"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."

"Sometimes you need to come underground into the darkness in order to be able to see."

An uplifting and inspiring novel based on the true story of a librarian who created an underground shelter during World War II, perfect for readers of The Paris Library or The Last Bookshop in London. 
London, 1944. Clara Button is no ordinary librarian. While Nazi bombs tear apart the city around her, she turned the Bethnal Green tube station into the country’s only underground library. Down here, a secret community thrives with thousands of bunk beds, a nursery, a café, and a theater. Clara and her assistant, Ruby Munroe, offer solace and escape from the bombs that fall upon their city. The women’s determination to remain strong in the face of adversity is tested to the limits when it may come at the price of keeping those closest to them alive. 

I have read about the Blitz and how tube tunnels were used for safety and refuge during bombings but did not fully understand how much of Londoners daily lives occurred underground. This powerful and immersive novel held a spotlight on a diverse group of community members weaved into a cohesive narrative of heartbreak and resilience. 

This book was profoundly full of hope and a reminder of the importance of libraries as a community hub. The author interviewed hundreds of librarians during her research, and I loved the quotes from library workers at the beginning of each chapter; equally powerful was the Author’s Note at the end of the novel and a continued call to support libraries from the impact of the Covid pandemic.