Thank you so much to Forever Publishing for the gifted ARC! This book will be available on February 21st!

Based on a true story of survival and perseverance in the hardest of times, The Little Wartime Library opens readers up a world inside the underground tube shelter during WW2 in London. In an effort to remain safe from German bombing, the civilians formed an entire community 78 feet underground.

While the story revolved around the library and the importance of people (especially women and children) having access to literature, there were several other subplots. I became more invested in those subplots (romance, war heroes, family drama, domestic abuse) than in the central story about the library itself.

I loved the friendship between the two main characters Ruby and Clara and their constant loyalty to each other even in the worst circumstances. Also, I loved all the children characters; they were all absolute angels.

After I finished this book, I did some research on Bethnal Green, London and the absolute devastation of the actual attack that killed 173 people making it the worst civilian disaster in WW2. Reading more about these events and seeing pictures of the actual tube shelters really made the story feel more alive to me and I wish I would have gone into the book with the knowledge I have now.

3.5 Stars

The Little Wartime Library is a historical fiction novel by Kate Thompson. The first chapter does not adequately represent the rest of the book—between the heavy use of World War II era British slang, and caricature-like presentation of a main character, the reader might not recognize the novel as the well-researched historical fiction it is. Reader: keep reading! This is the story of two young, strong, single women who run a library in an underground bomb shelter — formerly a subway station. Throughout the story the women face—and grow through—challenges and conflict with family (born and chosen), library customers, administrators, and romance —all as London’s East end is targeted by German attacks. Readers should be prepared to need to look up certain slang terminology. The book explores women’s roles, the role of libraries, and the psychological effects of war. You might appreciate the novel more if you read the author’s notes and acknowledgments first.

I love historical fiction and Kate Thompson's 'The Little Wartime Library' poignantly connects the Blitz with the pandemic. Living in the States and a child of the 80s, until 9/11's bombing, my world hadn't been rocked by world events. There was a veiled curtain between things happening 'over there' and here.

The pandemic brought the fight home. Losing numbers that reflected battle casualties, citizens were at war with COVID. Locking ourselves at home, we took refuge in books. They afforded escapism, romance and travel while the war waged on and in 'The Little Wartime Library' the story connects the past with the present.

Living in uncertain times, Clara and Ruby sought to make the world brighter. Building a library underground in Bethanl Green, while war raged above, the library offered hope and protection. Living in London before the pandemic, I've taken the Tube and never knew that a library was housed in the Central Line.

While we're all emerging from the pandemic's aftermath, it's funny how the past can help us come to terms with the present. Clara and Ruby's dreams helped reawaken my own.

'History isn’t about dates and battlefields, leaders and royalty. It’s about ordinary people getting on with the business of living in spite of such unforgiving odds. And somehow in the process always managing to hold hard to hope. It was such a simple truth. (The Little Wartime Library.''

Oh this book!! This book made my heart happy! It is so true that turning to books in times of great fear and uncertainty offers us comfort like nothing else! During the pandemic books transported us all from very scary times! Books kept us sane! This book was beautiful from start to finish! Libraries and librarians are our solace!

The Little Wartime Library is a paean of triumph for the wartime librarians who kept libraries open and books available for readers during WWII in Britain. The librarians and readers had to fight against not only bombs falling from the skies but against prejudices of both men and women who thought they knew best what books should be available.
Clara Button and Ruby Munroe ran the underground library in the half-finished Bethnal Green underground station after the library above-ground was bombed. They absorbed the books that survived the bombing and with a budget of fifty pounds built a library to carry on lending the books to the war-weary community until the end of the war. This story is not only about the library but also about the community of people who lived un the tunnels - about their joys and sorrows during the war. It's about the horrors not only visited on people by the enemy but by men on women, employers on employees, and by parents on children. But most survived, scarred but getting on with life.
Thompson evokes the feeling of East London in her telling of this story. She is a worthy author of this saga. I could have done without some of the description of emotion - "show don't tell" - but it is a worthwhile story and well told.
Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of the book; the opinions expressed are mine.

I LOVED this book. Kate Thompson says the quiet part out loud--books are essential because they can provide a breathing space to allow us to temporarily escape from the stresses everyday life. Clara, with her best friend Ruby, establishes a library in an unused tube station during the bombing in London in WWII. The library becomes a gathering place for the community, and the unused subway area provides temporary sleeping places for bombed out citizens. Clara, Ruby, the community, and especially the children served by the library have stories that will grab you heart. Be certain to read the information at the end of the novel, because this is based on a true story. I received this as an arc from net galley, and am under no pressure for a positive review.

