The Paris Library- an engrossing look at WWII through a different set of eyes.

 

The Paris Library

by Janet Skeslian Charles

4/5 stars 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

I finished this book just yesterday. 

I just loved this book! A book about books, how fun!

The story goes back and forth between Paris 1939-1944, and Montana 1983.

In Paris, we follow the story of Odile, who becomes a librarian at the American Library in Paris (ALP).

I never knew such a thing existed.

In Montana, we follow the story of Lily, a teenager who lives next door to Odile.

It was easy to go between the 2 stories because each chapter has a heading of who is speaking and what year it is. So many books ignore this and just title chapters 1, 2, etc. A time hop is fine if we know where we are, when we are, and who is speaking.

I also really liked that the reason Odile ends up in Montana is not telegraphed so far ahead. Sometimes you can see things coming a mile away, and that was not the case here.

It was also really interesting to read a WWII book that was not from a Jewish perspective. I have read a ton of WWII type books from a Jewish perspective, which is very important, but it's good to see through different eyes as well.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it highly.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.