Status
Available
Collection
Publication
William Morrow Paperbacks (2022), 400 pages
Description
An unforgettable and heartwarming debut about how a chance encounter with a list of library books helps forge an unlikely friendship between two very different people in a London suburb. Widower Mukesh lives a quiet life in Wembley, in West London after losing his beloved wife. He shops every Wednesday, goes to Temple, and worries about his granddaughter, Priya, who hides in her room reading while he spends his evenings watching nature documentaries. Aleisha is a bright but anxious teenager working at the local library for the summer when she discovers a crumpled-up piece of paper in the back of To Kill a Mockingbird. It's a list of novels that she's never heard of before. Intrigued, and a little bored with her slow job at the checkout desk, she impulsively decides to read every book on the list, one after the other. As each story gives up its magic, the books transport Aleisha from the painful realities she's facing at home. When Mukesh arrives at the library, desperate to forge a connection with his bookworm granddaughter, Aleisha passes along the reading list...hoping that it will be a lifeline for him too. Slowly, the shared books create a connection between two lonely souls, as fiction helps them escape their grief and everyday troubles and find joy again.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member ecataldi
A book that bibliophiles will delight in. A true reader's delight. A story about the power of books in bringing people together. Widower Mukesh lives a lonely life in West London, unsure how to fill the days since his wife of nearly fifty years has passed. When he finds a library book, The Time
Show More
Travelers Wife, in her things, he starts to read it. Even though he has never been a reader he is entranced. He wants to read more books like that so he can feel closer to his wife. He finds the library the book belongs to and in the process starts reading off a list that will break him out of his shell and bring him closer to a teenager battling family issues. Together they work their way through a list of books and each title helps change the way they think and gives them new perspectives on life. Charming. Show Less
LibraryThing member tangledthread
I dropped the book off at the library today, before it was due. I tried for over 100 pages, but the characters never gelled for me. It's not clear whether the author was holding somethings back to reveal about characters later, or whether she's just not skilled at character development.
Life is too
Life is too
Show More
short to push on with a book that is just not doing it for you. Show Less
LibraryThing member cathyskye
Sometimes you read recurring hype about a particular book and you think to yourself, "It sounds good, but I've been burned more than once by reading over-publicized books. Maybe I'll read it. One of these days." Then sometimes a certain book keeps appearing on your radar, and you actually hear its
What made this book different? Number one, I've been compiling reading lists almost from the time I learned how to write. Number two, I had to know what books were on this particular list. Three, when I learned that the book was about how certain books can change your life, I was all in for I, too, have read transformative books. Reading the right book at the right time is powerful. It can change the way you see things. It can shine a spotlight on the dark gnarled knot of a problem and help you see the solution. It can help you to understand and to empathize with other people.
All this and more happens to Aleisha and Mukesh in The Reading List. Aleisha and her brother Aidan are trapped in a nightmarish situation with their mentally fragile mother. Mukesh is mourning the death of his beloved wife and has three overbearing daughters who make him wish he'd lost his hearing first instead of getting a collection of aching joints that don't want to work properly. Mukesh's wife was a voracious reader. So is his granddaughter Priya. In order to have a better relationship with Priya, Mukesh decides to go to his local library where he meets the initially boorish Aleisha. It takes a while, but the magic finally does happen.
Watching the friendship of these two very different people blossom through reading the books on a list is wonderful. It brought back so many memories of my own. Of growing up in a village library where my mother was the librarian and I was allowed to help. Of sitting in the back at the table to do my homework and listening to the patrons who came in to check out both the newest books and the latest gossip. And of reading in the quiet and being transported by one book after another-- reading of wonderful places to visit when I grew up, reading of fictional characters who became family for a rather lonely only child, and of learning to observe and to understand more and more of the world and the people around me.
There are moments in The Reading List that made me laugh. There are moments that made me cry. If you're a reader, you need to read this book. If you're not a reader, I won't ask why you're reading this review, I'll just hope that you crack open a copy of The Reading List, and maybe... just maybe... you'll see the light and join the rest of us on our journeys.
Show More
siren call, a call that really has nothing to do with hype or publicity, and you know you should read it. That's what happened to me when I kept hearing praise of Sara Nisha Adams' The Reading List. That little inner voice of mine said, "Read this one now."What made this book different? Number one, I've been compiling reading lists almost from the time I learned how to write. Number two, I had to know what books were on this particular list. Three, when I learned that the book was about how certain books can change your life, I was all in for I, too, have read transformative books. Reading the right book at the right time is powerful. It can change the way you see things. It can shine a spotlight on the dark gnarled knot of a problem and help you see the solution. It can help you to understand and to empathize with other people.
