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A review by lou_ka
Eine Bibliothek in Paris by Janet Skeslien Charles
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was one of my favorite books this year!
For the first few pages, I was unsure if the story would catch me, but it did and was an emotional story that stuck in my head. The characters were all portrayed as complex individuals without clear-cut good or bad traits. The book effectively conveyed the idea that "good" people can make "bad" choices and that even small actions can significantly impact someone's life (positively and negatively).
While the book adequately described the horrors caused by the Germans during the war, it also showed that these people were not entirely evil but rather human beings who could, under certain circumstances, do good things. The book was not a simple black-and-white portrayal of good versus evil but rather a nuanced exploration of the complexities of human nature. Of course, this does not mean that the good outweighs the bad, and I do not want to defend any of the atrocities committed during the war. I just think that depicting all Germans during the war as evil is easy, but understanding that these people were "ordinary" humans like you and me is harder but actually closer to the truth, and understanding this means understanding it can happen again, and we should never stop to remind and learn from this past and fight fascism.
But back to the book: It was a great story of people the fought the nazis by delivering books to Jewish people no longer allowed to enter the library during that time. It showed that small actions like this might not change the suppression but can positively impact those suppressed. But what I actually loved most about the book was the background story of the author, who worked at the library described in the story and did excellent research to remind us that ordinary people rebel against the regime with small things. Additionally, it adequately captures that relationships, family, friends, and love are complicated, and saying sorry and forgiving is even harder.
For the first few pages, I was unsure if the story would catch me, but it did and was an emotional story that stuck in my head. The characters were all portrayed as complex individuals without clear-cut good or bad traits. The book effectively conveyed the idea that "good" people can make "bad" choices and that even small actions can significantly impact someone's life (positively and negatively).
While the book adequately described the horrors caused by the Germans during the war, it also showed that these people were not entirely evil but rather human beings who could, under certain circumstances, do good things. The book was not a simple black-and-white portrayal of good versus evil but rather a nuanced exploration of the complexities of human nature. Of course, this does not mean that the good outweighs the bad, and I do not want to defend any of the atrocities committed during the war. I just think that depicting all Germans during the war as evil is easy, but understanding that these people were "ordinary" humans like you and me is harder but actually closer to the truth, and understanding this means understanding it can happen again, and we should never stop to remind and learn from this past and fight fascism.
But back to the book: It was a great story of people the fought the nazis by delivering books to Jewish people no longer allowed to enter the library during that time. It showed that small actions like this might not change the suppression but can positively impact those suppressed. But what I actually loved most about the book was the background story of the author, who worked at the library described in the story and did excellent research to remind us that ordinary people rebel against the regime with small things. Additionally, it adequately captures that relationships, family, friends, and love are complicated, and saying sorry and forgiving is even harder.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence