My first book of 2021 was a flop. This was an ARC from @netgalley and I’m sad to say my very first ARC. This book is slated to release in February of this year and I’m here to say you can skip it.

This book starts out great. It flips between two narratives: Odile, a Parisian librarian back in 1940 when France was occupied by the Germans, and Lily, a seventh-grader in Montana who is Odile’s neighbor during the year 1980.

The book continues to go between these two narratives. The sections between the narratives begin to grow. So you’re quite a few chapters in before switching back to the other POV.

Then about halfway through, the narrative begins to be every person in the book. Now the time between the two main narratives is exponential.

Random tidbits of anonymous letters are added in between narratives to add suspicion but it never tells you who sent the letters; Just that they were received and acted upon.

I’m all about adding necessary and pertinent words or Franco-phrases into novels. But random vocabulary that doesn’t add to the dialogue proves to be an arrogant addition.

Oh man, this author is going to loathe me. I had really high hopes for this and it was a total dud.

I did find this a very beautiful story.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Lily as a character. I felt the depth at that character was very minor in comparison to Odile's, but the relationship built between Odile and Lily was heartwarming and a useful tool in uncovering Odile's past. 

This story centers on Odile's life in Paris much more than life in Montana. It introduces fascinating characters like her family and the workers and patrons of the American Library in Paris. I do believe the description of this book is correct in saying that the actions of the American Library in Paris and its librarians during World War II were in fact heroic. With all the World War II literature available, it is surprising that I never heard about how the American Library in Paris remained open during the war and Nazi occupation, and how the librarians risked prison camps or worse to deliver books to Jewish members of their community who were no longer allowed to visit the library per Nazi rule. They did their best to bring some light to people during so much darkness. The author really paints a vivid picture of the library's characters and I enjoyed them immensely especially Miss Reeder and Boris. I think this felt a little like The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. 

As Odile's mysterious past in Paris during World War II is revealed, it is a story of intense love and loss. The friendship between Odile and Margaret is so moving that it truly breaks the readers heart when Margaret is attacked and that friendship ends. 

While I did really enjoy this story, I do feel that the first half of the book was a bit slow, but the second half definitely picked up for me. I feel that that is because the author focused more on Odile's Paris life and less on Lily's Montana life during the second half of the book. I also believe that Odile, for being a main character, was not a very strong character and at times very unlikeable. She showed amazing strength and courage when it came to the library patrons and the hospital patients she attended to, but when it came to her closest friends like Bitsy and Margaret, she was often not very nice. Maybe it was the effects of war that made her so unkind, but I do wish she had defended Margaret and publicly vocalized her distaste for what Paul did instead of just running away to Montana and starting a new life. These points are the main reason that I can't give this book a 5-star rating, but I did like the story overall.

This is a very enjoyable but fairly generic historical fiction story based on the incredible true history of the American Library in Paris during WW2. I thought the characters were all likable and complex, and especially enjoyed that the 1980s timeline spans several years as Lily grows through her teen years and bonds with Odile. This is definitely a book for book lovers, so there's a lot of nice writing about libraries and stories even if it was a bit cheesy and over the top sometimes.

I'd say that the biggest weakness of this book is the heavy dependence on telling and not showing, to the point where I didn't feel like the emotional story moments hit as well as they should because the writing was almost clinical. It was definitely still a nice read though.

For someone who loves to read historical fictions this one knocked it out of the park. Not only was it interesting and different from many stories from the time period, but it was so compelling and interesting and so we’ll written.

Charles will be an author I continue to watch out for now. So many books based on this time period tend to feel the same, but Charles made it her own. I also loved learning about true events that’s I wouldn’t have otherwise known about.

Stellar story, superb writing, gripping story telling. I highly recommend!

Historical Fiction will forever be my first love of reading. This book nailed it! I just loved it! Dual timelines either work or don't and it worked in this book. I was fascinated by Odelie's story and learning about the American Library in Paris. I had never heard of it before. While I did enjoy Lily's storyline Odelie carried this book for me. One of the better historical fiction books I've read as of late.

Don't feel like I can rate this one appropriately because I did not read it. Too many books to get to!

I decided to cut this one because WWII historical fiction is not my favorite genre.

The Paris Library is the story of Odile, a somewhat naive but ambitious young librarian in France during the German occupation, and Lily, a young girl trying to find her way through her tumultuous teen years in Montana in the 1980s. Based on true stories of the courageous librarians at the American Library in Paris, this lovely novel by Janet Skeslien Charles is a fresh perspective on the WWII historical fiction genre that has been so popular of late. The novel flips between the two timelines, ultimately connecting the two women and unearthing a long held secret, buried by war time grief.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. The writing is solid and the story is really compelling. There is excellent character development and I liked the varying timelines. A solid read for fans of wartime historical fiction.

