Juliet Lansdown moves to London to be the deputy librarian at Bethnal Green, and has to prove to the men in charge that she can do the job. Katie Upwood is off to university in the fall, but finds herself harboring a life-changing secret with no one to turn to for help after her fiancé dies on the front lines. Sofie Baumann, a young Jewish refugee, fled Germany on a domestic service visa only to find herself working for a man who treats her abominably, and escapes to the library every chance she can with hopes of finding her sister, who is still trying to flee occupied Europe. Together, the three women find friendship and connection to other women in their neighborhoods, and amidst the Blitz, they relocate their library underground where the city’s residents shelter nightly, determined to lend out stories that will keep spirits up.

Thank you to @netgalley, @randomhouse, and @jennifer_ryan_author for the ARC! I really enjoyed this book! Sofie, Katie, and Juliet were wonderful characters, and I loved their relationships with each other and with the other women in their community. I especially loved Sofie and her journey, it was especially moving and taught me a lot about what Jews fleeing Germany went through. The book was based on a true story and I loved learning more about the history of the library system during the Blitz, as well as how women were able to step into jobs previously reserved for men. The author’s note at the end had a lot of good information and backend about the inspiration behind the story. The book had a very feel-good ending with all of the story lines being nicely wrapped up.