All this and more happens to Aleisha and Mukesh in The Reading List. Aleisha and her brother Aidan are trapped in a nightmarish situation with their mentally fragile mother. Mukesh is mourning the death of his beloved wife and has three overbearing daughters who make him wish he'd lost his hearing first instead of getting a collection of aching joints that don't want to work properly. Mukesh's wife was a voracious reader. So is his granddaughter Priya. In order to have a better relationship with Priya, Mukesh decides to go to his local library where he meets the initially boorish Aleisha. It takes a while, but the magic finally does happen.
Watching the friendship of these two very different people blossom through reading the books on a list is wonderful. It brought back so many memories of my own. Of growing up in a village library where my mother was the librarian and I was allowed to help. Of sitting in the back at the table to do my homework and listening to the patrons who came in to check out both the newest books and the latest gossip. And of reading in the quiet and being transported by one book after another-- reading of wonderful places to visit when I grew up, reading of fictional characters who became family for a rather lonely only child, and of learning to observe and to understand more and more of the world and the people around me.
There are moments in The Reading List that made me laugh. There are moments that made me cry. If you're a reader, you need to read this book. If you're not a reader, I won't ask why you're reading this review, I'll just hope that you crack open a copy of The Reading List, and maybe... just maybe... you'll see the light and join the rest of us on our journeys.
Show Less
LibraryThing member dwcofer
This book, despite the hype, was a bitter disappointment. The story follows Aleisha, an embittered teen working in a library, and a Mukesh, a widower, who goes to the local library to return an overdue library book his wife checked out, but instead of returning the book, he meets Aleisha who
The prose was slow and plodding. I almost DNF’d the book twice, but kept reading, hoping it would improve. It didn’t. There was no character development at all, not even in Aleisha and Mikesh, the main characters. The characters were predictable and evoked no empathy toward them at all.
The dialogue was equally bad. It was stilted and uncreative. Every character talked alike. Many dialogue tags were not provided, even when a character spoke twice in a row, thus the dialogue was confusing as all the characters spoke like each other. A 17 year old teenage girl should not talk like a 70 year old man. Forced and unnatural dialogue.
This is one of those books that is heavily hyped, but fails to deliver. Don’t waste your time with this one.
Show More
recommends several books to him that she found on a list left in a library book.The prose was slow and plodding. I almost DNF’d the book twice, but kept reading, hoping it would improve. It didn’t. There was no character development at all, not even in Aleisha and Mikesh, the main characters. The characters were predictable and evoked no empathy toward them at all.
The dialogue was equally bad. It was stilted and uncreative. Every character talked alike. Many dialogue tags were not provided, even when a character spoke twice in a row, thus the dialogue was confusing as all the characters spoke like each other. A 17 year old teenage girl should not talk like a 70 year old man. Forced and unnatural dialogue.
This is one of those books that is heavily hyped, but fails to deliver. Don’t waste your time with this one.
Show Less
LibraryThing member FerneMysteryReader
An extraordinary, beautifully written book as the author's debut novel. The beginning of the story was inspired by her grandfather, "Thank you to Dada, for always asking me what I was reading and for being the start of this story." How blessed we are as readers to enjoy the gift of this reading
One of the most rewarding moments whether you are a librarian, bookseller, author, friend is offering a recommendation to someone needing comfort (regardless of the reason) and then return for the next suggestion. Or, the individual may simply have said, "I'd like to read something but I don't know what to read." In library science education we learned it is called "bibliotherapy." Asking a few questions but not intrusively may guide the response. The formal definition as "Bibliotherapy is a creative arts therapies modality that involves storytelling or the reading of specific texts with the purpose of healing. It uses an individual's relationship to the content of books and poetry and other written words as therapy." To any reader who has ever been experienced bibliotherapy he/she knows it cannot possibly be explained in a formal definition. The author describes it best by writing, “Sometimes, books just take us away for a little while, and return us to our place with a new perspective.”
"The Reading List" of 8 novels seems to have been created anonymously and the header on the list merely says, "Just in case you need it." It shares the story of Aleisha and Mukesh and their experience together in reading the novels on the list. Evocative and touching. One of the most exceptional novels that I have ever read that conveys the beauty of friendships built through reading.
I encourage everyone to enjoy perusing "A Reading List from the Author" at the end of the novel. It is an additional 11 titles meaningful to the author and may not be as recognizable as the 8 titles within the story but may spark interest for additions to a tbr list.
Show More
experience.One of the most rewarding moments whether you are a librarian, bookseller, author, friend is offering a recommendation to someone needing comfort (regardless of the reason) and then return for the next suggestion. Or, the individual may simply have said, "I'd like to read something but I don't know what to read." In library science education we learned it is called "bibliotherapy." Asking a few questions but not intrusively may guide the response. The formal definition as "Bibliotherapy is a creative arts therapies modality that involves storytelling or the reading of specific texts with the purpose of healing. It uses an individual's relationship to the content of books and poetry and other written words as therapy." To any reader who has ever been experienced bibliotherapy he/she knows it cannot possibly be explained in a formal definition. The author describes it best by writing, “Sometimes, books just take us away for a little while, and return us to our place with a new perspective.”
