The Authenticity Project

I requested to review this book because I was in the mood for something lighter that handled some interesting topics with a bit of depth. The Authenticity Project fit the bill with its compelling plot about a notebook that makes its way into the lives of six people who share their private feelings within its cover.

This is a light read but it's predictable - so predictable that I almost put this book down at the halfway point because I figured I could pinpoint exactly how things would go down (and I found it a little dull at this point). I decided to finish the book hoping for a change of heart, but my initial predictions were correct and things ended as I had expected. Kind of satisfying, but kind of not.

This a light read featuring the POVs of several characters which are woven together well. I liked how the book progressed to each person and their personal stories while creating a sense of community among them. But even though the book is lighter fare, it needed more depth - more tension, unique story twists instead of relying heavily on popular romantic tropes and more depth to its characters. (Note: I'm still confused as to why Pooley made Monica the spitting image of the well-known TV character from Friends of the same name)

Overall, this was a sweet, light read that had great potential but was a little too predictable for my tastes. Readers who enjoy light reads with a small town feel and a story with a nicely wrapped up ending will enjoy this book.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Pamela Dorman Books for providing me with a complimentary digital copy of this book, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.
 

My Rating: 3 stars

Book Details

Author: Clare Pooley

Genre: Contemporary Fiction (Light)

Type: eBook

Source: NetGalley

Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books

First Published: February 4, 2020

Book Description from GoodReads: The story of a solitary green notebook that brings together six strangers and leads to unexpected friendship, and even love

Julian Jessop, an eccentric, lonely artist and septuagenarian believes that most people aren't really honest with each other. But what if they were? And so he writes--in a plain, green journal--the truth about his own life and leaves it in his local café. It's run by the incredibly tidy and efficient Monica, who furtively adds her own entry and leaves the book in the wine bar across the street. Before long, the others who find the green notebook add the truths about their own deepest selves--and soon find each other In Real Life at Monica's Café.

The Authenticity Project's cast of characters--including Hazard, the charming addict who makes a vow to get sober; Alice, the fabulous mommy Instagrammer whose real life is a lot less perfect than it looks online; and their other new friends--is by turns quirky and funny, heartbreakingly sad and painfully true-to-life. It's a story about being brave and putting your real self forward--and finding out that it's not as scary as it seems. In fact, it looks a lot like happiness.

The Authenticity Project is just the tonic for our times that readers are clamoring for--and one they will take to their hearts and read with unabashed pleasure.