The Reading List

A Novel

By: Sara Nisha Adams

Narrated by: Tara Divina, Sagar Arya, Paul Panting

Length: 12 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

An unforgettable and heartwarming debut about how a chance encounter and a list of library books helps forge an unlikely friendship between two very different people—a lonely London widower and a troubled teenager.

Widower Mukesh lives a quiet life in the London Borough of Ealing 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.

©2021 Sara Nisha Adams (P)2021 HarperCollins Publishers

Perfect

It took me a minute to get into this but I’m so glad I kept at it because I feel like these characters are now part of my life, part of my family. I loved Mukesh and Aleisha, they’re friendship was so genuine and sweet. I just might start leaving a book list in random places; it may not be as profound as the list on this book but just maybe…

Brother Rick

What an amazing sad and yet happy book. It’s a book that I loved so much I didn’t want it to end.
If you have a chance to listen to the book, please do so as the performances were wonderful.
If you love books you will love The Reading List

So much potential but mediocrity prevailed

I kept waiting for this story to live up to its potential. It was sweet and kind but I would rather it had been engrossing and thought provoking.

Absolutely a surprise

What a delightful book. It started out slow, but kept building the characters until they became part of my days. I’ve never not known books so to see them thru someone’s eyes that has never rest made me take another look. I loved it

Another one to add to my read again list

I'm not good at writing reviews but this is a great book. I especially like the male narrator. And was surprised to find out whose list it was.

An endearing story of loss and redemption

Many reviewers see this as a book that affirms libraries and the need to read;
this really is a book about community, how people need other people for life to
be good. Connections.. the connections we need are always around us if we simply
get out of ourselves and take a risk to reveal who we are. Sometimes the connections
arrive through shared interest, like reading a book. Sometimes connections arrive through
family, or friends or in the case of this book, a tragic death. This is well written and superbly
narrated by a trio of readers. I fell in love this this story, and highly recommend to everyone.
It's an easy read, just delightful.

Wonderful

This book was absolutely amazing and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to it. The narrators were excellent. It makes me want to re-read some of the books on the reading list!

Enjoyable Read for a Book Lover

Other than a little trouble with the accented English, truly enjoyed the read. Having read almost every one of the books on the list except the last, I could pick up on the references. Not all of them produced the profound reactions of the characters, but I could relate to them.
A good recommendation for our book club.

I loved it!

This is a lovely story about a love for books and how books can change and help us. It's thought provoking, has endearing characters, and had cute laugh-out-loud moments. It contains and teaches us about all age levels. I certainly enjoyed living life for a time with these characters.

What special book

What a sweet and special book. I laughed and I cried and it was definitely the best kind of escape.