Good historical background on this one…that of a London Underground station having a library. The story was told from three women’s perspectives all of whom met each other because of the local library, but each had different circumstances. I read this in one day recovering from COVID. Too easy of a read. ( )

In a Nutshell: A historical fiction based on true events, focussing on the functioning of the Bethnal Green Library from the local underground station during the WWII Blitz. The ending was a bit too smooth for my liking, but the rest of the plot was worth it. I learnt a few new facts as well, which isn’t something I expected. Recommended!

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Plot Preview:

1940, Bethnal Green, London.
Juliet Lansdown, 26, has just been appointed the new deputy librarian at the Bethnal Green library, but when she takes over, she realises that the head librarian refuses to adopt new ideas to imbue fresh life into the library. Juliet is determined to prove to him that women librarians can handle the job adeptly.
Katie Upwood, 18, loves her job at the library though it is only for the short term before she heads off to university. But after the death of her boyfriend on the front line and some big personal upheavals, Katie finds herself handling a life-altering problem with no one to help out.
Sofie Baumann, 19, a young German-Jewish refugee, has come to London on a domestic service visa, only to be stuck with an employer who treats her miserably. She cannot leave her job as it’s the only way she can legally stay in London. The library is her refuge from drudgery while she hopes to reunite with her sister and her father, who are still stuck in Germany.
The story comes to us in the third person perspective of these three characters.

I am still on a sabbatical from WWII fiction. Historical fiction is actually among my favourite genres, but I have burnt myself out reading too many similar WWII stories. The only reason I grabbed this novel is that I had enjoyed Jennifer Ryan’s ‘The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle’, another WWII work covering a part of the war I knew nothing about. I was hoping for a similar experience this time around, and luckily, this one worked even better.


Bookish Yays:
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This is the story of three women in 1940-41 at the beginning of the London Blitz, Juliet Lansdown, Jewish Sophie Baumann, and teenager Katie Upwood. Juliet is the new assistant librarian at the Bethnal Green Library in London. Her finance, Victor, has been branded a deserter in France and his whereabouts is not known. Katie is the desk worker there who has secured a place in a London university for the fall; however, she is pregnant by her missing-in-action boyfriend, Christopher. Sophie has secured a VISA to escape from Berlin to London as a house servant, where she is worked very hard and verbally abused. When the library is bombed, Juliet decides to move it into the Bethnal Green underground where she checks out books, has readings, runs a book club, and provides other entertainment on holidays. Many people gravitate to the library since it gives them something to do while they wait out the bombs each evening. The library creates a caring community where people can get moral support and help for their problems. Sophie is looking for her sister Rachael. Mac is looking for his brother Uri in Poland. Juliet is becoming acquainted with Sebastian, a man she knew from Upper Breeding, and thought was very shallow. She rents a room from Mrs. Copley, Sebastian's aunt. Katie is dealing with an unexpected pregnancy and a very unhappy mother. The Ridley sisters, Irene and Dorothy, are regular library visitors and help out with the underground library. The novel follows the trials and tribulations and also successes of the three women as they deal with their circumstances. The Bethnal Green library really was bombed and an underground library was created. However, the people creating it were men. In this book the Head Librarian, a man, is portrayed as a tyrant, who Juliet must get around to create new services for the patrons. This was not the case in the real library. I am not sure why the author had to take a swipe at male librarians, since two male librarians created the underground library. ( )

Another book about WWII and the chaos and destruction caused by Hitler and his madmen. But out of the horrors, the rubble, the despair, a group of women find their inner strength, their ability to support each other and those around them. I was rooting for each one as they faced their deepest fears. My heart broke for Sofie, torn from her family and sent across the sea to what was hoped to be a safe job, finding those new circumstances slightly better than slavery. How could you not cheer on Juliet, a bright and optimistic young woman, leaving behind her oppressive parents and a fiancé lost to the war to assume a dream job as a Deputy Librarian. Katie is a bright eighteen year old student, the first in her school about to start university until everything falls apart. Then there is Mrs. Ottley who has sent her children to the country to protect them from the Blitz and who offers Juliet a place to live. Irene and Dorothy Ridley, the dearest set of older sisters who play such an important role in helping these young women to realize their capabilities.

Ryan has done an excellent job of adding flesh to her characters so that they truly come alive and depth to her story. In Sofia’s words she explains “how transitory life was, how nothing ever stayed the same, every life fluttering in the wind.” Heartbreaking and uplifting she shows us the worst and the best of humankind. She offers hope when things are beyond tenuous and always keeps the door open for one more chance. Katie reminds us “beneath all the struggles and unspoken rules, life was about these inborn connections, as easy and instinctive as nature itself.”

So many thanks to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for a copy of this very moving book. ( )

Another good read from Jennifer Ryan. Of course, any book about books or libraries is always going to be good for me! This is historical fiction about the library in Bethnal Green which was bombed in the early part of WW2 and moved into the underground train station. Told from the POV of three young women; Juliet Lansdown, the deputy librarian; Katie Upwood, who also works at the library and Sofie Baumann, a young Jewish refugee, we're immersed into this story. ( )