Having previously read The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles, I was happy to see she had a new book out. Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade is set during the Great War and is based on the true story of women who went into France to help the people in the smaller villages that had been decimated by the war.

One of the ways the women helped the people was by re-establishing the local library that had sustained damage to most of the building. Kit Carson was one of the women from America that came to help. Her vision improved the library and became a model for other libraries in France.

Kit and the other women also began a book brigade by driving out to the more rural areas with books for people to check out. The citizens looked forward to the days the book mobile was to arrive.

All of the characters had a unique story and were very different but they made a great team by staying focused on their goal of being there to help with food, medical care and support wherever it was needed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am happy to give my honest review and recommend this book to other readers who enjoy historical fiction. ( )

A story that touches upon themes of the horrors of war, trauma, resilience and survival, friendship, compassion and the healing power of books and reading Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles is a remarkable work of historical fiction. Based on the true story of Jessie Carson, an American librarian known for her efforts to establish children’s libraries in war-torn France and training young French women librarians, the novel also sheds light on CARD, the American Committee for Devastated France, (Le Comité américain pour les régions dévastées), an initiative headed by wealthy American philanthropist Ann Morgan and the women who volunteered to travel to France to help rebuild devastated French communities near the war front in the aftermath of The Great War.

The narrative is shared through dual timelines set in 1918 France and 1987 New York City. The 1918 timeline is shared from the perspective of Jessie, as she travels to CARD Headquarters in the village of Blérancourt, France, where she joins fellow volunteers. Miss Morgan and CARD president Dr. Anne Murray Dike. Hoping to begin her work as a librarian immediately upon arrival and share her love for favorite books and reading with the children in the village providing them with moments of much needed respite, she is unprepared for the sounds of shelling coming from the front, the hazards of the Red Zone and the destruction in the wake of the retreating German forces. The narrative follows Jessie and her friends as they go above and beyond in their efforts to offer support to the communities who are struggling to rebuild their lives after experiencing unimaginable losses.

The 1987 timeline follows aspiring writer and NYPL employee Wendy Peterson, who finds several old CARD bulletins published in 1918 that describe the work of CARD volunteers in Northern France. When she comes across a brief reference about Jessie, she is inspired to find out as much as she can about the NYPL librarian and her work – not an easy task because of limited source material and the fact that there is not much mention of Jessie in existing records. Wendy’s quest inspires her to reevaluate her own life and priorities.

Compelling characters, a strong historical backdrop and vivid prose make for a rewarding reading experience. The author deftly weaves past and present timelines into an engaging narrative that flows well. I enjoyed the 1918 timeline more and though I enjoyed following Wendy’s research in 1987, I wish the narrative had followed Jessie a little longer in her timeline. However, I did like how the author brings everything together in the end.

I loved the author’s The Paris Library and was eagerly looking forward to reading her latest offering, and I’m happy to say that I was not disappointed. Well-researched and informative, this is an exceptional work of historical fiction that I would not hesitate to recommend. I always enjoy historical fiction from which I can learn something new. I appreciate the author’s effort to highlight the contribution of this group of women in WWI. I loved Jessie’s story and was inspired to read more about her and the other real characters featured in this story. Do read the Author’s Note wherein she shares details of the people, places and events that inspired this work of historical fiction.

Many thanks to Atria Books for the digital review copy via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. ( )

This is the story of Jessie Carson, a New York librarian who was chosen by Miss Anne Morgan to join CARD (American Committee For Devasted France) and create a library in the war zone of France. CARD's priorities were to help rebuild houses and clean farmlands so that families could return to their places.

Very compelling story about brave women from around the world, brough together by CARD founders, Anne Morgan and Dr. Anne Murray Dike. They left their families and homes to provide help and relief to people in the war zone. They faced danger, but books united them. CARD women achieved more than they expected.

This is the book that highlights the importance of books and libraries. A beautifully written story that kept me engaged the entire time. Very well researched. As I read, I had to use Google to find out more about the CARD program. Sufficient information about Jessie Carson, Anne Morgan and CARDs has been provided by the author at the end of the book.

There are many things I loved about this book:
* dedicated and brave characters
* interesting plot
* all about books and library
* dual timelines and POVs
* interesting historical events

Another great book that every fan of historical fiction should read. ( )

What a beautifully written and uplifting story about the amazing and almost-lost-to-history heroine, Jessie Carson. While weaving stories of two places and timelines - World War I France and 1987 New York City, author Janet Skeslien Charles has written an informative and captivating story about this defender of everyone's right for access to the written word.

This was a beautiful tale of the staff, volunteers and patrons of the American Committee for Devastated France during World War I, headed up by Anne Morgan, J.P.'s daughter. Juxtaposed against that is the later tale of a young New York writer looking for material to write a captivating story for her writing class. Her friend stumbles across some clippings about a former New York Public Library, Jessie Carson, who receives a commission to serve French villages devastated by the German occupation earlier on in the Great War. Specifically, Ms. Carson plans on introducing children's libraries to alleviate the angst of young children and offer them worlds into which they can disappear and cope when reality is more horrifying than one should have to bear.

