What You Are Looking For Is in the Library: A Novel
(Libby/OverDrive eBook, Kindle)

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Libby/OverDrive
Titles may be read via Libby/OverDrive. Libby/OverDrive is a free app that allows users to borrow and read digital media from their local library, including ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines. Users can access Libby/OverDrive through the Libby/OverDrive app or online. The app is available for Android and iOS devices.
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Description

TIME BEST BOOK OF THE YEARA WASHINGTON POST BEST FEEL GOOD BOOK OF 2023For fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold, a charming, internationally bestselling Japanese novel about how the perfect book recommendation can change a readers’ life.What are you looking for? So asks Tokyo’s most enigmatic librarian. For Sayuri Komachi is able to sense exactly what each visitor to her library is searching for and provide just the book recommendation to help them find it.A restless retail assistant looks to gain new skills, a mother tries to overcome demotion at work after maternity leave, a conscientious accountant yearns to open an antique store, a recently retired salaryman searches for newfound purpose.In Komachi’s unique book recommendations they will find just what they need to achieve their dreams. What You Are Looking For Is in the Library is about the magic of libraries and the discovery of connection. This inspirational tale shows how, by listening to our hearts, seizing opportunity and reaching out, we too can fulfill our lifelong dreams. Which book will you recommend?

More Details

Format
eBook, Kindle
Street Date
09/05/2023
Language
English
ISBN
9780369742018

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Similar Titles From NoveList

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for titles you might like if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
These books have the appeal factors hopeful, and they have the theme "books about books"; the subjects "libraries," "books and reading," and "east asian people"; and include the identity "asian."
These books have the theme "books about books"; the subjects "libraries," "books and reading," and "east asian people"; and include the identity "asian."
In these heartwarming and leisurely paced stories, an exceptional bookstore (Days at the Morisaki Bookshop) or library (What You Are Looking For) changes the lives of those who cross its path. -- CJ Connor
In each compellingly translated work, a bookseller (The Girl) and a librarian (Library) match people with the books they most need to thrive. The offbeat tone and quirky characters make these books about books engaging. -- Matthew Galloway
These books have the appeal factors feel-good and upbeat, and they have the genres "literary fiction" and "translations -- japanese to english"; the subjects "east asian people" and "japanese people"; and include the identity "asian."
Customers come looking for something transformative -- and generally find it -- in these feel-good novels about a store that sells dreams (Dallergut) and a library that helps patrons find just the right read (What You Are Looking For). -- Michael Shumate
Whether they are an exhausted bookstore owner (Welcome) or adrift library patrons (Looking For), the characters in these heartwarming works in translation discover solace among good books and fellow readers. -- Basia Wilson
These books have the subjects "epiphanies," "life change events," and "self-fulfillment"; and include the identity "asian."
Book lovers will enjoy these heartwarming and engaging translations that center on interpersonal relationships and feature a librarian and bookseller with seemingly supernatural abilities for offering patrons inspiring and life-changing books. -- Alicia Cavitt
These moving and engaging Japanese translated novels feature figurative (What You Are Looking For) and literal (Before the Coffee Gets Cold) magical places where people find life-changing experiences. -- Andrienne Cruz
These books have the appeal factors hopeful and thoughtful, and they have the theme "books about books"; and the subjects "communities," "libraries," and "public libraries."
While the evocative magic of Full Moon Coffee Shop is absent from the hopeful What You Are Looking For Is in the Library, both Japanese translations are likely to inspire ample warm fuzzies as characters seek guidance and second chances. -- Basia Wilson

Similar Authors From NoveList

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for other authors you might want to read if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
These authors' works have the subjects "communities," "libraries," and "books and reading"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the appeal factors hopeful, and they have the subjects "libraries," "books and reading," and "east asian people"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the subjects "epiphanies," "life change events," and "self-fulfillment"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the appeal factors amusing and feel-good, and they have the subjects "libraries," "women librarians," and "books and reading."
These authors' works have the subjects "libraries," "books and reading," and "self-fulfillment"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the appeal factors hopeful, inspiring, and sweet, and they have the genre "literary fiction"; the subjects "east asian people" and "japanese people"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the appeal factors amusing, hopeful, and fun read, and they have the subjects "life change events," "self-fulfillment," and "east asian people"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the appeal factors feel-good and upbeat, and they have the genre "literary fiction"; the subjects "communities," "life change events," and "east asian people"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the appeal factors hopeful and thoughtful, and they have the subjects "communities," "libraries," and "public libraries."
These authors' works have the appeal factors upbeat and fun read, and they have the genre "gentle reads"; the subjects "life change events," "self-fulfillment," and "east asian people"; and include the identity "asian."
These authors' works have the appeal factors amusing, upbeat, and fun read, and they have the subjects "communities," "libraries," and "public libraries."
These authors' works have the genre "gentle reads"; and the subjects "communities," "libraries," and "public libraries."

Published Reviews

Booklist Review

Set in contemporary Tokyo, this uplifting debut novel follows five characters at challenging crossroads in their lives. Each one finds a way forward at their neighborhood library, where an enigmatic librarian has an almost supernatural talent for connecting readers and books. In a series of spare, elegantly written scenes, we meet Tomoka, 21, who works in a department store and worries that her life has no direction. Next is 35-year-old Ryo, an accountant who dreams of owning an antique shop. Natsumi, 40, must juggle her career with motherhood and yearns to be a book editor. Hiroya, 30, unemployed and living with his mother, wants to be an artist. At 65, newly retired Masao feels lacking in purpose. Their different ages and problems broaden the appeal to a wide variety of readers. What they find at the library sets each one on an optimistic new path, shifting their perspective and reminding them to follow their hearts. A comforting read filled with serendipity and simple wisdom, this is a celebration of community, connection, and the transformative power of libraries.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
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Kirkus Book Review

A series of interlocking vignettes follow Tokyo residents who find themselves at the local library. The Hatori Community House is located adjacent to an elementary school. It houses meeting rooms, a kitchen, and a library. Small but well stocked and boasting a full-time reference librarian, it is this room--and the librarian, Sayuri Komachi--around which each of the stories rotates. All of the library's patrons are floundering, and a few words and a book recommendation from Ms. Komachi, as well as a little "bonus gift," set them on the path to seeing more clearly what it is that they hold valuable. (Think a fictional Marie Kondo who doesn't recommend paring down a life cluttered with fears but rather helps a person discover their own way forward.) There is Tomoka, 21, who left her small country town for junior college in Tokyo and now works in the womenswear department of a local general store, feeling unfulfilled and adrift. Ryo, 35, works in the accounts department of a furniture manufacturer but has long dreamed of opening an antiques shop while being terrified of the uncertainty of such a venture. Hiroya, 30, unemployed and living with her mother, trained as an illustrator but has too much anxiety to find and keep a permanent job. Natsumi, 40, a former magazine editor, feels sidelined after returning early from maternity leave after having found herself unexpectedly pregnant at 37. And Masao, 65 and newly retired, finds himself adrift after 42 years of focusing solely on his work to the detriment of hobbies, social connections, and his relationships with his wife and child. Each character is wrought with care, as are their blossoming realizations about how their futures can develop despite their worries. A delightful, gentle unfolding of stories that offer hope and joy to those who find themselves in a pivotal moment in life. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
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Booklist Reviews

Set in contemporary Tokyo, this uplifting debut novel follows five characters at challenging crossroads in their lives. Each one finds a way forward at their neighborhood library, where an enigmatic librarian has an almost supernatural talent for connecting readers and books. In a series of spare, elegantly written scenes, we meet Tomoka, 21, who works in a department store and worries that her life has no direction. Next is 35-year-old Ryo, an accountant who dreams of owning an antique shop. Natsumi, 40, must juggle her career with motherhood and yearns to be a book editor. Hiroya, 30, unemployed and living with his mother, wants to be an artist. At 65, newly retired Masao feels lacking in purpose. Their different ages and problems broaden the appeal to a wide variety of readers. What they find at the library sets each one on an optimistic new path, shifting their perspective and reminding them to follow their hearts. A comforting read filled with serendipity and simple wisdom, this is a celebration of community, connection, and the transformative power of libraries. Copyright 2023 Booklist Reviews.

Copyright 2023 Booklist Reviews.
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Library Journal Reviews

Tokyo librarian Sayuri Komachi always asks what patrons are looking for, but because she is as good at reading people as she is at reading books, she always gives them a book they really need. Here we meet some of her patrons and see how her recommendations have changed their lives. A Japanese best seller. Prepub Alert. Copyright 2023 Library Journal

Copyright 2023 Library Journal.

Copyright 2023 Library Journal Copyright 2023 Library Journal.
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LJ Express Reviews

Originally published in Japan in 2020, this best-selling novel has been translated into over 20 languages. Set around a local community center near an elementary school, each of the five chapters is narrated in first person and describe how a librarian, Sayuri Komachi, comes to transform the narrator's life. After each reference interview, Komachi presents a list of book recommendations, plus a random felted object that she has made (a frying pan, a cat, a globe, a plane, a crab). The magical part of each story is how these objects perfectly tie in with each patron's outcome and how every booklist includes a title that seems a bit out of sync with the original query but comes to play a big part in helping patrons find what they are looking for. VERDICT Aoyama's story is reminiscent of positively told stories, which could be made into an episode of The Twilight Zone, with the librarian as the main protagonist working her magic in each encounter. The storytelling is engaging, much like Sayaka Murata's Convenience Store Woman, making this book a fast read. Bibliophiles and book groups looking for a feel-good story will certainly find it here.—Shirley Quan

Copyright 2024 LJExpress.

Copyright 2024 LJExpress.
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Citations

APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)

Aoyama, M. (2023). What You Are Looking For Is in the Library: A Novel . Hanover Square Press.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Aoyama, Michiko. 2023. What You Are Looking For Is in the Library: A Novel. Hanover Square Press.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Aoyama, Michiko. What You Are Looking For Is in the Library: A Novel Hanover Square Press, 2023.

Harvard Citation (style guide)

Aoyama, M. (2023). What you are looking for is in the library: a novel. Hanover Square Press.

MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)

Aoyama, Michiko. What You Are Looking For Is in the Library: A Novel Hanover Square Press, 2023.

Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.

Copy Details

CollectionOwnedAvailableNumber of Holds
Libby7014

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