"The Reading List" of 8 novels seems to have been created anonymously and the header on the list merely says, "Just in case you need it." It shares the story of Aleisha and Mukesh and their experience together in reading the novels on the list. Evocative and touching. One of the most exceptional novels that I have ever read that conveys the beauty of friendships built through reading.
I encourage everyone to enjoy perusing "A Reading List from the Author" at the end of the novel. It is an additional 11 titles meaningful to the author and may not be as recognizable as the 8 titles within the story but may spark interest for additions to a tbr list.
Show Less
LibraryThing member brangwinn
While the theme music for the beginning of this book could be The Beatles “All the Lonely People” by the end you might be humming “With a Little Help from My Friends.” A handwritten list of books which appears mysteriously in several places, unites a lonely librarian, a grieving widower and
Show More
his granddaughter and two other people in a London suburb. And in the end, with a purpose for living, they create a community day in the local library which is destined to be closed. The list which includes books like To Kill a Mockingbird, Rebecca, Beloved, Life of Pi, Pride and Prejudice, The Kite Runner, Little Women, and A Suitable Boy all resonate with the reader for different reasons, and in the end the reader sees how a book can entertain, but it can also help people chose their life path. Deep sorrow and death are all familiar to the characters in the book, and yet, their shared enjoyment of these books, leads to a community of friends. This will be a book dear to those people who love to read and value libraries. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookchickdi
In Sara Nisha Adams’ The Reading List, Mukesh is a widower outside London in mourning for the loss of his beloved wife a year ago. He is lonely, only seeing people at his local temple and neighborhood grocery store.
When his young granddaughter Priya asks him about the books her grandmother
Mukesh meets Aleisha, a young librarian who lives with her seriously depressed mother and her older brother. Aleisha doesn’t like to read, but when she finds a paper in a library book that reads “Just in case you need it:” followed by a list of novels, she suggests one of these books to Mukesh.
Aleisha and Mukesh bond over these books, and it brings them both out of their shells. They become friends, and share their lives with each other. Mukesh and Aleisha work together to save the library from closure.
I enjoyed learning about Mukesh’s Indian customs, especially the food his family enjoys. If reading and libraries are something you enjoy, The Reading List should be on your To-Be-Read pile. The way they tie the Reading List to characters at the end is sweet. (A warning though- there are some sad events in this book as well.)
When his young granddaughter Priya asks him about the books her grandmother
Show More
loved, Mukesh decides to visit the small local library that his wife frequented to get some books for Priya.Mukesh meets Aleisha, a young librarian who lives with her seriously depressed mother and her older brother. Aleisha doesn’t like to read, but when she finds a paper in a library book that reads “Just in case you need it:” followed by a list of novels, she suggests one of these books to Mukesh.
Aleisha and Mukesh bond over these books, and it brings them both out of their shells. They become friends, and share their lives with each other. Mukesh and Aleisha work together to save the library from closure.
I enjoyed learning about Mukesh’s Indian customs, especially the food his family enjoys. If reading and libraries are something you enjoy, The Reading List should be on your To-Be-Read pile. The way they tie the Reading List to characters at the end is sweet. (A warning though- there are some sad events in this book as well.)
Show Less
LibraryThing member bookappeal
The relationships are engaging but the author's thoughts about books and the experience of reading are too obvious instead of being skillfully woven into her characters. The depiction of "librarians" is slightly insulting - a new, teenage hire with no training is expected to provide readers
Show More
advisory? The story's point that a good novel can have far-reaching effects and bring people together is valid, just not always artfully executed. Show Less
LibraryThing member oldandnewbooksmell
Mukesh is a widower who lives a quiet life; he shops every Wednesday, watches nature documentaries in the evening, and cooks an unhealthy diet of okra and mung. He loves his daughters deeply, but sometimes they care for him without actually talking with him. And, no matter what he tries, he
Aleisha is an anxious 17-year-old working at the local library for the summer. While sorting books one day, she discovers a crumpled-up piece of paper in the back on To Kill a Mockingbird.
Just in case you need it:
To Kill a Mockingbird
Rebecca
The Kite Runner
Life of Pi
Pride and Prejudice
Little Women
Beloved
A Suitable Boy
Intrigued, and a little bored, she impulsively decides to read every book on the list.
When Mukesh arrives at the library, desperate to forge a connection with Priya and his late wife, Aleisha passes along the books on the reading list, hoping they could be a lifeline for him as they started to be for her. Slowly, the shared books create a connection between the two and help them both escape their grief and everyday troubles.
