Author Jennifer Ryan is known for her cozy, WWII British home front novels featuring found family. Backlist titles have been set in the context of choirs and cooking shows. While there are war time struggles, a community comes together and resilient female characters find a measure of happiness. “The Underground Library” is no exception.

This time, the story follows three young women in the Bethnal Green neighborhood of 1940 London. During the Blitz, the Underground (or subway) was used as a bomb shelter. When the air raid sirens sounded, Londoners took food and bedding to the nearest Underground station and spent the night. The local library was damaged in the bombing and some of it was relocated to a corridor in the Underground station. Circulating books, children’s story time, and book clubs made the shelter experience more tolerable. Juliet is the deputy librarian, who spearheads the library move. Her fiancé is a moody writer with a less than honorable military service record.

Katie also works in the library. Her boyfriend is MIA and presumed dead. Shortly thereafter, Katie discovers she is pregnant. Sofie completes the trio of young women. She is a recent Jewish refugee from Berlin working as a domestic while facing suspicion and discrimination.

A host of mostly delightful secondary characters round out the cast. The community rallies to save their Underground Library and support Katie and Sofie. Sprinkled throughout the novel are lovely observations on the gift of books and reading. For example, “A book isn’t just a physical object; once you’ve read it, it becomes a thought, a story, a memory that is alive inside you forever.” Similarly, the theme and characters of this story will remain a pleasant memory in my thoughts for a while.

This is the story of a woman deputy librarian in England during the blitz. Just about everyone was sleeping in the underground transit to escape the bombing, so she brought books with her so that people could read to take their minds off what was happening. It caught on.

The hardest of times teach a person to either sink or learn to swim. This book focuses on 3 young women who come together to stand up for what they want. During the WWII blitz, the Underground Library becomes a place of refuge for Juliet, Kate and Sofie to put their lives back together as well as find friendship and purpose.

Beautiful story that kept me hooked from the beginning.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Jenifer Ryan’s Underground Library is so good. I started it this morning as we are snowed in and I couldn’t go anywhere. I loved it. Following three women in WWII London during the Blitz. It will pull you in and have you rooting for each of them! Katie is a young, unwed, and pregnant. Juliette is desperate to prove that she can do something important, even though she is a woman. And Sofie is a Jewish refugee trying to survive in a new place. The three women become fast friends and helpers to each other as they spend time in the London Underground, where the library becomes a lifeline for people. Such a great book. I gladly could’ve kept on reading more and more about them!

The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan is a WWII historical fiction based on a true story. I read a lot of WWII historical fiction novels and had never realized all the activity in the underground tunnels during the Biltz. Everyone has heard the stories of the people sleeping in the tunnels at night for protection from the bombs, but I had no idea they had libraries, health clinics, and many other services set up underground.

The Underground Library is the story of three determined young women who are each struggling with their own demons in the mist of all the hardships in London during the Blitz. When the Bethnal Green Library is bombed, they pull together to move the library underground. With the help of the entire community, the undergoing shelters became a place of safety, security and friendship.

A beautiful story of the power and strength of friendship and determination. Part historical fiction, part love story, this is one you don’t want to miss.

The horror of the London Blitz brings disparate women together in the underground station used as a bomb shelter. Juliet, the deputy director of a dying library. Sofia, a Jewish refugee who is trying to find her family. Katie is an aspiring college student who has just received word of her fiancé’s death in battle. When the library is bombed they decide to move the books to the underground bomb shelter, where people can read in their darkest hours. This is a story of people who create an underground community to face the new reality of war. As we peek into their lives, we care for them in spite of their missteps. This book is based on actual underground libraries which make the story even more meaningful.

If you love WWII, especially the great lengths average people went to in order to save the literary world from annihilation, then this is the book for you!

The Underground Library takes you to the heart of London during the blitz when the comfort of a good book took one’s mind off the bombs falling all around them. When a beloved library is bombed, the librarians and patrons within its walls work together to bring the library underground to a subway tunnel where people have taken refuge. They face the challenges of getting a male dominated profession to see beyond the black and white of the pages of the books and into the souls of books and all that they mean and can do for people.

Based on a true story, this page turner is one you don’t want to miss! Thank you NetGalley, Random House Ballantine and Jennifer Ryan for allowing me to read this remarkable story!

In Jennifer Ryan’s latest historical fiction novel The Underground Library, the reader learns about the bombing of the Bethnal Green Library in London during World War II, and it becomes the intersection point of three young women's stories. Sofie is a Jew who is fleeing Germany. Juliet has been hired as the Bethnal Green Library deputy librarian under Mr. Pruitt, and he has some very archaic values. And then there's Katie, a teenager whose love is off fighting in World War II. After the library is bombed, it has to be taken underground, where the community flees to when the air raid horn goes off.

In this underground library, the community rallies around books and friendship.

I'm giving this 4 stars for two reasons. 1) Sofie's story seemed rushed, particularly in the middle and end. 2) These three characters - again, particularly Sofie - didn't cross paths enough for them to be a cohesive group of women to root for.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review. #netgalley- #bookstagram #march2024release #theundergroundlibrary #jenniferryan

This is a wonderful work of historical fiction set in London during World War II. it features several female characters who boldly keep things running while the men are at war. The story is told from multiple voices as they share their experiences. It is very interesting and the reader will be eager to turn the pages. The dialogue flows smoothly and is easy to read. It is very well written.

Historical fiction with WWII and books? Yea please. I loved the new perspective of yet another group of incredible individuals fighting against the evils of the world to help society!

The three women in the book were so impressive with their desire to fight for what they believed in! Read most of this book in one setting!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

While the Bethnal Green tube station is mostly known for the 1943 Tube Disaster, the Underground Library is a cool little fun fact that also apparently happened there, along with all sorts of entertainment and other facilities to make it better night after night. I thought that information was interesting and enjoyed a new item to learn.

