What You Are Looking For Is in the Library-Michiko Aoyama

“Life is one revelation after another. Things don’t always go to plan, no matter what your circumstances. But the flip side is all the unexpected, wonderful things that you could never have imagined happening.”-

Michiko Aoyama, What You Are Looking For Is in the Library

My earliest memory of a library was walking through rows of books in the children’s section of the Sierra Leone Library Board and later The Gambia National Library when I lived in Banjul as a refugee.

I love libraries. Endless FREE books to choose from, portals to imaginary worlds, an escape from reality. That’s why What You Are Looking For Is in the Library was so special to me. Japanese author Michiko Aoyama wove stories of five strangers searching for answers from library books.

The librarian, Sayuri Komachi, also a hobbyist felter, can sense exactly what the borrowers need. Through her book recommendations, the borrowers find new answers about life. I liked the simplicity of the short stories in the book. They showed how interconnected and complex humanity is and sometimes we find meaning in small things.

Each character’s encounter with the librarian show not only the magic of libraries and the power of books, but the importance of community and openness when we’re at life’s crossroads.

Check out What You Are Looking For Is in the Library from the local library or buy from an independent bookstore.