Play Book Tag discussion

Set in the London suburb of Wembley, The Reading List chronicles the story of two individuals. The first of these two primary characters is eighty-year-old Mukesh Patel who, two years ago, lost his wife, Naina. His three daughters have their own lives and he has nothing but loneliness and dull routine.

The second main character is seventeen-year-old Aleisha who doesn't enjoy reading but took a part-time summer job at the library upon the recommendation of her brother, Aidan.

When Mukesh asks Aleisha for a reading recommendation, she is rude to him because she is unhappy and confused. Later that day she comes upon a mysterious piece of paper that lists eight books recommended for reading, “just in case you need it”.

The list brings a group of characters together and helps each of them to deal with certain situations in their lives. Friendships grow and flourish, helped by talking about the various books on the list.

I just love how author Sara Nisha Adams weaves the key messages from each book on the list into the lives of her characters. "The Reading List" captures all that, the joy of sharing a book with someone you love, the power of books, how they connect us, even when are no longer here. This novel shows the magic of reading and the impact it has on people. It is one of my favorite reads in 2024. I listened to the audio version which was superbly narrated by Tara Divina, Sagar Arya, and Paul Panting.

I really enjoyed this one as well.

Loved this too. Great review.

I really enjoyed the set-up for this book, bringing such diverse characters together. Nice review, Lynda.

Two of my F2F book clubs have read / discussed this one. Great review!

I loved it too. It seemed to have more depth than other books like it, and the connections to the books were meaningful. I haven’t picked up the last book on the list because it’s so long, but I should.

I recently read her latest book The Twilight Garden and it didn't rise to the level that The Reading LIst did. The characters didn't shine the way those in The Reading List did.

It was a great audio. Sometimes, with an audio version I feel so much more connected to the characters. I really loved Mukesh. Nobody better tell me he isn't real.

I agree. The narrator did a great job with that character
Er, I mean, I really liked Mukesh’s voice, since he is of course a real person. I felt like I really knew him.

Booknblues wrote: "I recently read her latest book The Twilight Garden and it didn't rise to the level that The Reading LIst did. The characters didn't shine the way those in The Reading List did."

That’s too bad,, the story sounds magical.