Does anyone else feel like this month is lasting 98 years (give or take)? I don’t know if it’s the new job, settling into a new routine, or what, but time just seems to be d r a g g i n g. I also felt like it took me forever to get through THE PARIS LIBRARY by Janet Skeslien Charles…but when I look at Goodreads, it only took me three days?


This is definitely a slower-paced, historical fiction novel that takes place in during the occupation of Paris during WWII. Like many in the genre, it is told in a dual timeline, and with multiple narrators - but it wasn’t difficult to follow along with the story and characters. However, I think my favorite part of this novel was learning about the American Library of Paris and how it stayed open and continued to offer services during the war.

This is also a book that you will definitely want to read the author’s note - it gives so much context about the history, the American Library of Paris, and the real-life people that inspired this story.

Thinking about libraries, do you have a favorite library you’ve ever been visited? Mine is definitely the main branch of @richlandlibrary; they have a beautiful WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE mural in their basement/children’s section and the whole library just has such beautiful, natural light!


CW // antisemitism; police brutality; hate crimes; misogyny; genocide; murder; death; abuse; gun violence

The Paris Library is a historical fiction written in the dual perspectives of Odile Souchet, a young librarian in Paris during the height of World War II and Lily, a teenager in Montana during the mid 1980's. As Odile's story unfolds, will the secrets of her past threaten her privacy?

The trend in historical fiction lately is to anchor the characters from the past to the present. The author does the same here, but I would have liked the book more without the present timeline. The character of Lily does not add much to the story and Odile's past could have been presented well in a more linear fashion. The historical aspects of The Paris Library give this book interest, which unfortunately get lost among the drama. There are many historical fiction novels from the past few years that take place in France during World War II, but The Paris Library does not measure up to my favorites.

Disclaimer: I was given an Advanced Reader's Copy by NetGalley and the publisher, Atria Books. The choice to review this book was entirely my own.

It takes a special kind of book for me to enjoy an alternating timeline storyline, and unfortunately this book was not one of them. I would have loved to just read about the historical storyline taking place in the American Library of Paris. The characters are likeable enough and it’s a lovely tale otherwise.

I loved this novel about the American Library in Paris and the real-life heroism of its staff during the Occupation of Paris.
This book was so great! I loved everything about this story!
I loved the dual timelines & the multiple POVs. Odile was an extremely likeable character and Lily’s coming of age story was powerful!

I loved this book. Many books were written about the atrocities of WWII, but this is a story that hasn’t been told, that of the American Library in nazi occupied Paris. While the German soldiers controlled the city and patrolled the streets, the brave librarians refused to stop working in order to provide their subscribers with continued access to books. There wasn’t enough food to eat, and the world was a scary place, but they could still escape into a book. While not soldiers, these men and women of the library courageously did their part to bring the ideals of freedom to the people of Paris. I found the message very empowering. Do what you can, however big or small, to make the world a better place. Every bit matters.

One of my goals for the year was to get back into historical fiction and man am I glad I chose this one!  The Paris Library is based off real life events and people from Nazi occupied France.  The story centers around Odile and the job that she gets at the American Library in Paris.  This job allows her to enter the world of quite the cast of characters both behind the counter and those perusing the shelves.  She and her coworkers join the Resistance and help aid in making sure everyone has access to all reading material.  Consequences be damned.

The other timeline in this book takes place in the mid 80s.  Odile is now an old lady and has taken her neighbor Lily under her wing.  As Odile teachers her French and reveals little of her past Lily’s curiosity about her neighbor’s hushed past might end up with both of them in a spot that they didn’t bargain for.
I love learning little bits about WWII history.  There are so many unsung heroes who fought for what was right when the whole world was upside down and terrified.  The characters love and cherish books and it was so nice to read about like minded people.  So if you love books, duh, and historical fiction be sure to pick this one up in February.

I would have given this 5 stars but how she ends up in America is very blunt and didn't seem realistic in story or in time-line.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Paris Library is a delightful read. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC. Although I had read this book a little while ago, I recently bought and listened to the audiobook because I loved it so much. I recommend this book to fans of historical fiction especially. It is well written with multiple perspectives intertwining into one beautiful, heart wrenching, and powerful prose.

WOW! This novel took twists and turns that I truly was not expecting. When we encounter Odile as a young woman in pre-WWII Paris, and then again as an aging widow in Montana, it's definitely a mystery as to how she got from one place to the other. Learning about life in occupied Paris was truly eye-opening. While at times I appreciated the setting of the American Library in Paris, I now know that this was based on real people who risked their lives to help others during this horrifying time in history.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this dual-timeline story set in WWII Paris and 1980s Montana. It was not what I expected it to be, but it was still a creative story. I really liked all of the references to Dewey Decimal Numbers and all the intertextuality sprinkled throughout the book. And there were so many good quotes about libraries and reading and books. That was fun. This is based on a true story of librarians who fought to keep the American Library in Paris open while under German Occupation.

