Thank you to Simon and Schuster Audio and NetGalley for an advanced audio copy of The Parisian Chapter by Janet Skeslien Charles.

In 1990, Lily Jacobsen and her best friend Mary Louise moved from their small town of Froid, Montana, to Paris determined to become real artists—Lily, a novelist, and Mary Louise, a painter. They enroll in college and begin living the real Parisian life, immersing themselves into the life and culture. Now, five years later, their careers are at a standstill and they are struggling to make ends meet in dead end jobs while sharing a tiny sixth-floor apartment.

But now, Mary Louise is feeling smothered by Lily and chooses to abruptly move out, Lily is devastated and lonely for the first time since arriving in Paris and needs to find a better job to support herself. Luckily, she is hired as the programs manager at the American Library in Paris, following in the footsteps of her French neighbor from back home, Odile, Lily spent her childhood listening to Odile’s stories about living in Paris during World War II and the bravery of the city’s librarians during that time. As Lily begins her own adventures at the ALP, she meets a brand new set of characters each with stories of their own. When the library faces closure due to financial struggles, Lily must look beyond herself to help save the library she loves and the memories within its walls.

I LOVED this audiobook narrated by twelve different voices including Pauline Chalamet who is divine as Lily. Charles’ brought me right into the center of Paris and life at the ALP with her descriptions of the city and its people. I enjoyed every minute of Lily’s coming of age, which is a story of friendship, growing up, and the importance of forgiveness.

Janet Skeslien Charles returns to the world of the ALP in this fun and uplifting read.

This is, in a way, a follow-up to The Paris Library. It isn’t necessary to read that first in order to enjoy this, though I would recommend doing so for a more complete reader experience.

I liked this more modern update to the goings-on at the ALP, and the examination of how the organization fares in 1995. I liked the protagonist here easily as much as I liked Odile, and Skeslien Charles once again does a wonderful job of making the library a character in its own right.

This is a quick and easy read and a delight on audio, narrated by a full cast and anchored by the always lovely Pauline Chalamet.

I enjoyed Janet Skeslien Charles' audio presentation of The Parisian Chapter. The story is slow moving, emotional, and comforting. The author does a lovely job of setting the stage inside the American Library in Paris, and the atmosphere of Paris (and Parisiens) in general.

A true coming of age tale, Janet Skeslien Charles' main character experiences the growing pains of missing her family, losing her bestie, finding love, and growing from all of the experiences this year in Paris affords her.

The audiobook is beautifully performed by Pauline Chalamet, with additional performances by Jean Brassard, Corey Brill, Marisa Calin, Danny Campbell, James Fouhey, Matt Godfrey, Helen Lloyd, Jackie Sanders, Gary Tiedemann, Elizabeth Wiley, and Gabra Zackman.

3.5 ⭐️

I listened to the audiobook version, which is performed by a full cast. The story centers on Lily, who is a World War II-era librarian—takes on a role as the programs director at the American Library. The library is struggling financially, and Lily’s journey unfolds from there. There are quite a few characters to keep track of, which made it a bit tricky to follow at times in audio format and made the plot seem a little slow at times as well.

Published: May 27th, 2025

Thank you NetGalley & Janet Skeslein Charles for this #gifted eARC!

I received a digital audiobook ARC from the publisher via Netgalley, though all thoughts are my own.

I love that this book is set around the American Library in Paris and that there was a full cast of characters

I also enjoyed what an important role this particular library plays in so many lives from World War 2 up until the present time of the book.

I highly recommend this book.

I was so disappointed in this book! I wanted to love it because I adored The Paris Library. This book fell significantly short as a follow up. It was like … nothing happened? And then the plot would jump forward - all the sudden, she was published? The audio production was phenomenal but the primary narrator sounded much too young for the character. Too much production for not enough story. This one was a disappointing miss.

There’s something special about reading a book set in your favorite city. The Parisian Chapter by Janet Skeslien Charles takes place in Paris in the 90s, a different time than the one I experienced but still just as dreamy. I only visited. Lily is actually living there, making a life for herself, finding her way, and figuring out who she is. And she’s doing all of that during one of those seasons in life where everything seems to shift at once.

This book captures that messy, exciting stretch of time when you’re losing old friendships, forming new ones, meeting people with totally different perspectives, and trying to figure out where you stand in it all. There’s something about watching Lily go through all of that on the streets of Paris that really worked for me.

