This is a lovely book. It follows the story of Peggy, a bookbinder in the early 20th century. The characters are rich and vibrant, and I became so invested on Peggy’s story.

The story is a bit slow and I was not a taken with this one as The Dictionary of Lost Words. There is no need to read Dictionary to fully enjoy this story, though there are a few connections with that story that are fun to find in the story.

I loved the subject of the novel which is about one of my favorite things… books!
Peggy and Maude, sisters both employed in the bookbinding trade during WWI, want very different things.
Parts of me identified with both sisters and their ambitions.
I liked the WWI setting because it really was a pivotal time in England.
The author’s note filled in some of,the story gaps.

I really liked this historical fiction from Pip Williams. I read her previous book, The Dictionary of Lost Words, and though this is considered a sort of follow-up, it's not really connected to the first other than by the setting.

The book follows twin sisters Peggy and Maude as they live and work in Oxford. Both girls are employed at the local book bindery, where Peggy is often distracted by the words she sees while folding pages. She longs to study at the Oxford's women's college, Somerville, but sees no way to bridge the gap considering she left school as an early teen to begin work at the bindery. Add to that the uniqueness of her sister Maude, and Peggy subconsciously feels trapped.

World War II begins early on in the book, and Oxford is flooded with Belgian refugees. Peggy volunteers her time as a reader in the hospital wards, where she meets a young Belgian soldier with horrific injuries. Meanwhile, a woman named Lotte joins the ranks at the bindery, making quick friends with Maude. The story that flows from these relationships is one of love, and longing, friendship and loyalty, heartache and bravery. A must read for fans of historical fiction with strong female characters.

Pip Williams's sophomore novel brings back the magic of The Dictionary of Lost Words, with a few familiar characters to boot. I adored The Bookbinder, and living with Peggy and Maude in my head was a thoughtful journey as I learned more about how strong women in the WWII era really were.

There were many tears shed throughout this book. Maude has a special place in my heart and it was amazing getting to know her, and seeing just how strong she really was. Peggy didn't see it either until it was almost too late.

I found Peggy to be condescending and not very pleasant, but her story still resonated with me. Her desire to read books instead of just folding them gave her a slightly endearing quality. I enjoyed her love story with the Belgian soldier.

All in all, this was a great follow-up to Dictionary and I award it 4 stars. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a great historical fiction told through the eyes of women.

Peggy and Maude are bookbinders in England during WWI. Peggy is ambitious, and Maude is content with her lot in life. When Belgian refugees begin to enter England, Peggy has a vision of a world where she can do much more.

Read this book if you enjoy strong female characters, historical fiction, and sibling relationships. I enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC! Pip Williams adds an incredible book to the world she paints in A Dictionary of Loss Words. I loved how these two stories shared characters, places, and beautiful books. I really loved the dynamics of Maude and Peggy as they continued to grow together and apart!

Williams is a profound storyteller and the writing is beautiful.
Many thanks to Random House and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I both listened to the audio and read this via ebook. I DNF'd the audio, as it didn't grab me, but the novel alone was terrific. I love Williams's knowledge of what she writes and how that is portrayed in her stories. While not a sequel to The Dictionary of Lost Words, it could almost be considered a sister book.

A wonderful WWI-era read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for both copies of this book. All opinions are my own.

Are you the type of person that can’t keep themselves from reading if there are words in front of you?

If yes, Peggy Jones can definitely relate - she & her unique twin sister Maude are employed at Oxford’s book bindery on the brink of World War I, & though Peggy is told that her job is to fold the pages of the books & not read them, she can’t help herself. Everytime there is a slight imperfection in a book, she takes it home to the narrowboat she & Maude share instead of letting it go to waste, forming her own sort of cobbled-together library. Big changes come to their corner of the world as the war heats up: Belgian refugees come to stay, men go to war leaving jobs open, & Peggy simultaneously has a foreign soldier love interest & the opportunity to apply for admission to the college just across the street from her workplace that has always been tantalizingly out of reach. What will she have to give up to make the change from someone who just lives in town to a student wearing an academic gown? And can she study hard enough to pass the entrance exams?

This is the first Pip Williams novel I’ve read, & I realized a character from The Dictionary of Lost Words is mentioned a few times in this story so I’ll definitely have to read that. I love books about books, so naturally I was drawn to this one purely because of the title. Once I got into it I loved the way the author put a spotlight on this specific place & time, focusing on women that I have never seen history books mention. Peggy’s love of learning is inspiring, & the author did a wonderful job with the rest of the cast of characters as well, all of them coming together to show different aspects of how the war had an impact on the day-to-day lives of regular people. I also found the point that the author makes about translating text from another language to English to be thought-provoking: the words that are chosen (that specific translator’s interpretation, that translator often being a man) profoundly influence our understanding of what was originally meant.

Thank you to NetGalley & Ballantine Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Excellent read, if a bit slow. The characters were multidimensional and interesting. The author made them feel very real to me. I'm sad that the book is over because I kind of miss them. The setting is of interest to any fan of books. I appreciated learning more about the bindery girls and other workers behind the scenes at a publisher. I really like that some previously hidden populations of women are getting their stories told lately. I have read a few books set during World War I, but this book approached that era from a different perspective, and I really liked it.