Ramona Thompson

A very engrossing narrative, I have not been so captured by a historical fiction novel in quite a moment. Thompson was a bit worrying to dive into, given the small catalog to base an opinion off of. Instead, I can't wait to find more. Thank you to both Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity with this title.

A WW2 book centering around an underground library. Love and loss - heroes emerge. I loved the library and life surrounded by books. A very good book!

** “The enemy is trying to infect our minds with the dry rot of doubt and discontent, in the hope that our morale will crumble. We must continue to inform ourselves upon the issues that underlie the conflict and upon what is at stake. To this end, books are indispensable.” **

Kate Thompson delivers an incredible based-on-a-true-story novel about a WWII Underground Library in “The Little Wartime Library.”

As Clara Button attempts to get over her own personal tragedies, she works alongside Ruby Munroe to keep a small Underground library running — bringing together a community living on the fringes during a desperate and trying time.

“The Little Wartime Library” is a story of friendship, survival, determination, loyalty and a love letter to libraries and those who work tirelessly to keep them running. Thompson does an incredible job of building a real-life world with fallible but lovable characters. She also turns the library into its own character that readers will love and champion. It’s a hard and realistic look into the wartime life these brave British souls dealt with and overcame.

This story is truly an inspiration, renewing one’s love for reading and their local library. It reminds us that reading can be for pleasure and escape, as well as containing several other great themes, like family is who you make it; books are gateways to other worlds; and “the diversion a good story (can) bring.”

Fans of historical fiction, particularly World War II stories, as well as stories with strong women characters will love “The Little Wartime Library,” which is due out Feb. 21.

Five stars out of five.

Forever provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.

This is the rare historical fiction book that so closely parallels reality that you feel like you're living it. Thompson's research for this novel clearly paid off, as so much of what was experienced during the war really comes to life on the page. Some "less covered" WWII topics truly get their due here - from the island of Jersey to the plight of librarians, what it was like to be a conscientious objector, and of course, the library of Bethnal Green and the underground. Beautifully written, despite this book being nearly 500 pages long it flew by! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free advance copy.

This is a beautiful, fictionalized retelling of a very true story. Mountains of research and interviews paid off for Kate Thompson in this triumph of a historical novel. The characters are based on real people, and I feel so connected to this moment in history after reading their stories.

Stories of war have a special place in my heart. Maybe because they help us find resolve or remind us of our humanity. Maybe because I’m a military wife. Who’s to say? But this book is special. Bethnal Green is special. And the work that Kate Thompson has done to keep the history of the story of Bethan Green alive in such a unique way is remarkable.

This book has it all. I laughed as often as I wept. The glimpses of life that happened between bombings almost made the horror of the war fade. And then another strike came. And the death toll increased with the names of women and children who only sought to stay brave on the homefront. My heart both broke and mended in these pages.

I couldn’t begin to talk about the characters—there are too many that I love too well. You simply must read this book and meet them yourself. This one is a gem—a true treasure of literature and history.

Thanks to NetGalley, Grand Central Publishing, and Kate Thompson for an advanced copy of this stunning book.

I DNFed at 28%. I think a case of right book, wrong reader. I did read the epilogue (lol) and think readers will be satisfied by the ending.

This book is a stunning story about a real underground library during World War II. When the Bethnal Green Library building in East London is destroyed on the first night of the Blitz, the library moves into an unfinished Tube station that eventually becomes home to thousands of displaced Londoners. By 1944, the Blitz has ended but there is still a constant threat from German bombs and other attacks, leaving Londoners ever vigilant but determined to “keep calm and carry on.” But the emotional scars of the war are simmering just below the surface.

Clara is a young war widow who, after the death of her boss in the library bombing, becomes the head librarian of the underground library. Her sidekick is her glamorous best friend, Ruby, who is dulling the pain of her sister’s death and stepfather’s abuse by living a wild life. The two make a dynamic team that lifts the spirits of the men, women, and children who live underground. As the bombs continue to rain from the sky, the women face down danger from the war, the sexist men in charge, and the lawlessness on the streets while protecting the innocent children and struggling women of the underground shelter, all while searching for their own peace.

I wasn’t prepared for the powerful scenes in this book and could barely catch my breath before another horrible thing was happening. Throughout the hardships, though, I was amazed at the power and resilience of the women. Clara and Ruby kept their faith in humanity and used the power of words to affect the lives of so many. The way the author weaves in lessons from literature and how books have the power to give people hope will thrill fellow book lovers.

I fell in love with the romances in the book as well. Both Clara and Ruby are unlucky in love and searching for a man who will see and accept them as they are. My heart was in my throat during Clara’s every encounter with the gentle Billy, hoping they would finally see the love flowing between them! I just adored Ruby’s beau, who saw past her flippant exterior to the shining diamond underneath.

This book was a breath of fresh air into the often overdone world of WWII books and is one of the best books I’ve read about London during the war! A must-read for true WWII book enthusiasts!

Despite the disapproval of her mother and mother-in-law, who think she should have “retired” from work after her marriage, widowed librarian Clara Button is determined to stay at her job at the Bethnel Green library. It’s particularly important now that the bombed-out library has been moved underground into the unused Bethnel Green subway station. There, underground in a space that has been remade to house not only the library, but hundreds of bunkbeds, a theatre, a nursery and a cafe, she and her best mate, the glamorous Ruby Munroe, conduct story hours for children, make the rounds of factories to provide books to the women working there, and generally offer solace and distraction from the destruction above ground and the nightly terror of bombing raids. Fighting the disapproval of the head librarian, who would restrict the library’s contents to “proper” literature (rather than the racy romance novels beloved by the factory girls LOL) she and Ruby also struggle to manage their own lives. Clara finds herself drawn to conscientious objector and ambulance driver, who though tarred as a “coward” for not joining the army, quietly risks his life nightly putting out fires and saving those trapped in bombed-out buildings. Ruby, who avoids heartache and pushes away her guilt over her sister’s tragic death by embracing a “love ‘em and leave em’” philosophy, can’t quite forget the dashing American with whom she spent a few unforgettable nights.

Knowing the novel is based on a true story of the underground library at Bethnel Green added an extra attraction to this marvelous novel of survival, friendship, dedication and being true to yourself despite those who would belittle or obstruct. I cheered for both Clara and Ruby, for their pain, their doubts, and their eventual triumph at the end of the war. Highly recommended!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central for being allowed to read an ARC of this amazing story.

Kate Thompson has written a meticulously researched historical fiction novel about an underground library in London during the Blitz. The characters are so real at Bethnal Green tube station where an entire community including a theater, cafes, doctors, and a library has sprouted up. Most important is how the library was the center of it all and how it influenced the lives of so many people during this five year time frame. With a reading room, children’s story hours, and book groups, the library was the saving grace for so many adults and children. Some 5,000 people lived underground….coming to sleep every night, children making their homes there without parents, etc. The novel captures what life was like living during this horrific period for the common East End Londoner. It was such a heartwarming novel filled with struggle, hope,, and survival.

Historical fiction, particularly WWII, is my favorite genre so a book about an underground community and its library during WWII is right up my alley. Unfortunately, this one wasn’t. I can’t get past the first few chapters, which are a jumbled mess. There is way too much going on but nothing is clear (the jumbled mess I mentioned). The author had the chance to tell a wonderful story but missed the mark entirely.

3.5
This book caught my eye right away with the cover, and I was delighted (and saddened at the same time, because many were tragic events) to find out that many elements of this story are based on real historical events, people, and places. I loved reading the articles at the back of this novel based on the author's research for this book.

Overall, I enjoyed the trip into the past and into Clara and Ruby's little wartime library. I loved imagining this community built through hardship in the tunnels and the importance of books in times of crisis, if only for a temporary escape. It was kind of interesting to start the story with an unknown woman and not really know who it was returning to the little library site for awhile.

I did feel some parts were strangely repetitive, and I wish we got to know some of the other characters better. Tragic things were happening, but I somehow didn't have enough of an emotional connection to the characters or to this community to feel the real impact of it. There was also, for me personally maybe, a kind of unusual juxtaposition with major themes or focus on the impact of libraries on children and the children of this story and the sexual exploitation/harm/liberation of women against the backdrop of the war.

I enjoyed it, but with the fantastic premise, I was hoping to enjoy it more that I actually did.

Thank you Netgalley and Forever for a chance to review this book. All opinions are my own.

I was a big-city public librarian for thirty-five years, and I retired at the turn of the century, so my career was almost entirely in the days of books and readers, not computers and “information technology.” Which means I will approach any historical novel about libraries with both automatic interest and a little bit of caution. And you might not think that books would be important during World War II, but they played a major role in providing the civilian population of London with at least a temporary escape from the nightly bombings.

The focus here is the small library that was resurrected in and operated out of the Bethnal Green tube station during the blitz after the local library itself was bombed. In fact, since it had been shut down shortly before the war started, the station wasn’t being used, and it was reopened and occupied by the local people -- several thousand East Enders -- without bothering to get the government’s permission. It became a full-time village seventy feet below the surface of people who went off to their jobs during the day and returned to the dorms they had build in the station to eat, sleep, and entertain themselves.

