Inspired by true events in World War II of the Warsaw librarians’ resistance, Madeline Martin’s 2023 historical fiction novel, The Keeper of Hidden Books is her strongest novel so far. As Poland tries to avoid succumbing to the invasion of Germany, young Poles are organizing themselves into various forms of resistance work. Zofia and her Jewish friend Janina are assigned to assist the Warsaw public librarians as they work to preserve and protect Poland’s national collections. When Poland falls and the Germans take control of the libraries, the librarians work to hide and protect the books from the German eradication of all works which do not support Hitler’s agenda.
This story is powerful and very well done. I continue to be very impressed with Martin’s ability to tell clean and exciting stories that have literary value and historical significance. For mamas and teen readers, these books are more elegantly written and more complex than Jennifer Nielsen’s YA novels but have much of the same flavor and interest. I cannot wait to see what she writes next! https://plumfieldandpaideia.com/keeper-of-hidden-books-warsaw-librarians-resistance/