One book this year: bookseller and author recommendations from the Guardian

The Guardian asked a group of booksellers, critics and authors to name one book they think people should read this year, if they only read one.

Mairi took part, recommending There Are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak, which you can pre-order in paperback here (and find as hardback below). Here's what Mairi said about it:

"Every bookseller knows that no book is meant for everyone – but for anyone who is in a reading rut, Elif Shafak novels are a pretty reliable way of getting unstuck! One of our great storytellers, you could start anywhere in her oeuvre and find a page-turning, plot-driven, politically prescient book that will strike a slightly different chord with every reader. Her latest is a propulsive work of ecofiction that spans Dickensian London and contemporary Kurdistan: River Thames to River Tigris. It’s riveting, readable, complex and quietly queer, with characters to fall completely in love with – rich and escapist."

You can read the full article here. Below, we've gathered the recommended books in a list.