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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My first by Labuskes and certainly will not be my last. This is a WW2 tale that doesn't *really* take place during the war - two of the three timelines are pre-war (1933 and 1936) and the third is in 1944 in New York - nothing on the front. It's a story about fighting the rise of fascism, of fighting censorship, betrayal and loss, and of stepping into the person you were meant to be. At its heart is a gorgeous sapphic romance.
I found the censorship from the US angle particularly compelling considering today's book banning climate, and Althea's speech near the end gave me goosebumps.
I highly recommend this book and am looking forward to a new read by Labuskes!
*This book is part of our Step into the Story 2024 Reading Challenge
I found the censorship from the US angle particularly compelling considering today's book banning climate, and Althea's speech near the end gave me goosebumps.
I highly recommend this book and am looking forward to a new read by Labuskes!
*This book is part of our Step into the Story 2024 Reading Challenge
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
A compelling page turner that in a crowded genre somehow manages to stand out. While I won't say it's the most beautifully written story and is in places predictable, I am very much recommending it to a lot of my friends and family.
The story of 3 women during different years and different locations (1933 Berlin, 1937 Paris and 1944 New York), it is the story of books and censorship during the era, and even though I've read this genre ad nauseum (this is the first of the genre I've picked up in well over a year, as I was burnt out from it), it hit on elements and events that I hadn't learned of before. It depicts the progressive and vibrant cabaret scene in Berlin in the early 30s (and indeed is somehow the first book I've read of the genre with queer characters!?!) as well as the early Nazi resistance movement there. While I had read of the Armed Services Editions books, I never knew about the efforts of then Sen. Robert Taft (R, OH) who added an amendment censoring books with "Un-American ideas" into the GI Voter rights bill of 1944. All in all a well done story that manages to both portray a pivotal moment in history as well as being a cautionary tale about where we stand currently.
The story of 3 women during different years and different locations (1933 Berlin, 1937 Paris and 1944 New York), it is the story of books and censorship during the era, and even though I've read this genre ad nauseum (this is the first of the genre I've picked up in well over a year, as I was burnt out from it), it hit on elements and events that I hadn't learned of before. It depicts the progressive and vibrant cabaret scene in Berlin in the early 30s (and indeed is somehow the first book I've read of the genre with queer characters!?!) as well as the early Nazi resistance movement there. While I had read of the Armed Services Editions books, I never knew about the efforts of then Sen. Robert Taft (R, OH) who added an amendment censoring books with "Un-American ideas" into the GI Voter rights bill of 1944. All in all a well done story that manages to both portray a pivotal moment in history as well as being a cautionary tale about where we stand currently.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The Librarian of Burned Books is very readable. It has an inspiring message about the power of books and the need for a variety of books. There is a lot in here that resonates with the attempts in today’s United States to remove books from libraries. (“[B]anning books, blocking books is often used as a way to erase a people, a belief system, a culture. To say these voices don’t belong here, even when those writers represent the very best of a country.” “Goebbels and Hitler…convinced a country that setting fire to words that you don’t like or don’t agree with will make you right.” (p. 363))
I did find it confusing that two of main characters were in each other’s stories to the extent they were. It was a challenge for me to keep their two timelines (1933 and 1936/37) straight. Hannah in particular hardly seemed like the same person in her own chapters and in Althea’s. I guess authors have to try to differentiate their stories from other stories that have been told about similar events, but I found more drama (or melodrama) in this book than was necessary. I didn’t feel we needed the intense relationship between Hannah and Althea and I really was sorry that Viv lost not a husband that she truly loved as a partner but a best friend. Conveniently for her, unlike the thousands of women who had to carry on after their husbands died, the man she was in love with was still alive.
The book is also a little too feminist. The brother is the idiot who plans to die fighting the Nazis and is captured and put to death instead; it is a man who betrays Hannah, not a woman. I like strong female characters but this was a little too Girl Power for my tastes.
I went through a German and French Resistance reading period in junior high. My father never said anything – he rarely talked about the war – but I wonder what he thought because I wasn’t reading any books about the Pacific theater. He never showed any interest in any movies, books, or articles about the war in Europe. I may have missed some subtle references, but I don’t remember this book even mentioning the Pacific. This passage in particular struck me: “Viv…sent…letters diligently copied from originals pouring in from servicemen stationed around the globe. Men who were watching the invasion from afar, aghast and disheartened that they weren’t fighting alongside their brothers.” (p. 255) Plenty of those men were fighting for their own lives on distant beaches and in distant jungles. I guess I’ve turned into my father because my major criticism of The Librarian of Burned Books is that one could read it and think the only important part of World War II was in Europe.
Anyway, it should make a good book discussion book. We’ll see this week.
I did find it confusing that two of main characters were in each other’s stories to the extent they were. It was a challenge for me to keep their two timelines (1933 and 1936/37) straight. Hannah in particular hardly seemed like the same person in her own chapters and in Althea’s. I guess authors have to try to differentiate their stories from other stories that have been told about similar events, but I found more drama (or melodrama) in this book than was necessary. I didn’t feel we needed the intense relationship between Hannah and Althea and I really was sorry that Viv lost not a husband that she truly loved as a partner but a best friend. Conveniently for her, unlike the thousands of women who had to carry on after their husbands died, the man she was in love with was still alive.
The book is also a little too feminist. The brother is the idiot who plans to die fighting the Nazis and is captured and put to death instead; it is a man who betrays Hannah, not a woman. I like strong female characters but this was a little too Girl Power for my tastes.
I went through a German and French Resistance reading period in junior high. My father never said anything – he rarely talked about the war – but I wonder what he thought because I wasn’t reading any books about the Pacific theater. He never showed any interest in any movies, books, or articles about the war in Europe. I may have missed some subtle references, but I don’t remember this book even mentioning the Pacific. This passage in particular struck me: “Viv…sent…letters diligently copied from originals pouring in from servicemen stationed around the globe. Men who were watching the invasion from afar, aghast and disheartened that they weren’t fighting alongside their brothers.” (p. 255) Plenty of those men were fighting for their own lives on distant beaches and in distant jungles. I guess I’ve turned into my father because my major criticism of The Librarian of Burned Books is that one could read it and think the only important part of World War II was in Europe.
Anyway, it should make a good book discussion book. We’ll see this week.