Step into the world of bookbinding during WWII as you follow Peggy and Maude through their daily lives and trials as they navigate life. An endearing story of 2 sisters who lose their mother too early, live in Oxford without many options in life, and care for one another and learn to love refugees. Pip Williams helps us learn what daily life was like for refugees, the disabled, and those who live with them. This book is a beautiful peak into how books were bound and how communities were bound together for the good of all. A must read for book lovers, librarians, and history fans!

This is the second book written by Pip Williams that I've read; the first was The Dictionary of Lost Words which I read for book club last summer. Both books are set in Oxford, England, deal with the Oxford Publishing House, and have some crossover characters. This book (and both books, actually) is extremely charming and lovely, pulling me into the lives of these characters during World War I. Peggy and Maude are twin sisters who have worked in the bindery of the Oxford Publishing House since they were 12 years old. They live on a narrow boat and have followed in their mother's footsteps by working in the bindery. Peggy longs to go to college, but family circumstances have not offered her that opportunity, especially since she has to keep an eye on Maude after her mother's death. Her world expands when Belgian refugees arrive in Oxford and start working at the bindery. In addition, she volunteers at the local hospital, experiencing the horrors of war first-hand.

The book deals with words, language, books, scholarship, reading - all the things I love! There are two librarians who figure prominently in the story, and both are heroes in their own way. The story of the dedication of the two sisters is endearing, and the other characters in the book have very strong roles in Peggy and Maude's lives.

I received an advanced reader copy from NetGally and am very thankful for the opportunity to read this excellent historical novel. Overall I highly recommend this book!

First World War 1914. Peggy and her twin sister, Maude, work in a book bindery. They continue to live on the narrow boat following their mother's death. Maude is "special," limited in what she is capable of doing, and Peggy feels she must look after Maude.

As all the men leave to go fight, Peggy is afforded opportunities within the book binding shop, opportunities she never would have had before. Her mother was a reader and unusual for the time, Peggy owns several books. She is also able to bring home sections of books that are imperfect. She longs to have access to many books, and through a chance encounter, she finds herself able to use the Oxford college library, where she spends her very limited amount of free time. She meets Bastiaan, a Belgian refugee, and readers will find themselves rooting for Bastiaan and Peggy.

This book is related to the author's THE DICTIONARY OF LOST WORDS but is not as magical as that story was. Twin sisters Peggy and Maude work at the Oxford University Press as folders for the pages of new books being printed. Maude, who may be on the autism spectrum, is happy with her life, but Peggy wishes for more - to be able to read the books freely, to study at the University, to advance in her work - but is held back in every instance by the fact that she is a woman. The story covers the years of World War I in England. It is interesting but not as riveting or educational as LOST WORDS. Thanks to NetGalley Random House Publishing Group, and Ballantine Books for providing an ARC.

A compelling book into the lives of Peggy and Maude at a book bindery and the onset of WW1 in England. From the houseboat they live in, to the libraries at University Oxford Press. Pip Williams takes you into life of the working class and their trials and tribulations. It's wanting to be the best that you can be and the obstacles that one has to overcome. A well written historical fiction that incorporates the joy of books, strong women, WW1 and life in England. A captivating read.

In Pip Williams' style- amazing, lyrical read. I am really enjoying the themes the author is touching in her works, identity, patriarchy, and glimpses of hope in seemingly hopeless situations.

A young British woman working in a book bindery gets a chance to pursue knowledge and love when World War I upends her life in this new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the Reese’s Book Club pick The Dictionary of Lost Words.

This is historical fiction at its finest. Pip Williams does a wonderful job following her last book The Dictionary of Lost Words. She really has a way of immersing you in the era. Sometimes it was as though I could smell what she was writing about the writing was that good. The book has romance, self discovery, depictions of war and what it means to be a family. I highly recommend for fans of historical fiction.

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for letting me review this book.

This one reminded me a lot of Rosamunde Pilcher’s Coming Home with the main plot being about those at home during the war contributing in their own ways while life continues despite a war going on.

Unlike Coming Home, I felt this one dragged a little. I was happy that she finally found her way in the end because you can’t help but root for her to succeed despite her odds.

Often times a sequel comes along and it never quite seems to live up to the original. I’m happy to say that is not the case with Pip Williams’ second book, The Bookbinder. While this is a sequel, the characters in it are different than the original The Dictionary of Lost Words, with Gareth and Esme making cameos and Tilda tying the 2 books together. Whereas the first is a love letter to words, this one is a love letter to books.
Taking place between 1914 and 1914 this follows the story of Peggy and her identical twin, Maude, who live in Oxford and are book binders at the university press. When World War 1 starts, Peggy begins volunteering with wounded soldiers and meets Gwen, a university student who soon unlocks something in Peggy she didn’t realize was locked. Peggy begins dreaming of a life where instead of binding the books she is learning from books. So much happens in Peggy’s and Maude’s lives during the four years of the war and they see changes not only in each other, but in the world and people around them.
Filled with the same amount of depth as its predecessor, Ms. Williams has once again weaved a beautiful story with imagined yet real characters around a precarious time in history.

I have some mixed feelings about this book. I loved the setting and the premise. It was a unique look at a specific population that has been underrepresented in the history of WWI. However, I didn't really like Peg, the main character. She's dissatisfied with her lot in life, and understandably so, but she treats her friends and loved ones poorly because of her frustration. Her friend Gwen benefits from the systemic sexism in society but Peg doesn't have to be so mean or angry at Gwen. The book is also longer than I felt it needed to be. I was having trouble staying interested until the end. I loved Tilda's character and would love to have seen more off her and Maude. This is very well-written and researched, despite my few complaints.