One part that really hit home was the way Lily loses her best friend without ever really understanding why. That happened to me too, around twenty. It felt like all the friendships I’d grown up with slipped away at once, and suddenly I was building new ones. Some of those new friends became incredibly important to me, and even though life eventually pulled us in different directions, I think that’s just how it goes. This book reminded me that friendships don’t have to last forever to matter. Some are meant to be part of a certain chapter. That doesn’t make them any less real.

Lily’s story isn’t loud or dramatic, but it’s full of little moments that add up. Books, art, loneliness, connection, quiet wins, personal growth. The American Library in Paris setting was such a lovely touch too. It’s the kind of place you want to spend time in.

I also want to say the audiobook version is fantastic. It’s done with a full cast and led by Pauline Chalamet, and the performances really brought the story to life. I’d recommend listening to this one if you get the chance.

Big thanks to NetGalley, author Janet Skeslien Charles, and Simon & Schuster Audio for the chance to read and listen to The Parisian Chapter.

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Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Audio for a copy of this full cast narration audiobook! Overall, this was a very pleasant and fun listen that included and explored underlying themes of friendship, relationships, gender roles/equality, moving away from home, and finding oneself.

I really liked the premise of this book written by Janet Skeslien Charles. It was set in Paris in 1995 with the majority of the story taking place in or around the American Library in Paris. The author and the full cast of audiobook narrators created an immersive and interesting story that made me invested in the characters. I loved the inclusion of the various characters as narrators of the chapters, however there were times that I got confused with who was who or what part they had to play in the library. Since not every character had multiple chapters that were narrated by them, some of the backstory got muddled for me. I enjoyed the value that the stories of these characters brought to the overall plot of the book, however I did find myself wanting more of their stories and more tie in to the main character on a deeper level.

In this book, friendship was a heavy theme and it dove into multiple friendships as well as conflict within friendships. I loved how the author showed the value and deepness of friendship and showed the complications that can arise within friendships even when someone did not have any ill intent towards the other person. I loved that the main character found herself by challenges and new connections from working at the library and loved the overall growth that she made. I did find myself feeling disappointed by the lack of communication by the main character and her best friend at times and felt myself getting frustrated at the best friend for some of her actions towards the main character. Some of the issues that arose seemed to be solved within their friendship at the end of the book that in my opinion should have been communicated more by the characters.

Overall I really enjoyed the history and characters in The Parisian Chapter. What would have elevated it for me would have been getting to know the characters on a deeper level and a little more cohesiveness between everyone's stories.

I am a big fan of this author. I actually prefer books instead of an audiobook, but the story moved along at a good pace, keeping my interest. Great storyline and characters. Thanks to #NetGalley and TheParisianChapter for advanced digital copy.

The audiobook is narrated by a full cast. The story is about Lily who, inspired by a WWII librarian, gets a job as programs director of the American Library, which is having financial problems. There are a lot of characters in this book, which make it a bit difficult to follow on audio.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for access to this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

The Parisian Chapter is a heartfelt, multilayered audio original that pulled me in from the start. Set in 1995 Paris, the story follows Lily Jacobsen—an aspiring novelist from Montana—who finds herself suddenly alone in the City of Light and starting a new chapter of her life working at the American Library in Paris. What unfolds is a beautiful exploration of ambition, love, nostalgia, and the messiness of real friendships, especially the kind that evolve (or dissolve) as we grow.
The setting is vivid and evocative, stirring memories of my own time in Paris. Janet Skeslien Charles weaves in just the right amount of history and literary homage, giving depth to the story without slowing its pace. I especially appreciated Lily’s arc—personal, romantic, and professional—as she discovers how to carve out space for herself in a world that isn’t always gentle.
The audiobook is a true ensemble production, with a full cast led by Pauline Chalamet and including Jean Brassard, Corey Brill, Marisa Calin, Danny Campbell, James Fouhey, Matt Godfrey, Helen Lloyd, Jackie Sanders, Gary Tiedemann, Elizabeth Wiley, and Gabra Zackman. Each performance added richness and energy to the experience. That said, I’d give this a 4.5 for the slight overproduction in the chapter transitions—which took some getting used to—but I understand why the structure called for it, and ultimately it didn’t detract from my enjoyment.
Many thanks to Simon & Schuster Audio | Simon & Schuster Audio Originals and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this gem. A great listen for anyone who finds magic in libraries, craves stories about connection and reinvention, or simply wants to be swept back to Paris.

