The Little Wartime Library: A gripping, heart-wrenching WW2 page-turner based on real events

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Sometimes it only takes a glance at the title to know that herein lies a soulmatch book. Library love, WWII London underground community, and the resourceful spirit of a pair of women librarians and the community of the Bethnal Green underground tugged at my heart and left only satisfaction in their wake.

Just brilliant!! I can't describe it any other way. The fact it's based on true events adds more layers to it. And we see how books such as The Wind in the Willows, Rebecca, Treasure Island, and Gone with the Wind gave vital respite from the deadly blitz and the resulting tragic deaths; from grief over loved ones lost on the battlefield; from domestic violence, sexual assaults, and other crimes that ensued as before. Clara and Ruby are brilliant women – it feels wrong to call them characters as they are so real. They embody true feminist courage and strength. Acaptivating tale about the power of libraries and how they connect us. . . [a]fascinating slice of history."— Andie Newton, author of The Girls from the Beach So many families are homeless and a safe place is made for them to live underground, five thousand three tiered bunks are installed, it has a café, nursery, theatre and a library. Clara’s a trained librarian and Ruby isn't your typical assistant, between them they make a great team and devise ingenious ways of lending out as many books as they can. Visiting factories and delivering books to shift workers, holding a nightly story time for the children, starting a boozy book club for their mothers, and Clara sends a letter to Canada asking for donations of children’s classic books.Romance sat alongside literary classics, children’s books, poetry and plays. Treasure Island, The Secret Garden and many other classics, including Enid Blyton, nourished young minds and helped children to escape the nightmares above. The characters are the highlight of this delightful book. Clara, a war widow, had every reason to be bitter. She disregards her ‘imposed upon’ obligations and her losses and channels her energy into providing equal opportunity books to everyone in the secret community. Ruby has a big heart and puts others before herself, desperately wanting to hide her inner unhappiness and loss. You’ll be in awe of the sense of community the author creates and come to love many of the library patrons. I absolutely loved the story of the underground community and learning more about the heart of soul of this community: the library, its Librarian, and its people. One of the things I loved about this book, was the author’s exploration of what “one” person can achieve when faced with hardship. As the war dragged on, the women's determination to remain strong in the face of adversity is tested to the limits, when it ‘seems’ it might have come at the price of keeping those closest to them alive. The crowd murmurs in anticipation. There is a drumroll. The presenter is given the envelope. It’s opened and I say…..

Aheartwarming story of how friendship and the written word sustain us in the toughest times."— Janet Skeslien Charles, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Library Aheartwarming story of how friendship and the written word sustain us in the toughest times. New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Lib Janet Skeslien CharlesHeartbreakingly, that home was tinged with horror one night in March 1943 when 173 people died in a human crush on the uneven steps down to the shelter. ARP wardens worked alongside housewives and boy scouts to save the injured. Mrs Chumbley wrenched children free from the crush with such force their shoes were left behind. It was three hours before the last casualty was pulled out.

Kate Thompson’s exploration of what the ‘little’ person can achieve in the face of adversity is truly inspirational. Contrary to popular belief, during the Second World War, not all shelterers slept in an amorphous huddle on a dirty Underground platform. The history of World War Two is full of surprises, mostly tales of unspeakable deprivation, sacrifice and bloodshed, but just occasionally, magic. Amongst the plethora of WW2 stories, The Little Wartime Library by Kate Thompson is a shining beacon of factual truth, authenticity and beautifully written fiction. Captivating and remarkable, it reminds us that stories soothe and help us make sense of the chaos in our lives."— The Toronto StarThe Little Wartime Library by Kate Thompson is a wonderful WWII-era historical fiction saga that is based on true events and is so gripping and unique, that I can guarantee nothing else will keep your attention while you are immersed into this book. This has to be one of my best books of 2022. Yes I realise we’ve barely woken up from the new year celebrations but this is such a wonderful story, beautifully told that I am sure I am going to be hard pressed to find a match to this. This is a delightful story of community in wartime, love and loss, and resilience. Based on a true story,

My favourite character throughout was Ruby. Bold, brassy and brave she epitomised the bulldog tenacity of the Eastend people. She's certainly someone you would want to have as an ally. She was, almost, like Clara's conscience. Encouraging her and pushing her to do things she might have let go. The friendship between them was special. I’m really struggling with what to write about this book. I tried to major in the Library Media Specialist program at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and unfortunately I wasn’t able to get a major in the program because I was disabled and I want to give a giant shout out to Ann Zarrinia and Eileen Shroeder who ran the department together and the head librarian of the Palmyra Public Library whose name I have forgotten during 2010 which refused to let me complete my internship for not allowing me to complete my major. There’s a very interesting author’s note in the book that mentions librarians helping the mentally disabled and look at how they helped me! Weaving historical fact and fiction, Thompson furnishes the reader with warm and engrossing reading experience.

When you close a library, bad things start to happen in the neighbourhood where the library used to be. The library is the glue that holds a community together and you only miss it after it has gone. " This means there’s something for everyone in Kate Thompson’s book. There’s romance and peril, bravery and cowardice, personal moments and international events, making the story thrum with vibrancy. History isn’t about dates and battlefields, leaders, and royalty. It’s about ordinary people getting on with the business of living, in spite of such unforgiving odds. And somehow in the process always managing to hold hard to hope. The entire supporting cast of characters in this story are a definite value add – they all work together to add unity to the overall scope of the story. I can’t think of a single one which didn’t add something of value.