkennt sie dass sie mit ihrer Leidenschaft nicht allein ist. Vielen vergeht während des Studiums die Lust zu lesen, bei Lucy ist es anders. Jede ihrer Lektüren begeistert sie und sie kann mir diese Begeisterung vermitteln.

Lucy will Bücher nicht nur lesen, sondern auch besitzen und so ist die Zahl ihrer Bücher riesig. Aber gerade in schweren Zeiten hilft ihr ihre eigene Bibliothek. Als sie mit ihrer Familie während der Pandemie in ihrem neuen Haus eingeschlossen sind, baut sie sich das perfekte Lesezimmer, in dem sie die ihre Lieblinge immer wieder umsortiert, bis sie das für sich perfekte System gefunden hat.

Das Buch hat mich von der ersten Seite an begeistert. Das ist bei diesem Thema natürlich nicht schwer, aber trotzdem ist es auch hier ein etwas Besonderes.

A must read for all bookworms who associate specific reads with particular memories in their life - they will identify strongly with Bookish and feel very nostalgic.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I loved the previous memoir by Lucy Mangan, Bookworm, so obviously I was extremely interested in reading this one as well. And it didn't disappoint. Mangan talks about her various reading obsessions over the course of her life, at school, at university, when she started working, when she got married, when she first became a mother, all the way into the pandemic. The part about her meeting her husband and sharing second-hand bookshop adventures was especially great, but I also loved everything about organizing her book collection, and choosing next books to read.

I just love reading books about reading, so this was perfect for me.

I devoured Bookish from first to last page .As a devoured obsessive reader I also never leave home without two books.The authors anecdotes about books she read throughout the years was wonderful .I enjoyed this book as much I enjoyed her first book #netgalley#Bookish

As a book lover, introvert and reader above pretty much all else, I very much enjoyed this deep delve into the joys of reading and what it brings to one's life.
Essential for all book lovers.

Books have the extraordinary power to enrich our lives in countless ways.
They are not merely static objects filled with printed words rather, they possess the ability to infuse the universe with soul, empower the mind with wings, ignite the imagination with flight, and bring life to every aspect of our existence
- Robert Greene

I love books: I love to read, talk about books and escape and learn
I thought that Lucy Mangan’s Bookish was going to fulfil my desire to hear all about books and in a way it did. I think I would have preferred her first book Bookworm: A Memoir of Childhood Reading which she discusses children’s books. In Bookish she takes us through the books she read and shaped her growing from teenage to adult years, and college reading lists. At times I found the book dry and thesis like. In some areas she was warm, and I loved it. I really enjoyed seeing what books we overlapped. The last chapter she warmed up and I was like YES! Lucy lists all of the books at the end which is a super great reference.

If you like to hear about books and how it can affect you – you will enjoy this
-A love of books is something ineradicable…” that brings comfort and joy-


Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A compelling and enjoyable read on the ecclectic reads of Lucy Mangan, which is also informative without being didactic.
I absolutely loved the fact that Mangan is elaborately promoting reading and that she has ecclectic tastes.

Overall, I believe this is an excellent 5 star read for readers, especially younger readers who are looking for more recommendations and a boost for reading.

In my honest experience this was a solid 4 star read.

I thoroughly enjoyed Lucy Mangan's earlier work, Bookworm, about her childhood reading memories, so I was keen to read Bookish which picks up where Bookworm left off.

There are lots of anecdotes about Lucy's life, interspersed with the books that she discovered at the same time. I recognised a lot of her favourites as books I had read and enjoyed and was pleased to find some excellent recommendations which have been added to my TBR (to be read) list.

If you are a true book lover, I highly recommend spending some time with Bookish and enjoying communing with another reader without having to move from your comfy chair.

I've seen a lot of people raving about this book and Lucy Mangan's first book, so I jumped at the chance to read an early review copy.

This book is full of nostalgic anecdotes that I could really relate to.

Some of the later chapters lost my interest, but I think this was because it focussed more on Mangan's life rather than the books she read.

Overall, this really is a book lovers dream book!
I definitely will be reading her first book now.

