Two women, connected by the printed word, make their way through WWII. One, Ava, is an American librarian, sent to Lisbon to collect information from underground publications that are smuggled over the border from occupied France. The other, Elaine, is in the middle of the French resistance, publishing the radical papers opposing the Nazi's. As one after another of Elaine's friends are captured and imprisoned, she bravely works the printing press and delivers the circulars. Ava, meanwhile, feels guilty when she sees the refugees flood across the border, walking skeletons who have endured unspeakable horrors. When something happens that spurs Elaine to include a code asking for help in one of her newspapers, Ava is the one that decodes it with the help of a handsome British operative. Together they all work to try to help a Jewish woman and her son escape France.
Here is another sweeping WWII historical fiction. It is well written with heartrending descriptions of the horrible conditions in Nazi occupied France. Both women start out as tentative, but are forced to become courageous and bold in order to survive. The book also underscores the fragility of life, as almost all of Elaine's companions parish before the Allied liberation of France. I didn't think this book was as meticulously researched as some others I have read, but I think people who liked Salt to the Sea, and The Woman of No Importance would enjoy this one as well. (2022, 400 p)
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