This was such a unique reading experience! The Parisian Chapter is an audio original, so there is no print book. Each character is voiced by a different narrator, and their first person accounts tell about their lives working in the American Library in Paris in 1995. (I know it doesn't seem like that could be historical fiction, but 1995 was 30 years ago, and I had to face the fact that that is historical.) I have read the author's previous historical fiction titles set in this library, and I think that was a necessary prerequisite for enjoying this book, which makes references to characters and events from those earlier stories. It probably also helps that I'm a former librarian, and the inner workings of all libraries, real and fictional, is something that I will always find interesting. In any case, for fans of this author, this was a light, fun treat of a read, and I recommend picking it up after you've read both The Paris Library and Miss Morgan's Book Brigade.

Two of my favorite subgenres, books about books and American in Paris, meet in this audiobook.

It took me a bit to warm up to Lily, the FMC because she has some growing up to do. But as she showed the potential for growth, I started to really like her.

The supporting characters were such a good mix of villains and people with their own stories. Each had their own backstory to explain their motivation.

The full cast audiobook was fun to listen to! The accents were so good!

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Audio for an ARC of this book! This is my honest review.

This audiobook was wonderful! I thoroughly enjoyed the full cast of readers!

For readers of Janet Skeslien Charles' book THE PARIS LIBRARY, the setting and background for THE PARISIAN CHAPTER will be familiar territory. Set in the current day (well, 2024), we are treated to Lily's search to find her place as a young American living abroad in Paris. When she finds a job at the American Library in Paris, her life takes an interesting turn. While working at the library, Lily meets a wide range of people and finds friendship, growth, knowledge, conflict, love, and ultimately...herself.

Overall, I found this story completely charming.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC of this audiobook!

This audiobook had a full cast- what a treat! Lily was beautifully brought to life from the very beginning- I instantly adored her. I loved witnessing her coming into her own and crafting her story. 🤍

It is a charming read that offers a glimpse into the world of literature, friendship, and the pursuit of creativity. Set in 1995 Paris, the story follows Lily Jacobsen, a young novelist from Montana who lands a job at the American Library in Paris. The setting is lovely, and the concept of the library being at the heart of the narrative is heartwarming.

However, I found that the book was weighed down by too many secondary characters who didn’t contribute much to the overall story. While there were some interesting personalities, their arcs often felt underdeveloped, and I kept wishing the focus had remained tighter on Lily and her journey.

The plot itself was enjoyable but somewhat predictable at times, and some parts felt a bit drawn out. The writing is solid, but I was hoping for deeper character development and a bit more of a spark that would keep me fully engaged.

Overall, The Parisian Chapter is an enjoyable read for fans of contemporary fiction with literary themes, but it didn’t fully capture me the way I had hoped. It’s a nice book, but there’s something about it that just didn’t land as powerfully as I expected.

The Parisian Chapter is such an enchanting story! It’s a multi-cast audiobook following Lily Jacobsen who lands a job working at the American Library in Paris during the 90’s. This deals with female friendships, learning to let go and stresses the importance of libraries.

When I saw this on Netgalley it was an immediate request but I was even more excited when I realized it featured Lily who was introduced in The Paris Library. While not required, I do recommend reading The Paris Library and Miss Morgan's Book Brigade first because this does include/mention a few other characters from those books. I loved revisiting Odile and Margaret and learning about what’s become of them in the 40 years since the events of The Paris Library.

The full-cast narration was phenomenal! It was so immersive and easy for me to follow along and keep track of who was who.

I’ve loved every book I’ve read by Janet Skeslien Charles and can’t wait for her next release!

The Parisian Chapter written by Janet Skeslien Charles and
Narrated by Pauline Chalamet; Jean Brassard; Corey Brill; Marisa Calin; Danny Campbell; James Fouhey; Matt Godfrey; Helen Lloyd; Jackie Sanders; Gary Tiedemann; Elizabeth Wiley; Gabra Zackman

The Parisian Chapter was my first ALC with a full cast of narrators.

I loved following all of the characters through their own storylines at the American Library in Paris. Lily and Meg were by far my favorite. No character was too small to notice and enjoy. The ending was perfection. This is a story of love, books, and most of all — friendship.

I recommend The Parisian Chapter to anyone who feels at home in a library.

This is a review of the audiobook.

I was so excited about this book based on the blurb and the fact that it's a historical fiction but it just wasn't for me. I DNF'd at 66%. I think with the numerous POV's in this book, it may be easier to read instead of listen or maybe do a tandem read.

Historical fiction readers will enjoy The Parisian Chapter by Janet Skeslien Charles. It's available now and is a good book!