This is a book about reading books and the connection they can create; both with the individual and the book itself, and the individuals who are reading or have read the book. This book had me nodding my head and smiling with how relatable the book quotes were.
"Sometimes, books take us away for a little while, and return us to our place with a new perspective."
"He knew the world Priya was in right now. There was something magical in that - in sharing a world you have loved; allowing someone to see it through the same pair of spectacles you saw it through yourself."
"...Ba always told me that sometimes when you really like a book, you need to read it again! Books always change as the person who reads them changes too."
"...Books aren't always an escape; sometimes books teach us things. They show us the world; they don't hide it."
I really adored this book! It's more than a story of reading though, it's a story about family, both blood and found, and grief and how you handle and learn from it. Mukesh and Aliesha both had different struggles and grief they were trying to work through, but with every book they read, they were able to make a connection to their current life. Books are magical like that, that's for sure.
One of the things I really enjoyed about the narrative of this book is that Sara Nish Adams summarized the books the characters were reading but she never fully gave anything away. I knew all but one of these books, but have only read two (and quite a while ago). Mukesh and Aliesha would talk about the books and their connections to them and I was able to understand them even without having read the book(s). The way they talked about them though really made me think about jumping onto this reading list myself!
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the library, reading, and making that connection with another person who's read the same book.
Show More
desperately wants to connect with his granddaughter, Priya, who hides away in books.Aleisha is an anxious 17-year-old working at the local library for the summer. While sorting books one day, she discovers a crumpled-up piece of paper in the back on To Kill a Mockingbird.
Just in case you need it:
To Kill a Mockingbird
Rebecca
The Kite Runner
Life of Pi
Pride and Prejudice
Little Women
Beloved
A Suitable Boy
Intrigued, and a little bored, she impulsively decides to read every book on the list.
When Mukesh arrives at the library, desperate to forge a connection with Priya and his late wife, Aleisha passes along the books on the reading list, hoping they could be a lifeline for him as they started to be for her. Slowly, the shared books create a connection between the two and help them both escape their grief and everyday troubles.
This is a book about reading books and the connection they can create; both with the individual and the book itself, and the individuals who are reading or have read the book. This book had me nodding my head and smiling with how relatable the book quotes were.
"Sometimes, books take us away for a little while, and return us to our place with a new perspective."
"He knew the world Priya was in right now. There was something magical in that - in sharing a world you have loved; allowing someone to see it through the same pair of spectacles you saw it through yourself."
"...Ba always told me that sometimes when you really like a book, you need to read it again! Books always change as the person who reads them changes too."
"...Books aren't always an escape; sometimes books teach us things. They show us the world; they don't hide it."
I really adored this book! It's more than a story of reading though, it's a story about family, both blood and found, and grief and how you handle and learn from it. Mukesh and Aliesha both had different struggles and grief they were trying to work through, but with every book they read, they were able to make a connection to their current life. Books are magical like that, that's for sure.
One of the things I really enjoyed about the narrative of this book is that Sara Nish Adams summarized the books the characters were reading but she never fully gave anything away. I knew all but one of these books, but have only read two (and quite a while ago). Mukesh and Aliesha would talk about the books and their connections to them and I was able to understand them even without having read the book(s). The way they talked about them though really made me think about jumping onto this reading list myself!
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the library, reading, and making that connection with another person who's read the same book.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Cariola
This book was sweet. Sweet, sweet, sweet. So sweet. Too sweet for me, I'm afraid. Everybody lives happily ever after. Except maybe the dead people, and the author makes sure that memories of them live on happily ever after, too.
The story revolves around two characters living in Wembley, UK: Mukesh,
Mukesh and Aleisha both find copies of the reading list in the novel's title, headed by a cryptic note that it is "for when you need it." Mukesh's late wife was an avid reader, and he has picked up one of her favorite library books, The Time Traveler's Wife. When he returns it, he finds the reading list and meets Aleisha. He asks her for a book recommendation and is met with rudeness. Her supervisor calls her out; he has apologized to Mukesh and tells Aleisha to make a book selection for him when he returns. She chooses the first book on the list, To Kill a Mockingbird, and decides to reread it herself. Needless to say, despite their rocky meeting, the two bond over books and become fast friends.
I won't give any more details, but apparently books heal all wounds and bring people together. Other people also find copies of the reading list, found in books, in the grocery store, etc., and they all fall in love with reading and work together to save the floundering library. Almost everyone lives happily ever after, despite some rough times for Mukesh and Aleisha. Even the dead people provide happily ever after memories.
So sweet.
The book is structured around the books on the reading list, which includes The Kite Runner, Little Women, Pride and Prejudice,>/i> Beloved and others. Each book seems to have a timely message for it's readers. It's an interesting framework, and for that, I raised my rating by one star.
