Book Review for Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles

This book is historical fiction and contains two interwoven stories. Each of these stories is set in a different time and location. One story takes place during the Great War and in a war zone, in the north of France between 1918 and 1920. The other story takes place during the Cold War in Manhattan, New York in 1987.

The book has two narrators Jessie Carson and Wendy Peterson. Jessie “Kit” Carson a librarian at the New York Public Library (NYPL) who is unhappy working under Winnifred Smythe and gets away from her boss by accepting a two-year contract helping the American Committee for Devastated France (CARDS). She believes she is going to France to set up a new children’s library, but in reality, this is just a small fraction of what the job entails.

As she works, Kit becomes friends with the other Cards, the women, and the children she serves. She also becomes involved in a romantic relationship with one of the soldiers. Her life in France is dangerous and filled with adventure. She mentors Marcelle, a teenager who wants to learn how to drive and how to become a librarian. Kit helps to care for the sick, the elderly, and those in morning, those with nothing to eat and those who refuse to evacuate—all while trying to establish a library in the remains of a bombed-out castle. To make matters worse—her former boss, Winnifred Smythe, reads about Carson’s success and decides to join her in France and Dr. M.D. refuses to consider her for a bonus.

Wendy Peterson works for NYPL in the Remembrance department photographing document collections to preserve them for posterity. However, what she really wants to do is become a writer. She is taking an evening college class for writers as she works towards a master’s degree in creative writing. Her teacher, Professor Hill, is quick to criticize and never offers praise. He encourages his students to “write what they know.”

Wendy enjoys reading the documents she is photographing. However, that is not how she is supposed to spend her time at work. While photographing documents Wendy discovers information on the CARDS and decides that she is going to write Jessie Carson’s story. She dedicates herself to trying to learn all she can about Jessie in hopes of being able to write a book about her. Wendy becomes interested in a fellow coworker, Roberto, who had been banned from the reading room and moved to the Remembrance department. He is a great support in her writing efforts but becomes angry at her when he discovers what she has done.

I enjoyed getting to know the various Cards in this story and the people that they served. My favorite characters were Jessie—the children’s librarian, Lewis—the chauffeur, Marelle—the teen,  and Breckie—the nurse. There was much loss and grief in this story as would be expected during a time of war. I recommend the book for those interested in reading about what life was like for civilians in France and the people who helped them during World War I. I rate this book 4 stars. I took off a star for a detailed sex scene that I felt was unnecessary in this story.