In the memoir Restaurant Kid by Rachel Phan, our Markham Reads 2026 winner, we learn how ordinary, everyday life can teach us important lessons. With a gentle hand, Rachel's look at her life in moments helps us explore big ideas like belonging, family, and mental health. This book falls into the genre of Slice of Life: stories that show us how, by appreciating the mundane details of our lives, we come to better understand who we are together.Rachel's generous and beautifully written book gives us a tender episodic look at life between cultures and amongst a heartfelt yearning connection. As the child of refugees, Rachel talks about her childhood near her family’s small-town Chinese restaurant. Through her memories, she shows the love, effort, and challenges that shaped her family and herself. She does her best to tell these stories truthfully, always with care for the people she loves and with a focus on the food that meant so much to them. So, the restaurant is not just a place to work, but a place filled with family life, cultural memory, and quiet resilience.
The books in the reading list below also explore daily life and food in meaningful ways. They share stories about culture, family, and identity and along the way, readers might discover a new favorite recipe or a new way to see their own everyday life.
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