Review: The Midnight Train by Matt Haig

I feel its success was due to several factors: one, it’s a great story. But it also arrived during a complicated time, right in the middle of the pandemic, when many people were still mainly at home. Lots of people embraced novels again, and a book dedicated to the ‘what ifs’ of life certainly rang a bell during an uncertain time.

I personally really enjoyed The Midnight Library and was so curious where the story would go. So I was especially excited when I learned that Matt Haig wrote another novel set in The Midnight Library universe, which is The Midnight Train.

Something to note is that both of these feature a healthy dose of magical realism, and not much is explained, so you just have to roll with it and don’t think of the mechanism of how this is all happening. Although I think The Midnight Train concept is a bit easier to follow.

This is another solid, quite impactful read. It does focus a bit more on the actual impact of choices, and less on what-if. After he passes away, the main character, Wilbur, is forced to relive many of his key moments, some wonderful and happy, while others are sad and even tragic.

What’s the Story About

Wilbur is in his 80s and just finished a piano lesson. He receives a call from his ex-wife, Maggie, whom he still loves deeply. They have a brief and bittersweet chat, but then Wilbur passes away. What meets him in the afterlife is a train station, and a train awaiting him to board.

But this is unlike any train he’s ridden, as it takes him on a single journey to his past. A very slow way of life passing before his eyes, before he can make his final destination to eternity.

So Wilbur begins his train ride, and while told he cannot interfere in the past, he also is finally seeing the impact of his choices first-hand, and knows he could have made a different one.

Wilbur

Wilbur is a nice guy, but he can’t get out of his own way. He meets Maggie in his youth and is instantly drawn to her, but Wilbur comes from a tough background. His father was killed in WWII, and his mother was left to raise his older brother, Dougie, and Wilbur. She had no help and no money, and it was extremely difficult for everyone.

Dougie tried to put on a brave face and eventually got into crime. While Wilbur tried to be the steady son, and dream of bigger places than their small town. When tragedy struck the family again, they were never the same. And Wilbur could never quite shake the hardships, which impacted his eventual relationship with Maggie.

Now, as he relives his past, he sees where he could have taken a different path. And it’s driving him crazy that he can make a change. Or could he?

Chasing Wealth

For Wilbur, some of his more consequential choices became about acquiring wealth. He eventually takes over a bookstore and is able to turn it into a huge bookstore enterprise all around the world (like a Barnes & Noble). Wilbur believes his success will avoid another tragedy, as he seems to believe all of his family’s problems stem from not having money.

But becoming so money-hungry blinds Wilbur to problems with his relationship with Maggie. And it eventually pushes them apart forever.

I found this dynamic quite interesting; it wasn’t an affair or anything like that, but rather Wilbur’s obsession with success that became the huge obstacle in their relationship. And Wilbur does become very wealthy and has anything he could want. Except for the love of his life.

Choices

I keep these spoiler-free, so I won’t go into what happens as Wilbur sees his past. But I think the idea of reevaluating your life choices is quite compelling. We’ve all had to make big choices, or even the small everyday choices, that can have a big impact.

My takeaway isn’t that we don’t need to wait for our own Midnight Train, but rather, you can take a snapshot of life now and think to yourself, am I truly doing everything I can to live life to the fullest? Books that make you stop and consider this about your own life are truly so compelling and engaging.

Lots to consider for sure with reading both The Midnight Library and The Midnight Train.

Verdict

I found The Midnight Train to be a heartwarming and, overall, just a nice story. It does have tragic moments and hardship, but there is a lightness too, and even some humor. Comparing the two, I might have been more engaged with The Midnight Library, but maybe it was also the perfect book for the time period.

But The Midnight Train is still very much worth a read and will have you think about much in your own life. It’s also more romantic than The Midnight Library as it very much focuses on the love between Wilbur and Maggie.

For book clubs, check out my book club questions here.