By: Jay Asher

Published: 2016

AR level: 4.5

AR points: 9.0

I suggest 6th through 12th.

This book by Thirteen Reasons Why author Jay Asher is a different kind of story from the hard-hitting bestseller. This light and beautiful Christmas story is classified as a middle grade plus, making it appropriate for young middle schoolers, all the way through high school.

I enjoyed this novel of a girl from a Christmas tree farm and the beautiful love story that unfolds when she moves for the holiday season. It’s definitely a lighter touch than Thirteen, and certainly full of hope. I enjoyed reading this book during last year’s Christmas and have been waiting for this holiday season to promote it here.

Here’s a description:

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! From Jay Asher, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Thirteen Reasons Why, comes a holiday romance that will break your heart, but soon have you believing in love again. . . .

“A beautiful story of love and forgiveness.”
—Stephen Chbosky, New York Times bestselling author of The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Sierra’s family runs a Christmas tree farm in Oregon—it’s a bucolic setting for a girl to grow up in, except that every year, they pack up and move to California to set up their Christmas tree lot for the season. So Sierra lives two lives: her life in Oregon and her life at Christmas. And leaving one always means missing the other.

Until this particular Christmas, when Sierra meets Caleb, and one life eclipses the other.

By reputation, Caleb is not your perfect guy: years ago, he made an enormous mistake and has been paying for it ever since. But Sierra sees beyond Caleb’s past and becomes determined to help him find forgiveness and, maybe, redemption. As disapproval, misconceptions, and suspicions swirl around them, Caleb and Sierra discover the one thing that transcends all else: true love.

What Light is a love story that’s moving and life-affirming and completely unforgettable.