Aahana Swrup
The cozy comedy-drama film ‘The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry’ presents an all-encompassing and vibrant visual that transports the viewers to a ferry side island where the titular bookkeeper resides. A.J. Fikry, owner of Island Books—the local bookshop at Alice Island—is a man whom time has made grouchy. Ever since the death of his wife, he hasn’t taken the same interest in his life as before. In fact, even his love for books seems to have dimmed as his rare copy of Edgar Allen Poe’s Tamerlane, a sure ticket into retirement, becomes his most treasured possession.
Therefore, everything changes for A.J. when, one night, his treasured book of poems gets stolen. Shortly afterward, an unlikely face arrives at his bookstore, offering him a whole new future ahead. The Hans Canosa film charts a delightful story about love, loss, and everything in between as experienced by the bookkeeper and his fellow Alice Island community. Consequently, the island itself and A.J.’s cherished Tamerlane inevitably become points of interest in the tale’s connection to reality.
Alice Island: The Fictional Island Comes to Life in Cape Cod
As an adaptation of Gabrielle Zevin’s eponymous fictional novel, ‘The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry’ is a work of fiction in which most storytelling elements remain confined within the narrative’s bounds. Therefore, much like the characters, the central location within the tale—Alice Island—is also a fabricated addition that doesn’t sport a counterpart in reality. Zevin created the place from her own imagination, situating the island somewhere near Boston, Massachusetts. Notably, in its literary version, the island is a ferry ride away from the Hyannis village.
As such, since Alice Island isn’t a real place, Hans Canosa and his team had to create the island for the screen on their own. This necessitated a scouting trip wherein the director visited multiple places to find the ideal shooting location. Reportedly, he visited Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket—two known islands of Massachusetts—during this search. Since Canosa grew up in the state, his knowledge of the area acted as a useful tool in his arsenal. Ultimately, the island of Cape Cod was chosen as the primary location to become Alice Island.
The decision was also supported by the author Zevin, who also penned the screenplay for the film. She reportedly wrote to the Times to express her satisfaction with the choice and said, “With its many bookstores, interestingly named roads, and distinctive coastal landscapes is perfectly cast in the role of Alice Island. I can’t imagine a better setting.” Thus, even though fans may be disheartened to know that the mystifying Alice Island isn’t a real place, they can find many on-screen counterparts for the place in Cape Cod.
Tamerlane: Edgar Allen Poe’s Real Rare Book of Poems
Unlike most other elements of ‘The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry,’ ‘Tamerlane,’ the shop owner’s expensive book that he is relying on to buoy him into retirement, is actually a real book. In real life, Edgar Allen Poe penned a fictionalization of the life of Timur, a conqueror from Turco-Mongol. He is famously known as Tamerlane, paving the way for the book’s title. Similar to the on-screen version of it, the original ‘Tamerlane’ was published in 1827 under the title “A Bostonian” instead of Poe’s name or another pen name. There were only ever 50 copies printed of that book.
That collection of Poe’s poems presents a unique thematic resonance with the life of A.J. Fikry, making the latter a perfect plot device for the story. In his work, the poet talks about themes of loss in relation to Timur’s life. Outside of the text, these ideas tied effectively into Poe’s reality since he had undergone more than his fair share of loss. Similarly, in the film, A.J. also suffers a momentous loss at the beginning as his wife’s death leaves him unmoored and adrift.
Likewise, another aspect of the poems in ‘Tamerlane’ deals with complications with identity due to uncertainty about parentage. This is reflected in the storyline of Maya, the two-year-old toddler who is left behind in A.J.’s shop by an unidentified mother. Consequently, even though the narrative never explicitly explores these parallels between the in-universe tale and ‘Tamerlane,’ it becomes an exciting easter egg for fans to uncover.
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