What You Are Looking for is in the Library

Preview

Failed to add items

Sorry, we are unable to add the item because your shopping basket is already at capacity.

Add to cart failed.

Please try again later

Add to wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Remove from wishlist failed.

Please try again later

Follow podcast failed

Unfollow podcast failed

Free with 30-day trial

New to Audible Prime Member exclusive:
2 credits with free trial

1 credit a month to use on any title to download and keep

Listen to anything from the Plus Catalogue—thousands of Audible Originals, podcasts and audiobooks

Download titles to your library and listen offline

₹199 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.

What You Are Looking for is in the Library

Written by: Michiko Aoyama, Alison Watts - translator

Narrated by: Hanako Footman, Kenichiro Thomson, Winson Ting, Shiro Kawai, Susan Momoko Hingley

Free with 30-day trial

₹199 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for ₹957.00

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

The heartwarming Japanese bestseller for fans of Matt Haig, Fredrik Backman and THE CAT WHO SAVED BOOKS

'Library. What a nice-sounding word. So comforting. I feel like I'm a student again. Library ... Am I allowed to borrow books?'

'What are you looking for?' asks Tokyo's most enigmatic librarian, Sayuri Komachi. She is no ordinary librarian. Naturally, she has read every book on her shelf, but she also has the unique ability to read the souls of anyone who walks through her door. Sensing exactly what they're looking for in life, she provides just the book recommendation they never knew they needed to help them find it.

Every borrower in her library is at a different crossroads, from the restless retail assistant - can she ever get out of a dead-end job? - to the juggling new mother who dreams of becoming a magazine editor, and the meticulous accountant who yearns to own an antique store. The surprise book Komachi lends to each will have transformative consequences.

Magical and uplifting, What You Are Looking for is in the Library is about the wondrousness of libraries and the power of books for change. Highlighting all the tiny comforts of being alive, it is a story that no reader will ever forget.

©2023 Michiko Aoyama (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Anthologies & Short Stories

Genre Fiction

Literary Fiction

Magical Realism

Short Stories

World Literature

Critic Reviews

I ADORED this uplifting, hopeful novel ... A joy from start to finish, this book makes you feel anything is possible (Wendy Holden)

There's a wistful, warm-hearted appeal to Aoyama's paean to the power of books ... [it's] a quirky slice of feel-good fiction that you could recommend to anyone

An endearing novel and a tribute to the transformative power of books and libraries

Captivating!

The novel is an undeniable page-turner, its mechanism energized by a simple question, posed again and again by the uncanny librarian, Mrs. Komachi. The question brings Michiko Aoyama’s characters often to the brink of tears; and not only her characters, but this reader, too. It is the great question of the library, and of the bookstore, and maybe of life: What are you looking for?

If what you are searching for is a believable take on contemporary life in Tokyo, seasoned with a dash of whimsy, you’ll find your perfect match in this heartwarming novel

It's been a rotten year, so spark joy with this!

There’s a special kind of magic in recommending books to other people and Michiko Aoyama captures that perfectly here. Full of charm; a genuine comfort read

Most relevant

All the five stories get you thinking. Will definitely come back to this book. My suggestion, consume them at a leisurely pace.