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Quick answer: If you loved The Paris Library, try The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Book Thief, The Nightingale, The Lost Girls of Paris, The Last Bookshop in London and The Giver of Stars. Each one is a story about books, libraries or women who find courage during wartime.
Janet Skeslien Charles's novel is based on the true story of the American Library in Paris, where staff kept books flowing to readers during the Nazi occupation. It moves between Odile, a young librarian in 1939, and Lily, a lonely teenager in 1980s Montana who befriends Odile years later. These books share its love of reading, its wartime courage and its friendships across generations.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Genre | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society | Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows | Historical fiction | readers who love letters |
| The Book Thief | Markus Zusak | Historical fiction | readers who love a story about books in wartime |
| The Nightingale | Kristin Hannah | Historical fiction | readers who want two sisters in occupied France |
| The Lost Girls of Paris | Pam Jenoff | Historical fiction | readers who like female agents |
| The Last Bookshop in London | Madeline Martin | Historical fiction | readers who love bookshops |
| The Giver of Stars | Jojo Moyes | Historical fiction | readers who like librarians |
| The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek | Kim Michele Richardson | Historical fiction | readers interested in book carriers |
| The Personal Librarian | Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray | Historical fiction | readers who like real women |
| The Library Book | Susan Orlean | Nonfiction | readers who like true stories |
| The Librarian of Auschwitz | Antonio Iturbe | Historical fiction | readers interested in true stories |
| The Alice Network | Kate Quinn | Historical fiction | readers who like dual timelines |
| All the Light We Cannot See | Anthony Doerr | Historical fiction | readers who want a literary war story |
| The Shadow of the Wind | Carlos Ruiz Zafón | Literary mystery | readers who love book-centered mysteries |
| The Midnight Library | Matt Haig | Speculative fiction | readers who like library magic |
| The Bookshop | Penelope Fitzgerald | Literary fiction | readers who like short novels |
1. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
After World War II, a writer begins corresponding with islanders who formed a book club during the occupation.
Best for: readers who love letters.
2. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
A girl in Nazi Germany steals books and shares them with her neighbors and a Jewish man hidden in her home.
Best for: readers who love a story about books in wartime.
3. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
Two sisters resist the Nazis in different ways during World War II.
Best for: readers who want two sisters in occupied France.
4. The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff
A woman finds a suitcase of photographs in New York and uncovers the story of women spies in occupied France.
Best for: readers who like female agents.
5. The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin
A young woman works in a London bookshop during the Blitz and finds courage in reading aloud to her neighbors.
Best for: readers who love bookshops.
6. The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
Women in 1930s Kentucky deliver books on horseback through the Pack Horse Library Project.
Best for: readers who like librarians.
7. The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson
A blue-skinned woman in Appalachia delivers books on horseback and faces prejudice.
Best for: readers interested in book carriers.
8. The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
The story of Belle da Costa Greene, J. P. Morgan's librarian, who hid her Black heritage.
Best for: readers who like real women.
9. The Library Book by Susan Orlean
Orlean investigates the 1986 fire at the Los Angeles Central Library and celebrates libraries everywhere.
Best for: readers who like true stories.
10. The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe
Based on the life of Dita Kraus, who protected a few precious books in a concentration camp.
Best for: readers interested in true stories.
11. The Alice Network by Kate Quinn
An American woman in 1947 teams up with a former World War I spy to find her missing cousin.
Best for: readers who like dual timelines.
12. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
A blind French girl and a German boy are brought together in occupied France.
Best for: readers who want a literary war story.
13. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
A boy in postwar Barcelona discovers a forgotten novel and tries to find out what happened to its author.
Best for: readers who love book-centered mysteries.
14. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Nora finds herself in a library of alternate lives between life and death.
Best for: readers who like library magic.
15. The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald
A widow opens a bookshop in a small English town in 1959 and faces quiet opposition.
Best for: readers who like short novels.
How to Choose
For wartime stories centered on books, start with The Book Thief, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society or The Last Bookshop in London. If you loved the librarians, The Giver of Stars and The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek are the best match. For dual timelines, try The Alice Network or The Lost Girls of Paris. For a true story, choose The Library Book.
Related: 15 Books Like The Midnight Library You’ll Love · The Midnight Library by Matt Haig: Summary and Key Takeaways
Frequently Asked Questions
Is The Paris Library based on a true story?
Yes. It is inspired by the real staff of the American Library in Paris during the Nazi occupation.
Is The Paris Library good for book clubs?
Yes. Its themes of friendship, reading and moral choices make it easy to discuss.
Is The Paris Library suitable for teens?
Older teens can read it, but it deals with war and adult relationships.