Now it’s 1944 and the lending library run by the young widow, Clara Button, the trained Children’s Librarian under the Branch Librarian who was killed in the bombing, is now a very popular part of the tube station community, largely via her READ FOR VICTORY! program. Plenty of women who spend the day doing war work like to relax in the evenings with Georgette Heyer or Dorothy Sayers or the latest paperback bodice-ripper. She’s supported tirelessly by her best friend the mouthy and courageous Ruby Munroe, who has also suffered tragedy in the War and who now works as Clara’s assistant in the library.

Clara has problems, both with her judgmental mother, who thinks she be looking for a replacement husband instead of working, and also with the misogynistic Pinkerton-Smyth, head of the government’s Library Committee, who thinks encouraging women to read is disruptive to their domestic duties. (Because, of course, keeping her husband happy is a woman’s most important job.) He’s gunning for Clara, whom he sees as an unfeminine trouble-maker, but he’s never come across a strong, smart woman like her before, someone willing to fight for the library’s many clients. Fortunately, she also has a growing relationship with Billy Clark, an ambulance man who rescues her from a mugger (or worse) and then sticks around.

Meanwhile, Ruby, who knows people consider her a fallen floozy, but who is a very sharp young woman when it comes to street smarts and has contacts everywhere, is trying to find a solution to her dangerously abusive stepfather who is making her mother’s life hell. And that bastard has no idea who he’s dealing with. Ruby, too, acquires a love interest in the form of Eddie, an American GI from Brooklyn, who met her a dance the year before and comes back to London to find her again after he finishes his training. In fact, he’s so taken with Ruby, he works at winning her attention by sending the library shipments of books.

Both the main characters are interesting and well developed, as are the supporting cast. The author’s style is smooth and engaging, and she has certainly done her homework. In fact, the Notes and Reading Guide at the end run thirty pages and describe the historical facts behind the story of the library at Bethnal Green tube station and her journey to uncover them.I recommend this one without hesitation.

Clara has a terrible family. Her mother and mother-in-law want her to give up her job in the library, even though her husband died and she has no children to take care of at home. Her boss is also a caricature of a judgmental misogynist. He believes libraries and the books they contain should be reserved for the educated. He tries to get Clara to stop taking trashy romance novels to the women factory workers, ban the “tube rats”, and limit the hours she has the library open.

For a book which obviously wants to show books should be for all people and their varying tastes, the characters all seem to fall into set characters: horny lower-class women who want to read bodice rippers, children reading children’s classics, and mystery readers. I didn’t like how the author wanted me to admire this woman for supplying what amounts to smut to the masses. I enjoyed the few scenes where Clara tries to guess library patrons’ favorite books. However, this only happens in the first few chapters and once toward the end and not really anywhere else in the book. She also makes no effort to recommend other books to her lower-class patrons.

Ruby is introduced as a crass slut. Her first chapter has her taking her lipstick out of her cleavage and applying it. Really? I’m expected to believe this woman doesn’t have pockets or carry a handbag? Ruby sleeps around London and slowly descends into alcoholism to cope with the trauma of losing her sister and other terrible things in her life. The book in general celebrates the sexual liberty to war supposedly brought. By 30% into the book, I felt “icky”.

A friend of mine encouraged me to finish the book so I could give an accurate review. The book seemed to get better around 60% in. It focused less on cramming feminism into every turn and more on the people Clara and Ruby interacted with through the library. They started a book club as a way to reach out to people. Although, this lead to at least two women leaving their husbands.

Clara becomes close to two girls from Jersey. She and Ruby help them out while their mother supposedly works the night shift. They even take the girls to Jersey after its liberation from the Nazis. Clara ends up adopting them with her second husband. Overall, I’m satisfied with how Clara’s story ends.

Ruby ends up giving up drink. I think the author glosses over how much Ruby would struggle with that. Once Ruby’s step-father dies and quits beating up her mom, she seems to cope better with the trauma she has lived through. Ruby moves to America to marry a GI she had met a couple of times in London. Although, it seems like her greatest accomplishment is writing several bodice rippers of her own.

I recommend skipping this book. If you want to read a book about how books can knit a community together during horrible times, read The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin. If you want to read about books positively influencing children, read A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus. I would by far rather re-read one of these books than this one.

Any book or movie relating to World War II strikes a nerve with me and this was no exception. I did not realize until about half way through that it was based on actual events which made it all the more emotional and touching. World War II touched so many lives but growing up in America I can say I never put myself in the shoes of someone living so closely too it. Reading this story was breathtaking, sad, beautiful and encouraging. The strength of the people living through this and what they had to do to retain some semblance of normalcy is beyond words.

Reading, books and community are so strong in this story.

I wish I could put it into better words how moving this book was but you just have to read it to understand.