The story revolves around two characters living in Wembley, UK: Mukesh,
Show More
a man in his 70s struggling to adjust to his wife's death from cancer, and Aleisha, a teenager who has reluctantly taken a job in the distressed local library. Both have family issues. Mukesh's three adult daughters have lives of their own but keep trying to control their father's. Aleisha's mother is depressed and erratic but refuses to seek professional help, instead spending most of her time in bed, except when her manic phases make demands on Aleisha and her older brother Aidan.Mukesh and Aleisha both find copies of the reading list in the novel's title, headed by a cryptic note that it is "for when you need it." Mukesh's late wife was an avid reader, and he has picked up one of her favorite library books, The Time Traveler's Wife. When he returns it, he finds the reading list and meets Aleisha. He asks her for a book recommendation and is met with rudeness. Her supervisor calls her out; he has apologized to Mukesh and tells Aleisha to make a book selection for him when he returns. She chooses the first book on the list, To Kill a Mockingbird, and decides to reread it herself. Needless to say, despite their rocky meeting, the two bond over books and become fast friends.
I won't give any more details, but apparently books heal all wounds and bring people together. Other people also find copies of the reading list, found in books, in the grocery store, etc., and they all fall in love with reading and work together to save the floundering library. Almost everyone lives happily ever after, despite some rough times for Mukesh and Aleisha. Even the dead people provide happily ever after memories.
So sweet.
The book is structured around the books on the reading list, which includes The Kite Runner, Little Women, Pride and Prejudice,>/i> Beloved and others. Each book seems to have a timely message for it's readers. It's an interesting framework, and for that, I raised my rating by one star.
Show Less
LibraryThing member SamSattler
Where to begin? First off, The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams is not at all what I expected it would be. I was expecting more of a novel showing how each of the eight novels on “the reading list” had something specific to teach us about being human beings living lives we too often take for
But the more I think about it, the more I believe that Adams perfectly tailored The Reading List to her chosen target audience: those of us who self-identify as readers. Adams likely assumed that most of her readers would already be familiar with the eight novels on the list and the one other one that plays a large role in this, her debut novel. (I’ve read seven of the nine books, and I suspect that might be about just about the average for people drawn to The Reading List.) For those wondering, the list consists of To Kill a Mockingbird, Rebecca, The Kite Runner, Life of Pi, Pride and Prejudice, Little Women, Beloved, and A Suitable Boy. The Time Traveler’s Wife is not actually part of the list, but it will turn out to be the most significant book in Adams’s story.
The Reading List is rather cleverly constructed. It is divided into nine sections, each carrying the title of one of the nine books I’ve mentioned. Within each of these sections there are several short chapters titled with the name, or names, of the book’s two main characters, Aleisha (a teenager whose life centers entirely on taking care of her invalid mother) or Mukesh (an elderly Hindu man who has been a widower for one year). Intermeshed with all of this are brief flashbacks to 2017 (the book is set in 2019) that feature a handful of side characters that play key roles in the story.
At first, I found it all a bit confusing, and then when I figured out where we were heading, I began to have second thoughts about reading this one at all. It all seemed too cute and make-believe, a fairy tale of sorts just for avid readers. And it was obvious that Sara Nisha Adams is a talented writer who knows where all the “buttons” are — and that she planned on pushing each and every one of them before she was done. Not going to work on me, I thought, so why read on? Well, let’s just say that I was wrong; even though I knew exactly what Adams was up to by pushing all those buttons, I could not resist reading the next page, then the next chapter…and then I was well and thoroughly hooked. The Reading List is, as it happens, a character-driven novel after all, and I found myself caring about Aleisha and Mukesh and could not wait to find out how things would turn out for them and those closest to them.
As The Reading List opens, Mukesh is a timid little man who seldom ventures outside his home anymore. His three adult daughters worry about him, but they really don’t have the time to make sure that he is doing well after the loss of their mother. Mukesh wants nothing more than to find a way of bonding with his little bookworm of a granddaughter, and he finally gets brave enough to venture into the local library in search of a book they can share. There he meets Aleisha, a rather cranky library summer-worker, who practically runs him out of the building. Aleisha, though, has recently found a book list inside a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird that she was shelving, and after her boss coerces her into making amends with Mukesh, she decides to recommend those eight books to the old man — one by one.
But the only way Aleisha can discuss the books with Mukesh is to read each of them before she gives him the next book on the list. And what happens next is the sometimes tragic fairy tale at the heart of The Reading List.
