The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams is a debut novel that ticks a lot of boxes for me, most especially that it centers around the power of books to affect our lives. The two main characters are the Widower Mukesh and Aleisha Thomas. Aleisha is a teenager working a summer job in the local library when Mukesh comes in to try to find something to read. Neither of them is much of a reader at the start of the book, but then Aleisha finds a list of book recommendations and decides to start reading them and also to suggest the first book on the list to Mukesh.
As both of them embark on a reading journey, they also develop an improbable friendship which slowly deepens as time progresses. Each of them has challenges in their families, as Mukesh navigates life after the death of his wife and Aleisha juggles her need to become her own individual with the needs of her mother and brother. The lessons they learn from the books on the list help them find ways to handle their personal struggles and develop in new ways.
I loved how Adams weaves the books they are reading around the events happening in their lives in a compelling way. This story also shows us the power of community and how that can happen in a place like the library.
Highly recommended!
In So Many Words 