The Lost Book of Bonn

A Novel

De: Brianna Labuskes

Narrado por: Christa Lewis

USA Today Bestseller

For fans of The Rose Code and The Librarian Spy comes another literary themed historical novel from the author of The Librarian of Burned Books.

Germany, 1946: Emmy Clarke is a librarian not a soldier. But that doesn’t stop the Library of Congress from sending her overseas to Germany to help the Monuments Men retrieve and catalog precious literature that was plundered by the Nazis. The Offenbach Archival Depot and its work may get less attention than returning art to its rightful owners, but for Emmy, who sees the personalized messages on the inside of the books and the notes in margins of pages, it feels just as important.

On Emmy’s first day at work, she finds a poetry collection by Rainer Maria Rilke, and on the title page is a handwritten dedication: “To Annelise, my brave Edelweiss Pirate.” Emmy is instantly intrigued by the story behind the dedication and becomes determined to figure out what happened.

The hunt for the rightful owner of the book leads Emmy to two sisters, a horrific betrayal, and an extraordinary protest against the Nazis that was held in Berlin at the height of the war. Nearly a decade earlier, hundreds of brave women gathered in the streets after their Jewish husbands were detained by the Gestapo. Through freezing rain and RAF bombings, the women faced down certain death and did what so few others dared to do under the Third Reich. They said no.

Emmy grapples with her own ghosts as she begins to wonder if she’s just chasing two more. What she finds instead is a powerful story of love, forgiveness, and courage that brings light to even the darkest of postwar days.

©2024 Brianna Labuskes (P)2024 HarperCollins Publishers

Something positive

This story is set during the time of Germany’s darkest hour, yet it shines a light on some resistance among the population. I find that refreshing. I had never heard about the archive, either, nor about the Edelweisspiraten, so once again, I learned something new. On the whole I enjoyed the narration, but I think that the German accent is wrongly used, since they would have spoken German, and not English— and it was always clear who was talking, so the accent wasn’t needed for differentiation. That is my only gripe with this otherwise great audiobook, though.

Enthralling!

Such a wonderful book, amazing character & story development. Quickly becoming one of my favorite books.

Brilliant!

This is an important book and a fascinating story. While I was reading it, I thought of the character I would like to possess in such circumstances. In that way, I think it could be very useful in the coming storm in our country. May we all find the bravery and moral compass and love of beauty presented in the book.

couldn't finish

unfortunately there's something wrong with the sound on this. I tried to slow it down but that didn't help, it's almost like whoever recorded had it cut off every few seconds. At first I thought I just heard it wrong but no.