Bottom Line: The Book List is a novel aimed at dedicated readers, and Sara Nisha Adams, herself an obvious reader, strikes the perfect tone here. As sad as the novel is at times, it manages to be just the kind of feel-good story that we need every so often. Even the little side incidents used to develop the characters strike the right tone.One of my favorite passages from the novel describes the day that Mukesh takes his granddaughter Priya to the flagship Foyles bookstore in London:
“Wow!” Priya gasped quietly. She quickly shook off her awe, trying to play it cool. Mukesh felt the same. He’d seen books now, but the library was sparse compared to this. Shelves and shelves. Floors and floors. Tables and tables. Piles and piles of books. It was as if they were floating all around him, lifted up by some kind of magic, offering new worlds, new experiences. It was beautiful.
And then Mukesh brings his granddaughter to the till where he tries to impress her by asking for copies of Rebecca, The Kite Runner, and To Kill a Hummingbird. Now there’s a scene I’ll remember for a while.
Show More
granted…with emphasis on the themes and characters of each book. Adams does, I think, convincingly make that point, but she accomplishes it by taking a rather barebones approach to the eight books on the list themselves. But the more I think about it, the more I believe that Adams perfectly tailored The Reading List to her chosen target audience: those of us who self-identify as readers. Adams likely assumed that most of her readers would already be familiar with the eight novels on the list and the one other one that plays a large role in this, her debut novel. (I’ve read seven of the nine books, and I suspect that might be about just about the average for people drawn to The Reading List.) For those wondering, the list consists of To Kill a Mockingbird, Rebecca, The Kite Runner, Life of Pi, Pride and Prejudice, Little Women, Beloved, and A Suitable Boy. The Time Traveler’s Wife is not actually part of the list, but it will turn out to be the most significant book in Adams’s story.
The Reading List is rather cleverly constructed. It is divided into nine sections, each carrying the title of one of the nine books I’ve mentioned. Within each of these sections there are several short chapters titled with the name, or names, of the book’s two main characters, Aleisha (a teenager whose life centers entirely on taking care of her invalid mother) or Mukesh (an elderly Hindu man who has been a widower for one year). Intermeshed with all of this are brief flashbacks to 2017 (the book is set in 2019) that feature a handful of side characters that play key roles in the story.
At first, I found it all a bit confusing, and then when I figured out where we were heading, I began to have second thoughts about reading this one at all. It all seemed too cute and make-believe, a fairy tale of sorts just for avid readers. And it was obvious that Sara Nisha Adams is a talented writer who knows where all the “buttons” are — and that she planned on pushing each and every one of them before she was done. Not going to work on me, I thought, so why read on? Well, let’s just say that I was wrong; even though I knew exactly what Adams was up to by pushing all those buttons, I could not resist reading the next page, then the next chapter…and then I was well and thoroughly hooked. The Reading List is, as it happens, a character-driven novel after all, and I found myself caring about Aleisha and Mukesh and could not wait to find out how things would turn out for them and those closest to them.
As The Reading List opens, Mukesh is a timid little man who seldom ventures outside his home anymore. His three adult daughters worry about him, but they really don’t have the time to make sure that he is doing well after the loss of their mother. Mukesh wants nothing more than to find a way of bonding with his little bookworm of a granddaughter, and he finally gets brave enough to venture into the local library in search of a book they can share. There he meets Aleisha, a rather cranky library summer-worker, who practically runs him out of the building. Aleisha, though, has recently found a book list inside a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird that she was shelving, and after her boss coerces her into making amends with Mukesh, she decides to recommend those eight books to the old man — one by one.
But the only way Aleisha can discuss the books with Mukesh is to read each of them before she gives him the next book on the list. And what happens next is the sometimes tragic fairy tale at the heart of The Reading List.
Bottom Line: The Book List is a novel aimed at dedicated readers, and Sara Nisha Adams, herself an obvious reader, strikes the perfect tone here. As sad as the novel is at times, it manages to be just the kind of feel-good story that we need every so often. Even the little side incidents used to develop the characters strike the right tone.One of my favorite passages from the novel describes the day that Mukesh takes his granddaughter Priya to the flagship Foyles bookstore in London:
“Wow!” Priya gasped quietly. She quickly shook off her awe, trying to play it cool. Mukesh felt the same. He’d seen books now, but the library was sparse compared to this. Shelves and shelves. Floors and floors. Tables and tables. Piles and piles of books. It was as if they were floating all around him, lifted up by some kind of magic, offering new worlds, new experiences. It was beautiful.
And then Mukesh brings his granddaughter to the till where he tries to impress her by asking for copies of Rebecca, The Kite Runner, and To Kill a Hummingbird. Now there’s a scene I’ll remember for a while.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Dianekeenoy
A wonderful read about the power of books to transform our lives. Mukesh has lost his wife and lives a quiet solitary life. He wants to connect with his little granddaughter, Priya who loves to read just as her grandmother did. A love letter to libraries and books that come into your life when you
Show More
most need them! Show Less
LibraryThing member SilversReviews
Books and libraries bring people together, and in this sweet, heartwarming read, Alisha and Mukesh bond over books and help others do the same.
Alisha had never liked books, but she worked in a library.
Mukesh had never read a book in his life, but his wife was an avid reader. When he met Alisha she
Alisha found a reading list with books that she read and that she shared and discussed with Mukesh. In fact, that reading list was found all over town tucked in books, in grocery stores, and in any place where someone would likely find it.
The mystery is who wrote “The Reading List.”
THE READING LIST is an alluring, uplifting book that proves the magic power of books and their ability to connect people in so many ways.
It also addresses the importance of libraries to help bring people and ideas together.
Readers who enjoy a feel-good, sweet, clever read will want to add this book to their "reading list" this summer.
What can be better than a book promoting the love of books and libraries and how they change your life and can bring you closer to others. 5/5
This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Alisha had never liked books, but she worked in a library.
Mukesh had never read a book in his life, but his wife was an avid reader. When he met Alisha she
Show More
wasn't too friendly, but then one day they bonded.Alisha found a reading list with books that she read and that she shared and discussed with Mukesh. In fact, that reading list was found all over town tucked in books, in grocery stores, and in any place where someone would likely find it.
The mystery is who wrote “The Reading List.”
THE READING LIST is an alluring, uplifting book that proves the magic power of books and their ability to connect people in so many ways.
It also addresses the importance of libraries to help bring people and ideas together.
Readers who enjoy a feel-good, sweet, clever read will want to add this book to their "reading list" this summer.
What can be better than a book promoting the love of books and libraries and how they change your life and can bring you closer to others. 5/5
This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Show Less
LibraryThing member shazjhb
Lovely book. Interesting book list.
LibraryThing member bell7
*ARC received from the publisher via NetGalley. Thank you!*
Aleisha, a teen working at an underfunded and underused library, finds a reading list in a book and, though she never thought of herself as a reader starts working her way through the list. Mukesh, an older man grieving his wife's death,
I have read a lot of "books about books", whether fiction or nonfiction, that celebrate the power of reading and how it can bring people together, so I admittedly have high expectations going in. Almost the first scene in the book takes place a very depressed, barely-used library and the 17-year-old listening to music and playing with her phone at the circ desk is called a "librarian", so it started off on the wrong foot for me and never really fully recovered after that. It's a nice story and people do come together over their love of reading, but in the end there are better examples in the genre.
Aleisha, a teen working at an underfunded and underused library, finds a reading list in a book and, though she never thought of herself as a reader starts working her way through the list. Mukesh, an older man grieving his wife's death,
Show More
goes into the library and asks for a recommendation, since his wife was an avid reader and he wants to feel connected to her. Their first meeting over the library desk is a bit of a bust, but as they start reading through the list, they form a friendship.I have read a lot of "books about books", whether fiction or nonfiction, that celebrate the power of reading and how it can bring people together, so I admittedly have high expectations going in. Almost the first scene in the book takes place a very depressed, barely-used library and the 17-year-old listening to music and playing with her phone at the circ desk is called a "librarian", so it started off on the wrong foot for me and never really fully recovered after that. It's a nice story and people do come together over their love of reading, but in the end there are better examples in the genre.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Beamis12
A celebration of and an ode to books and libraries. Makeesh is a lonely widower, his wife of fifty years had recently passed. She had been a big reader, a love she shared with her youngest granddaughter, Priya. Makeesh watched TV, the Blue Planet, but used to love seeing his wife read. He finds her
A list is found in various places, with the title, if you need it, and lists a number of books to read. This list changes the life of many as do the books themselves. I couldn't help wonder what books I would include on a list. Books bridge generations, bringing family together, taking us to places we've never been and so much more. We're all readers, I don't have to say much more. It's all here, in this heartwarming tale.
A feel good, sentimental story, but what better time to read this than in December? Tis the season, after all.
Show More
copy of The Time Traveler's wife and in an effort to feel close to her, he reads and loves the story. Returning it to the library he meets Aleisha, working for the summer, and at first their relationship is contentious but as they both fall in love with books, this soon changes.A list is found in various places, with the title, if you need it, and lists a number of books to read. This list changes the life of many as do the books themselves. I couldn't help wonder what books I would include on a list. Books bridge generations, bringing family together, taking us to places we've never been and so much more. We're all readers, I don't have to say much more. It's all here, in this heartwarming tale.
A feel good, sentimental story, but what better time to read this than in December? Tis the season, after all.
Show Less
LibraryThing member yukon92
Lovely book about a widower in London and how he slowly returned to "life". The characters were vivid and even though the story line was sometimes very sad, it was a great book.
I listened to the audio book and the narrating cast was amazing!
I listened to the audio book and the narrating cast was amazing!
LibraryThing member bereanna
Lonely people happen to find a listing of books which say “If you need them.” They go to the local library to borrow them and become less lonely as they work through their lives. The readers learn characters traits and problems and learn from them.