Odile's story is heartbreaking but inspiring, and I loved that she is able to pay it forward by helping Lily, her neighbor, learn the lessons she learned too late. I liked that we went back and forth from the 1940s to the 1980s and back, and while most of the story was told from Odile's and Lily's POV, we did get a few other characters. I think I would have liked more of that. The pacing was a little odd, where it moved fast in some places and slow in others.

I was pleasantly surprised at this book. Sometimes it feels like WWII has been visited one time too many in the world of historical fiction. But much to my surprise, I actually found this to be a refreshing story from the time period. The story follows Odile, a recent library science graduate, who goes to work at the American Library in Paris in 1939. The story then covers the German occupation of Paris and how neighbors turned on neighbors. The library continued to provide a sanctuary for their “subscribers” (a.k.a. patrons).

The other storyline follows Lily from 1983 to 1988. She is a seventh grader in a small town in Wyoming. Her neighbor, Odile, doesn’t have much to do with the rest of the community. Lily becomes fascinated with France and the possibility of learning Odile’s story, so she decides to take a chance and knock on her door. From there, a friendship blossoms. Odile becomes a saving grace to Lily when her mother dies unexpectedly. They rely on each other because both are lonely in their own way.

As a librarian, I may be a bit biased about liking a story about a library, but I found the book to be well-researched and believable. You could tell the author put a lot of thought into creating an accurate story of this enchanting American library in Paris. If you like historical fiction, this one is definitely worth reading.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an egalley in exchange for an honest review

This book has actually been on my NetGalley shelf for an entire year as a result of the publisher changing the publication date from 2020 to 2021. I have read so many WWII dual timeline stories that I felt that maybe I had read everything there was to discover. But discussing a young Parisian woman's( Odile Souchet) work at the American Library during the war intrigued me instantly. As book lovers, why should we be surprised that books and the library they were housed in became a refuge for many people as their nation becomes occupied by a foreign army?

Although Odile's father and mother do not really understand their daughter's ambition to work as a librarian, her brother Remy is supportive. They would rather see Odile happily married and Remy a successful career. But when Remy joins the army and Odile continues to work at the library, their parents wonder if all their hopes and desires will go up in smoke. When Odile meets the dashing Paul, a joyous future appears promising but as the dark clouds descend over France, is everything as perfect as she imagines it to be?

The other dual timeline is a coming of age story set in the 1980s and features a lonely teenager, Lily, who becomes increasingly interested in the elderly French woman that lives next door. As the two spend more and more time together, Lily longs to find out more and more about Odile's time in the war. But it soon becomes clear that Odile is not as keen to discuss all parts of the past.


The fact that it took me a few days to review is only because the first week at work has been a little hectic. I really enjoyed both storylines and felt that the author placed her chapters in a very strategic way that cliffhangers never lasted too long. Nor did it seem that one story was overshadowing the other. I liked both protagonists very much and appreciated that both of their stories were in this book. A solidly written novel that was worth the long wait!




Publication Date 09/02/21
Goodreads review 12/03/21

Over the last few years, I've read a number of two-timeline WWII/present day novels. In a way, it's a genre in which one knows what to expect: a brave resistance fighter in the WWII timeline; a troubled soul looking for new meaning in life in the present day. The Paris library fits into this genre, but it has some unique elements that make it an engaging read, even if you've spent time with a number of such books recently.

Most powerful are the historical events underpinning the novel. The American Library in Paris does exist and was an important site for those attempting to retain their freedoms and sense of community during the occupation of France. The author's notes on her research are every bit as engaging as the novel itself—you'll definitely want to spend some time with them.

The central character in the WWII timeline and a major supporting character in the present day, Odile, is an innocent of sorts who finds new depths in herself as she struggles to do what it right.Not all of her choices are good—and some have terrible consequences. Readers can ache with her as she tries to find the knowledge and courage she needs to survive the occupation with her sense of self intact.

I received a free electronic review company of this title from the publisher. The opinions are my own.

OMG guys SOOOOO good! I knew I was going to love a book about a librarian in Paris during WWII but damn did this book ever deliver!!!! It’s so satisfying when your high expectations get exceeded by a landslide!!!! First off anyone who loves books or libraries will connect with this book. Second off it is an AMAZING book about the complexities of female friendship (the perfect read for Galentines day!!!). This dual timelines novel follows Odile before, during and after WWII in Paris as well as Lily, a teenager in 1980s Montana, who happens to be neighbours with the much older Odile. We get an incredible insight into the hardships endured by Parisiennes during German occupation and especially how dangerous and tragic life could become for anyone deemed to be a collaborateur. Odile ends up ruining a cherished friendship and imposing a self-exile on herself, marrying the first person to come along and moving to Montana. Through her unexpected friendship with Lily we come to learn how she ended up living in Montana and what costs she had to pay for betraying a friend. Heartfelt, moving and thought-provoking. Full of historical details, this is a book you won’t soon forget! I highly recommend it!! Favourite quotes: “I love the library but I love you more.” and “Love will come and go and come again. Treasure your best friend.”