Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Release Date: February 2nd, 2021
409 Pages
Synopsis: Based on the true World War II story of the heroic librarians at the American Library in Paris, this is an unforgettable story of romance, friendship, family, and the power of literature to bring us together, perfect for fans of The Lilac Girls and The Paris Wife.
Paris, 1939: Young and ambitious Odile Souchet has it all: her handsome police officer beau and a dream job at the American Library in Paris. When the Nazis march into Paris, Odile stands to lose everything she holds dear, including her beloved library. Together with her fellow librarians, Odile joins the Resistance with the best weapons she has: books. But when the war finally ends, instead of freedom, Odile tastes the bitter sting of unspeakable betrayal.
Montana, 1983: Lily is a lonely teenager looking for adventure in small-town Montana. Her interest is piqued by her solitary, elderly neighbor. As Lily uncovers more about her neighbor’s mysterious past, she finds that the share a love of language, the same longings, and the same intense jealousy, never suspecting that a dark secret from the past connects them.
A powerful novel that explores the consequences of our choices and the relationships that make us who we are—family, friends, and favorite authors—The Paris Library shows that extraordinary heroism can sometimes be found in the quietest of places.
A book about heroic librarians resisting Nazis that’s based on a true story! No surprise I immediately requested it is it? The American Library in Paris, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, has a fascinating history, but it’s what the library and its staff did under the leadership of Library Director Dorothy Reeder, during the German occupation of France that’s truly astounding. For more on this, visit https://americanlibraryinparis.org/history
As far as The Paris Library is concerned, it’s obvious that Janet Skeslien Charles did her due diligence in regards to the Library’s history and the Nazi occupation of Paris. Charles met some of the descendants of the historical figures who appear in her story, when she worked at the Library in 2010, and her love and fascination for the subject shows. The WWII passages are the best part of the book in my opinion. I loved the setting and all its thoughtful details such as the inclusion of the Dewey Decimal System and specific works of literature. I also loved seeing the war through the prism of the Library, its staff and its patrons. As this is historical fiction, a good portion of the book focuses on Odile’s life and relationships which I quite enjoyed as she’s a believable and charismatic character who adds a personal note to a chapter from history that I’m not sure many are familiar with.
The weakest parts of the book are when the story veers away from Odile’s wartime experiences and jumps to her life in 1983. I feel a little guilty about complaining, because there nothing inherently wrong with this timeline, except for it being slower in pace. It’s just that I was completely caught up in the events of Paris of 1939-1944, so much so that I found myself a tad resentful at being pulled away.
In her author’s note (which is a must read), Charles discusses her research and how this book came to be, but there’s two passages that stood out to me and I’d like to share them.
My goal in writing this book was to share this little-known chapter of WWII history and to capture the voices of the courageous librarians who defied the Nazis in order to help subscribers and to share a love of literature.
…A friend says she believes that in reading stories set in World War II, people like to ask what they would have done. I think a better question to ask is what can we do now to ensure that libraries and learning are accessible to all and that we treat people with dignity and compassion.
Without hesitation, I HIGHLY recommend The Paris Library to library, literature and history lovers, as well as all readers interested in learning a fascinating piece of WWII history. On a personal note, for a retired children’s librarian like me, for who libraries and librarians have played such an integral role in my life, reading about these heroic librarians was a privilege and absolutely thrilling.
Margie said:
Kim, I have read Moonlight in Odessa by this author and enjoyed it,
Thank you for this great review and it’s now on my TBR list.
This books sounds wonderful. 🙂
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
This is the first book I’ve read by her, so I’m gonna have to read the others of course. I do think you’ll like this my friend.😊
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Books Teacup and Reviews said:
Looks like author did wonderful job with setting and characters. Wonderful review, Kim!
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
Thank you!
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fragglerocking said:
That sounds great and I’m putting it on my kindle!
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beetleypete said:
I am not in the least surprised how much you liked this book. When I saw the title, I confess I expected five stars. It does sound very interesting, as I like the WW2 setting.
Best wishes, Pete.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I think you would like this Pete.
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jowensauthor said:
As a bookworm and a history major, this sounds very interesting to me. I will definitely have to check it out.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I’d be shocked if you didn’t love this Jeanne.
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robertawrites235681907 said:
While your comments about the timeline are noted, Kim, this sounds like a really good book. Thanks for this review.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
Thanks Robbie. Despite me not caring for the later timeline, I still highly recommend this.
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Jay said:
I think I will enjoy this one as well.
You should have an alert system where we can sign up to have notices sent to us when these books become available for purchase.
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fragglerocking said:
Agreed, I checked Amazon and it’s not available until February 2021! I’ll have forgotten about it by then.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I’ll make sure I repost this closer to the pub date Fraggle.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I believe you can preorder it.
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fragglerocking said:
Given up on pre orders, am still waiting for a book I ordered in February that is now 3 weeks overdue with no inkling of when it will arrive.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
That’s aggravating. I wouldn’t ordinarily post a review this early, but as it’s a NetGalley ARC, if I don’t it sits there on my account. Plus, there’s already a ton of reviews on Goodreads. But I will definitely repost this in January.
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fragglerocking said:
Cool!
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I wish I knew how to do that Jay. I will be sure to repost this closer to the pub date.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
If it helps, you can preorder it on Amazon now.
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Tina Woodbury said:
Great review! I have this one and am really looking forward to reading it!
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
Thanks Tina. I can’t wait to hear what you think.
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johnrieber said:
My wife will love this – great review!
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
It’s not out until February 2021, but you can preorder it.😊
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Lelia T said:
Lovely review!
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
Thanks Lelia. I think you might like this.
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suzan khoja said:
Looks like a nice book, I will definitely request it. Let’s see how it turns out. I am glad you liked it. Great review Kim.
Stay Safe❤✌😊
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I think you’d like it Suzan.
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suzan khoja said:
Thanks, Kim. I did request for it but it hasn’t been accepted yet. ❤✌😊
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carhicks said:
Wow, Kim. This sounds amazing. I love Historical Fiction, especially learning about WWII heroes that were only footnotes. This ticks the boxes for me. I am adding to my TBR.
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By Hook Or By Book ~ Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff said:
I think you’ll definitely like this Carla, especially the WWII chapters.
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carhicks said:
I requested from Netgalley, but I will read it even if I have to get it elsewhere.
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