LibraryThing member LARA335
I can’t believe that a novel celebrating reading can be this bad. There is nothing wrong with a cast of depressed and depressing non-too-bright characters, but here they are undermined by the didactic intent of the author. A hugely patronising read and pedestrian writing to boot. Abandoned
Show More
three-quarters through as it’s irritated me enough. Yes, there are better novels out there which are actually life-enhancing. Show Less
LibraryThing member quondame
Loss, loneliness, libraries, books, healing, moving on, facing life. A handful of people find copies of a list of books, introduced only by the words "Just in case you need it:" and they do, in their different ways to face different facets of being alone. Of the books on the list I've only not read
Show More
The Kite Runner, and now I may have to. Show Less
LibraryThing member froxgirl
A sweet story of rebirth via the power of sharing authors' ideas. Set in Wembley, the primary characters are Mukesh, a lonely and withdrawn elderly widower, and Aleisha, a lonely and withdrawn circulation employee at a small local branch library. They each serendipitously find a list of classic
Show More
books, ranging from Little Women through Beloved, and their friendship grows as they work their way through the volumes, even though neither had enjoyed reading for pleasure previously. It's fairly predictable but there's a tragedy and a twist at the end that raises the story to above average. Show Less
LibraryThing member pdebolt
This wonderful novel will surely resonate with all of us who love the enrichment that books provide. Curiously, a list of noteworthy books circulates around a small community by an unknown source. These books touch the life of an elderly widower, Mukesh, who is able to overcome his self-imposed
Show More
physical and emotional restrictions when he realizes that books "aren't always an escape; sometimes they teach us things." He meets a young librarian, 17-year old Elisha, who is also reading books from the same list. Her mother, divorced from a man who has moved on with a new family, is agoraphobic and totally dependent on Elisha and her brother. The brother dies a tragic death, leaving Elisha the sole caretaker of her broken mother. Mueshka and Elisha formed a powerful bond and lasting friendship through their shared responses to the books they've read. Show Less
LibraryThing member Amzzz
“Just in case you need it” - a reading list that awakens a love of reading and a meaningful friendship between characters Mukesh and Aleisha. I liked this book but I wanted to love it more - it had all of the elements of a book that I wish was great. I enjoyed how it referenced several other
Show More
books (many of which have been added to my reread or first time read list). The characters’ stories were a bit too neat and predictable. Show Less
LibraryThing member mchwest
What a great idea for a book, leave a list of books to read anonymously, and find out how many people read the list and why! Lots of characters and a couple different time lines, but thoroughly an enjoyable read.
LibraryThing member susan0316
What could be better than a book about books and libraries! This book has well written characters, a great plot and great books that helped to change the characters lives.
Mukesh is a widower. He misses his wife desperately and he sees her everywhere. His daughters try to help him by the end up
Aleisha is a teen ager who works at the library. When she finds the reading list, she decides to read all of the books on the list hoping that they will help her deal with her life at home.
Mukesh and Aleisha started off as strangers but the more they discussed the books that they were reading, the more their friendship grew and they begin to realize that there was a whole world outside of what had been their dreary lives.
As readers we all know how books can affect your life and the way you view the world around you. This book was so great because it showed how two non-readers were affected by the books on the reading list and the changes that the books helped make in their lives. This is a heart-warming novel about the magic of books!
Thanks to goodreads for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
Mukesh is a widower. He misses his wife desperately and he sees her everywhere. His daughters try to help him by the end up
Show More
overprotecting him. He wants to find a way to connect with his young granddaughter. All she wants to do is read but then he realizes books were what made her close with her grandmother. So he makes the trek to the library that is far outside his neighborhood and when he gets a reading list that was left by an anonymous person, he decides to read all of the books on the list.Aleisha is a teen ager who works at the library. When she finds the reading list, she decides to read all of the books on the list hoping that they will help her deal with her life at home.
Mukesh and Aleisha started off as strangers but the more they discussed the books that they were reading, the more their friendship grew and they begin to realize that there was a whole world outside of what had been their dreary lives.
As readers we all know how books can affect your life and the way you view the world around you. This book was so great because it showed how two non-readers were affected by the books on the reading list and the changes that the books helped make in their lives. This is a heart-warming novel about the magic of books!
Thanks to goodreads for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
Show Less
Awards
RUSA CODES Reading List (Shortlist — 2022)
Diverse Book Awards (Longlist — Adult — 2022)
Los Angeles Public Library Best of the Year (Fiction — 2021)
LibraryReads (Monthly Pick — August 2021)
Lariat Adult Fiction Reading List (Selection — 2022)
New York Public Library Best Books: For Adults (Fiction — 2021)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2021
Physical description
400 p.; 8 inches
ISBN
0063025299 / 9780063025295