However, I didn’t really feel that I connected with the characters. Maybe it’s because with 3 women and so much happening, I couldn’t get a good hold on being invested in their stories before it switched up again, and it also felt a little too easy and perfectly tied up in the end.

Also, mandatory clothing stars for Jews in Germany were discussed but not introduced until 1941, not 1939, so while probably a dumb pet peeve, it was brought up a few times and it was not accurate. The author talked about a couple changes she made to events but that seemed to be overlooked.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are mine.

4.5 stars
Having read the author's previous work The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle, I was super excited to get this from NetGalley and it did not disappoint. I love stories of found families and women being badass during WWII in London, and this delivered on both fronts. I finished 88% of the book in one sitting. I felt like the characters were very realistic and relatable, and I was very invested in how the ending would tie up for each of them. This book comes out on March 12th; don't miss it.
I HIGHLY recommend this, especially to all of the WWII fiction fans out there.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for the ARC!

I received a free ARC ebook of <i>The Underground Library</i> from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

I am an absolute sucker for books where reading and libraries are the star of the story. Set in London during the Blitz, Juliet has come to London to serve as the Deputy librarian of the revered but stodgy public library. She has left behind her stifling and controlling parents along with the disgrace of a fiance who had deserted the army. Filled with new ideas, she finds her voice and her personal strength. Much of what she learns about herself is due to the wonderful library patrons of all ages.

Among them are elderly spinsters, a Jewish refugee, and an unmarried pregnant young woman. Together they work to bring the wonders and power of a library to the underground station where terrified citizens spend their nights while bombers fly overhead.

For those who might doubt the power of a book in the most stressful of times, try reading about the Armed Services Editions, books printed and distributed to soldiers on the battlefield.

The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan was an enlightening look at a public library that got set up in the London underground train station. When a London library was bombed during the blitz, three women pull together to keep the the spirit of the library and the physical books alive.
Easy historical fiction to get wrapped up in. Fast read!

Ryan’s The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle was a good read, so I was glad to be selected to read the ARC of her new novel. Like the earlier book, this story reminds the reader of how difficult life could be for the people in Europe during the war. The story tells of families that were separated, homes that were lost, jobs that were suddenly open to women, meals that had to be created from rations, nights that were spent sleeping in underground stations, alliances made for survival…and most of the challenges that women took on and won. A quick, rewarding look back at those times in London, with great attention to a library which moved into an underground station, providing books, stories, friendship, and schooling to those sleeping there almost every night. A quick read.

This is a book based on actual WWII events and is a delight to read. I admit I am a fan of Jennifer Ryan and her writing style and was very anxious to read this book. It was very hard to put it down once I started it. It is set in London during the Blitz when the Bethnal Green Library was bombed and people were forced to huddle in underground bunkers for safety at night. Many chose the train stations after the trains shut down. Juliet, the Librarian Assistant formed an underground library supplying books to those huddled there. She formed a book club and would read aloud to the families gathered there. The main characters of this story are beautifully introduced each with their own very important story of love, loss, failures, successes, kindness and so many other attributes. Each has an unforgettable part in the story. I loved this book and am telling everyone about it. Books are so important to our lives and this one points out how valuable a book can be. It has something for everyone. Do not miss this one when it comes out in March.

I wish to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Three young women are drawn to the Bethnal Green Library in London during WWII, and draw inspiration and life from it and each other. Juliet arrives there one morning as the new Assistant Librarian, thrilled with the job that she knows she has only because no men are available to fill it. She finds an underused and underappreciated library that she knows she can revive if only she is allowed to. Katie is the clerk there whose fiance has recently been killed in the War, and she harbors a secret that will turn her life upside down. And Sophie is a Jewish German refugee in the country by a domestic service visa that is dependent on her employer or she can be sent back to certain detention. As the Blitz descends, Juliet creates a public library in the Underground that turns into a center of community for more than just their three.
This was a delight to read. The characters are engaging and well-realized, the historical research seems flawless and well integrated into the story, and the plot smooth and seemingly effortless. A real pleasure to read. Highly recommended.

The Underground Library is about the neighborhood of Bethnal Green during the Blitz of WWII, centering primarily around the Bethnal Green Library, and the deputy librarian, Juliet Lansdown, as well as Katie Upwood, a young library assistant, and Sofie Baumann, a Jewish German refugee, living and working in London as a domestic on a work visa. For anyone unfamiliar with the work of Jennifer Ryan, while there is danger and drama, overall, the cast of characters and the plot present a very "cozy" feeling novel.
The Blitz of London was a fraught time in history, when the people of London faced danger every day, but overcame it by working together and developed a strong community. I enjoyed this novel because it was nearly 100% centered around the Blitz as opposed to other elements of WWII, and within that, also focused on the power of reading and a love of books to help one get through a difficult time.
As mentioned, the writing for me is very cozy, but I still felt that I learned new things about WWII and the experience of living and working in London during the Blitz. With that in mind, I'm rating this a solid 4 stars. It was well plotted, and well written and I read it from start to finish in one day.
Thank you to Random House Ballantine and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

Thank you, Ballantine Books and NetGalley, for the advanced copy of The Underground Library.

Jennifer Ryan hits another home run! The way she can take true events and spin them into such fantastic stories is utterly delightful. Ryan spectacularly webs these stories together and brings to light historical events that many might not know. The Underground Library is a brilliant read that you don't want to skip.

I have voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this title given to me via NetGalley. This book was just amazing. I just lost myself in this story and didn’t want it to end. It was really well written and just drew in you into these characters lives. I look forward to seeing what’s next from this author.