An entertaining look at the author and her obsession with books. So many times I said 'Oh that's me' throughout this book. It was a lovely book to read and, more particularly, feel understood. Some of the books she talked about I had no interest, but that's what reading is, a personal preference. I've ordered her previous book, Bookworm, on the back of this and look forward to reading it.

Thanks to the publishers for an EArc in exchange for my review

I greatly enjoyed Bookworm so was delighted to read this second book. It does not disappoint. I enviously followed the photos of the building of Lucy's library on Twitter - those wonderful green shelves! - so it was interesting to read about its genesis. The emotional and psychological impact of the reordering of her books - breaking the rules! - was insightful and honest and I was touched by her deep affection for books and for her dear dad.

I love the way in which she is completely unsnobby and treats all literary genres with the same positive enthusiasm, making the very sensible point that you need different books for different times in your life. Although I don't agree with her on quite a few of the books she mentions, I was fascinated by her take on crime: I realised that my own extensive reading in the genre is almost entirely by men, apart from P D James and Ruth Rendell and the much missed Susie Steiner. I am now left with a long list of books to try.

Many thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

My thanks to Random House Uk publishers and NetGalley for a copy of “ Bookish” for an honest review..

I loved Lucy Mangan’s previous book Bookworm and I was delighted to see she’d written this follow up and what a wonderful book !
As a librarian for over forty years books have played a large part in my life, both at work and at home..I’ve recently, become a convert to the Kindle for convenience but there’s nothing like the feel of a book in your hands , and the smell of a second hand bookshop .Certain books bring back as many memories as hearing a song on the radio.
Lucy Mangan managed to express how I feel about books , I particularly connected with her remarking that libraries now are regularly becoming community hubs , while sidelining the importance of reading .
The book is full of humour but also touches on moments of grief. I too have found comfort in escaping in a book when suffering losses.
A real bonus to reading this is that I now have so many new titles to add to my to be read list, if only time allows .
This is a must read for anyone who loves books.

Finally, a book about books and reading that doesn’t sneer at genre fiction in favour of the DWG (dead white guy) canon, despite the author’s degree in Literature from Cambridge. Lucy Mangan may admire Shakespeare, Geoffrey Chaucer, Spenser Edmunds and the like, but she’s also fond of Lee Child, Marian Keyes, Emily Henry and Riley Sager, and not afraid to admit it.

Bookish: How Reading Shapes Our Lives is a follow up to Bookworm: A Memoir of Childhood Reading, in which Mangan shares her love of books as a child. Here Lucy discusses her relationship with reading from late adolescence through to midlife adulthood.

The narrative is generally lighthearted though the author touches on some serious subjects such as stress, grief, and the pandemic. Mangan is an engaging writer who shares her thoughts and experiences articulately with enthusiasm and sincerity.

Mangan and I are of a similar age so many of the books she references are familiar, and we have enjoyed several of the same titles. We also share some milestones - university, marriage, motherhood, lockdown, so I could relate to how these events affected her reading habits. I too have a swathe of books that fall into “the category of Things I Feel I Might Like and Will Get to In the Fullness of Time, But Certainly Not Within What Normal People Would Call a Reasonable Period.” Regrettably I don’t have a dedicated library in my back garden, and my collection of physical books is slightly more modest, but maybe one day.

I enjoyed Bookish, it’s written for readers by a reader who, like me, reads, “Not to impress others, not under a completist compulsion, not to please someone or to try and make myself amenable to them…” but because, “A love of books is something ineradicable…” that brings comfort and joy.

Surely one of the signs of a good book is that the reader seeks out more by the same author? I immediately ordered Lucy Mangan's 'Bookworm A Memoir of Childhood Reading' and I am so looking forward to reading it.
Such a celebration of the joy and love of reading.
Thanks to Netgalley.

Just as with Mangan’s first book about books, Bookworm, Bookish makes a delightful read for any bibliophile. Part-memoir, part-reflection on the books that shaped her, it’ full of her trademark humour and would make the perfect gift for the bookworm in your life.