This is also a story of love, hope, and anticipation. There are several relationships woven throughout the story: parents and their children, siblings, young couples, friends, and colleagues. Ms. Charles' writing is highly descriptive and exquisitely delivered. The mise en scène is spot on. One hears the roar of Big Bertha at the not so distant battlefield, smells the acrid odor of spent munitions and tastes the unsatisfying cup of coffee with its added chicory. Ms. Charles' extensive historical research was obvious in the story's delivery. This is a lovely book for fans of historical fiction and the written word.

I am grateful to Atria Books for having provided a complimentary e-book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.

Publisher:‎ Atria Books
Publication Date: April 30, 2024
No. of pages:‎ 336
ISBN:‎ 978-1668008980 ( )

*Huge thanks to Simon & Schuster CA and Atria Books for a physical ARC of this book. I offer this review willingly and without any compensation whatsoever.*

I’m an avid historical fiction reader, and even more when they’re based on true stories and people and thoroughly researched. So, as soon as I saw Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles up for review, I requested it. How fortunate am I to have received it! Honestly, this has been such an amazing read—it sure didn’t disappoint, and it checked all my boxes for a great historical read.

The Positive Points

I love that it starts with a reminiscence of a CARD woman of something very meaningful to her while she’s going through her closet: her brigade uniform. It’s beautiful, like a dance with the past—like Anastasia and her song Once Upon a December! The reminiscence with her uniform (the unknown CARD) makes for perfect time travel in the following (first) chapter. The best part of this is that we come to learn who the CARD woman from the first chapter (who’s unknown to us then) is at the end. This was a delightful surprise, and much realistic, too.

The first chapter introduced a bit of thrill and fear, which was very promising. And the book kept on delivering on this promise!

Kit Carson’s exchanges with kids are lovely. Her kindness with children to help is obvious. Very sweet. Also, I love how she talks about “double standard” that we, women, experience. The MC is quite intelligent, it’s so pleasant!

Plus, it’s so cute that she fitted as many books as she could in her trunk. Ain’t that true! It’s cute, and the reader’s life is on display. I think the “library of her mind” (Kit Carson) is so cute. It’s adorable to read about a mind library so detailed and loved, because not enough people have them nor think about this; which is even rarer in books, I find. I speak from experience—I’ve got one such mind library.

Moreover, I am fond of how Jessie Carson reaches out to help those in need (in many different ways, some more dire than others). Sometimes a shared tragedy can open people up, or help them, when they’re unreachable. It was both beautiful and tragic, poignant and hopeful.

As they checked out books, Madame said, “A town needs a library in the same way that a home needs a hearth.”

p.503 of 669 from the digital copy of Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade.

This quote describes the whole ambiance of this story. It is warm like an embrace, bookish, familial, and much inclusive of found family. It speaks of a deep need and unity too, something that all families and all towns revolve around: the hearth, a.k.a the library.

Surprisingly, it also tells the tale of Wendy Peterson in the 80s. When it switches to modern times with that specific character, I find the humour is priceless! It’s still bookish, just modern.

As for romance, I shipped Kit and her lover so much! They’re so cute and he’s so lovely with her. Two readers, awww! But I won’t tell you more about him, or it might ruin a few surprises ;). In addition to that, I think the sex scenes were done with gusto. It was full of feelings and emotions, yet suggestive but not vulgar. I was just surprised that there were sex scenes in my historical read. A special shout-out the sapphic love (between two women): the way sapphic love is tackled is gentle and beautiful. Genuine. Thank you, it touched me.

While this story isn’t built on action, a few moments are quite fearful and exciting. During a high-voltage chapter (what I call it since there was, let’s say, an urgency to it), I had goosebumps all over my body during this thrilling chapter. There is a place where the character mentions that “always courage”. And I agree. Always courage, indeed. And that’s why I love humans, and such stories that are inspiring.

On top of all this, I noticed the research was thorough, because the CARDs a Peugeot car and it fits the time period and setting since it’s in and from France, and it needed to be imported in America and Canada back then.

As for the book itself, the chapters’ layout is interesting, with the title cards of the characters, location and dates being on the right. It makes it easy to read and discover we’re with which character for this chapter. Our eyes usually go instantly to the right of the next page, so this layout is great and intuitive!

An admirable thing was that I could feel the author’s love and respect for CARDs through Wendy Peterson. Thank you for bringing them forth into the light; they deserve this literary spotlight. Lastly, the fact that the author included some of her research with photos, and resources about the CARDs, makes me so thrilled! I love when authors do that—as if this book couldn’t get any more perfect!

The Negative Points

Sometimes, the rhythm of the read would slow down—a bit too much to my taste. But it’s also quite normal considering how CARDs were there to help rebuild and not directly at war, though quite close, it was still very dangerous. Despite this, I acknowledge these slow parts were necessary for this tale. I’m not taking any points for this, but I just wanted to let you folks know this read can slow down here and there, and that if you’re looking for a completely high-tension historical book, this is not for you. But if you like your historical fictions realistic, emotional, and character-building, this is your book!

In Conclusion

I had such a fantastic time reading this book. I can remember tracking my reading time (yes, I love doing that!), and when I was not reading, I just longed to track my time again and discover more of Jessie “Kit” Carson and the CARDs’ story! For all these beautiful positive points, I give Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles a lovely rating of 5 out of 5 stars! It was a beautiful, sometimes thrilling read, but always touching and engrossing. ( )