The Librarians of Rue de Picardie: From the bestselling author, a powerful, moving wartime page-turner based on real events – Skeslien Charles Janet (2024)

The New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Library returns with a powerful, moving new novel based on the extraordinary true story of Jessie Carson, the American librarian determined to bring books to the children of war-torn France. 'This is hands down my book of 2024. A rich, glorious life-affirming ode to the power of books and female solidarity. Simply unforgettable!' KATE THOMPSON 'A wonderful story about the power books have not only to inspire, but also to rescue and restore. The characters are so richly drawn... I absolutely loved it' RUTH HOGAN ------------------------ Under what was left of the roof of the ruined cottage, a girl with pigtails perched on a pile of rubble, hunched over a book... 1918: As the Great War rages, Jessie Carson takes a leave of absence from the New York Public Library to work for the American Committee for Devastated France, a group of women determined to rebuild devastated French communities just miles from the front. Upon arrival, Jessie strives to establish something that the French have never seen - children's libraries. She turns ambulances into bookmobiles and trains the first French female librarians. Then she disappears. 1987: When…