#american library

[lindenardenshighlights]

books

GEBALLE FAMILY BALCONY (208)

An imaginative portrait of a nation, The American Library explores how ideas of citizenship, home, and nationalism acquire complex meanings. The work consists of six thousand books wrapped in Dutch wax-print fabric and embossed with the names of immigrants and migrants who have made a significant impact on American culture.

[bookworms-heart]

The Paris Library: A Novel by Janet Skeslien Charles

For this review I have selected one of my E-reads. This book is historical fiction, and is based on the very real story of the American Library in Paris, France during the years 1939-1945 from the perspective of Odile, a librarian. Her perspective chapters are paralleled by her neighbor, Lily’s life interacting with Odile beginning in 1983 and the years that follow. “Books and ideas are like blood; they need to circulate, and they keep us alive.”

Summary: This is a book about consequences and relationships starting with Odile in her homeland, Paris, where all her dreams are at her fingertips. She receives a job at the American Library in Paris and has friends, even a beau. They all stay together to form a resistance in the library to circulate and deliver books illegally to people who are not supposed to have them when the Nazi occupation began. The end of the war changes the trajectory of her future with a betrayal of the worst kind. Prompting her move to Montana where Lily, the other narrator tells her story throughout her teenage years. They build a withstanding friendship and we see how Odile steers Lily into adulthood, and tries to guide her away from the mistakes that haunt her past while also learning of what truly happened in Paris as the story progresses.

Final Thoughts: Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres, and this book made me remember why. The author had accurate details of this real life library during the real event, even down to the characters that she included to help tell the fictional story of Odile. It was awe inspiring to know that there were real people included in the book that did these real things. It was a great read with limited flaws. With that being said I have to mention, I was not fond of Lily during the majority of her chapters, but I did enjoy that she was the vessel used for transporting us into Odile’s past. Having her chapters made anticipation grow to get back to the WWII era of Odile’s youth, and she was used tastefully as a character even if she wasn’t very likable. It took me less than a day to complete this read and all in all I’m very glad to have read it.

Rating: 4.7/5

[miss-shirley]

24/01/2020

Went to my happy place to do research, found a neat little table with outlets next to the crime novels and worked backlit by afternoon sun 😌🌇💻

[tinynavajoreads]

Tiny Navajo Reads ARCs: The Paris Library

Tiny Navajo Reads ARCs: The Paris Library by @skesliencharles - a book that gives a small insight to what was happening to the American Library in Paris during WWII. #arc #arcreview #bookreview #review #reading #wwii #life

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles ◆ ◆ ◆ ◇ ◇ *To Be Published February 9, 2021 by Atria Books I’m going to be very honest, I never knew there was an American Library in Paris. I didn’t even know what that meant. Now I do and I’m excited to learn more about libraries like this! I received this ARC from NetGalley. This in no way affects my thoughts on the book or the following…

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[writinginnorthnorfolk]

Kindness in the Time of Corona

Kindness in the Time of Corona

In these days of pandemic, I no longer rely on friends or the kindness of strangers. I take my daily walk alone, plodded laps around the football pitch, no cheers or claps, while spectral goalposts lean towards each other longing for the raucous fuss and bother of a game. I stop to admire silver petals, daisies straddling the green-grey tangles of seeding grasses like starfish adrift in patches of…

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[writinginnorthnorfolk]

Back Under the Willow Time passed under the willow. The weather witch did not return and the stone goblin, believed by the villagers to be a sleeping gnome, was still propped against its trunk.

[writinginnorthnorfolk]

The Willow Tree Goblin

The Willow Tree Goblin

Long ago, when fairies were commonplace and humans less so, a goblin made his home in a garden beneath a corkscrew willow, where daylight was always green, and leaves twisted and rustled in the breeze; at night, he could watch the moon between the branches.

The goblin’s name was Willow – Will for short. He was cheerful and made friends with the birds and animals that frequented his tree: the mice…

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[111publishing]

Upcoming Fellowships and Writer’s Residencies

Paris, France, Lake Superior, Switzerland, or Northern India – where would you like to write your next book?   Paid travel expenses, or room and board, even a stipend are sometimes offered.  Who would not consider applying? .

Rabbit Island Residency, Lake Superior Each year residents receive fundingto live and work on Rabbit Island amongst the forest, rocks, wildlife, and the vast waters of Lake…

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