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The Bookseller Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman

Jun17

Echoes Down The Years

The Bookseller Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman is a powerful, heart-wrenching dual timeline novel that I loved. It is the second book in The Paris Sisters but can be read as a stand-alone.

The action is mainly set in Paris in 1941 and also in 2011. This is a cosmopolitan read as in 2011 we travel from London to Scotland to Berlin and to Paris. In 1941 we journey between Paris and Berlin.

In present day a granddaughter is trying to piece together her grandfather’s past. She wants to know her heritage – could she really be related to a high-ranking Nazi? Her grandfather has been a recluse tainted by his father’s stance. He has spent a lifetime feeling guilty for the sins of his father.

Books are central to the story. In both time periods, the leading ladies are passionate about books. Novels by Jewish authors were smuggled out of Nazi Germany during World War II or they would have been lost forever. Books and writings tell our stories. “Our personal stories… They connect us to the past and remind us of who we are.” Books are more than just a social commentary on the time. “Books are our testament to having lived, loved and learned.”

We see the courage needed to stand up against the Nazis. “Love can drive us to do the most courageous things, especially in the darkest of times.” We never know what is in our core until it is called out of us.

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The Island Bookshop by Roseanna M White

Jun12

Very Charming

The Island Bookshop by Roseanna M White is a very charming Christian dual timeline novel that I absolutely loved. It is one of those books that you just don’t want to end.

The action is set on a small America island/strip of land in 1938 and in present day. The two time periods are linked by family and the love of books. There is also a mystery to solve.

Books can ‘speak’ to us and transport us to other times and places. We see the love that a character has for A Secret Garden. It’s a timeless, universal appeal.

1938 sees a character arrive from Croatia to start a new life after persecution from Mussolini starts heating up. We see that starting a new life in America is not without its difficulties as strangers from overseas are viewed with suspicion.

Family is important. Family loves and supports us. In present day a character returns home after her sister has an accident. The love of family helps to heal. Sometimes the healing is physical, other times it is mental. “Family will help you heal… You don’t have to talk about it, but you have to be near the people who love you.”

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The Ruins In Which We Bleed by Steve N Lee

Jun12

Heart-Breaking & Inspiring

The Ruins In Which We Bleed by Steve N Lee is a powerful historical novel that I read in just two sittings, pausing only to sleep. It is the third book in the World War II Historical Fiction series but can be read as a stand-alone.

This is a book that will both horrify and inspire you. This is a book that will impact you and not leave you unchanged – because this is a book that is based on real lives.

What the lead character went through seems unbelievable, it seems impossible – but this impossibility is in fact true.

This is a story about a sixteen-year-old who was brave and resourceful. As you read the tale, it is all too easy to forget that she was just sixteen. She was wise beyond her years.

The story is set in the Warsaw ghetto. We hear about life both before and after the Warsaw uprising. We see the importance of family, and of having someone else to live for. Complete isolation would break a spirit. People needed to have someone to live for. “She smiled at the furry little creature. Even in hell, it appeared that friendships could blossom.”

Resistance came in many forms. “This was her sixteenth notebook… The other fifteen had been buried around the ghetto in tins… She couldn’t fire a gun, but she was deadly with a pencil – this was her way of resisting.” Without written records and personal testimonies, how would the world know? “Resisting isn’t only about picking up a gun but about refusing to simply lie down and die… We are resisting… because we’re still here.” There was a strong spirit to survive. “She’d vowed to survive to tell the world.”

Life in the Warsaw ghetto was horrific. Steve N Lee has written sensitively, whilst still relaying the horrors to the reader. “What kind of a world had they built where it was normal for streets to be littered with the corpses of emaciated children?”

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The Home For War Orphans by Jenna Ness

Jun11

A Surprise Gift

The Home For War Orphans by Jenna Ness is a powerful historical debut. It is the first book in The Orphans Of St Agnes series which promises to be fabulous. The ending is perfectly poised for the next book to begin.

The book opens in Paris in 1940 as the Nazis begin to take power. The leader of the orphanage and the remaining orphans flee South in the hope of getting a ship and visas for America. As the reader joins them on their perilous journey, we witness the very best and worst of humanity along the way.

Jenna Ness has perfectly captured the atmosphere as we sense both the bravery and the desperation of all those travelling South.

Within the group there is ‘sibling’ rivalry as well as much love for each other.

The mannerisms of the young girls have been perfectly drawn by the author. We ‘feel’ their conflicting emotions and their bravery.

We witness sacrificial love in action. This is a love that puts others above self.

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