Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.
Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.
Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!

Title: The Bookish Life of Nina Hill
Author: Abbi Waxman
Published: 2019
Length: 351 pages
What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):
The only child of a single mother, Nina has her life just as she wants it: a job in a bookstore, a kick-butt trivia team, a world-class planner and a cat named Phil. If she sometimes suspects there might be more to life than reading, she just shrugs and picks up a new book.
When the father Nina never knew existed suddenly dies, leaving behind innumerable sisters, brothers, nieces, and nephews, Nina is horrified. They all live close by! They’re all—or mostly all—excited to meet her! She’ll have to Speak. To. Strangers. It’s a disaster! And as if that wasn’t enough, Tom, her trivia nemesis, has turned out to be cute, funny, and deeply interested in getting to know her. Doesn’t he realize what a terrible idea that is?
Nina considers her options.
1. Completely change her name and appearance. (Too drastic, plus she likes her hair.)
2. Flee to a deserted island. (Hard pass, see: coffee).
3. Hide in a corner of her apartment and rock back and forth. (Already doing it.)
It’s time for Nina to come out of her comfortable shell, but she isn’t convinced real life could ever live up to fiction. It’s going to take a brand-new family, a persistent suitor, and the combined effects of ice cream and trivia to make her turn her own fresh page.
How and when I got it:
I bought the Kindle version at some point last year.
Why I want to read it:
I just love cute stories about bookstores, people in bookstores, introverted people in bookstores… you get my point. The description makes this book sound totally charming. Add in a new-found family and coming out of one’s comfort zone, and this sounds like a great formula for a fun summer read.
What do you think? Would you read this book?
Please share your thoughts!

Stay tuned!
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- Write a blog post about a book that you own that you haven’t read yet.
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Buy now: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop.org
I think I have come across this before and it does sound like a cute read.
I agree! Sometimes a light, cute read is just what I need.
I have to get back to my shelf control posts as well; I ended up not blogging at all post May 20 cause I suddenly lost my cat and was (in fact still am) in a daze. I have resumed reading and reviewing and but am struggling with keeping up with classes and such.
Oh no, I’m so sorry to hear it! I hope you’re taking time to rest and heal. I’ve missed your posts!
I am but honestly, it still hasn’t really sunk in. I’m trying to get used to life without her (she was the one who’d wake me every morning and sleep next to me while I read at night); yet at times, I have to literally tell myself that she isn’t here any more. Its odd really, like a weird dream.
Nina sounds just like me, lol. I would definitely read this 😁
Haha, I can absolutely relate to the description of Nina!