Reviewed by Jennifer Senick for Readers' Favorite

Sometimes the people closest to us are the ones we understand the least. In A Thousand Touches by David Shams, Cyrus Soltani is preparing for his senior year of high school in Bardstown, Kentucky. Soccer has been the center of his life, and several colleges are already interested in recruiting him. His plans seem fairly clear, but things at home are more complicated. He has an Iranian dad and an American mom whose family owns a successful bourbon distillery, leaving him caught between cultures in a town where heritage matters. When he wakes from a nap to find his father, Karim, crying while listening to the Islamic call to prayer, Cyrus wants to know what caused such an emotional reaction. Karim won’t tell him what’s wrong, which only adds to the friction between them. He also has definite ideas about where his son should go to college and what he should do with his life. Cyrus, however, is reaching an age where he wants to make his own decisions. He also has soccer, friends, and a new relationship taking up his attention. With graduation getting closer, Cyrus finds himself thinking more about his roots and what they mean to him. Will he finally learn what his father has kept buried for so long?

A Thousand Touches by David Shams was an interesting read, and Cyrus turned out to be a much more complex character than I expected at first. Initially, I saw a caring son who was genuinely concerned when he noticed his father crying. There were moments after that when I worried Cyrus might become a little petulant, but the more I read, the more I realized their relationship wasn't nearly that simple. Karim could be stubborn and difficult himself, and that made their clashes feel realistic rather than one-sided. I also liked how this became a coming-of-age story as Cyrus started figuring out who he was apart from what his dad or anyone else expected him to be. Cyrus’s Iranian and American background also played an important part in that self-discovery. The writing flowed well, and the pace worked especially well for this type of story. There were enough lighter moments involving friends, family, and soccer to balance the more serious subjects, too. Anyone who enjoys novels about cultural identity, complicated parent-child relationships, and finding your own direction should give this one a try.