*A 'BOOKS OF 2021' PICK IN THE GUARDIAN, DAILY MAIL, DAILY TELEGRAPH, IRISH TIMES CULTURE AND NEW STATESMAN*'We read in order to come to life.'With fierce imagination, a woman revisits the moments that shape her life, from crushes on teachers to navigating relationships in a fast-paced world, from overhearing her grandmothers' peculiar stories to nurturing her own personal freedom and a boundless love of literature.Fusing fantasy with lived experience, Checkout 19 is a vivid and mesmerising journey through the small traumas and triumphs that define us - as readers, as writers, as human beings.