The Keeper of Hidden Books by Madeline Martin

*Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Publication Date: August 1, 2023

Publisher: Hanover Square Press

Pages: 416

Genre: Historical Fiction

Rating: 5/5

The Keeper of Hidden Books is a heart wrenching, heartwarming, and emotional story set in Poland during World War 2. Martin did an incredible job of transporting the reader to the realities of what living daily life is like during war which made this book even more brutal to read. It is based on a true story of what actually was happening in Warsaw and how incredibly brave the people who risked their lives for books were.

Zofia, our main character, gets a job at the library during the start of the war along with her Jewish best friend, Janina. We follow these characters through the many years of war and the devastating things that happen to them. This book showcases the tension of a war torn city with a fenced and policed ghetto that the Jewish people are forced into. My heart broke over and over again at all the injustice the characters faced but I was also inspired by the tenacity of the human spirit. So many people of all ages kept fighting in whatever small ways they could and it was beautiful to read about.

I also couldn’t help comparing how purity culture in America is pushing (and sadly succeeding in some places) the banning of books that “they” deem undesirable to the list of books that was constantly being handed down by Hitler of books that needed to be destroyed. Zofia and her friends sacrificed so much to preserve the books because it is so important that we have these works. Whether it be for cultural reasons, societal critiques, showcasing humanity or simply for the pleasure of reading them. Books are incredibly important to society and humanness. Which Martin brilliantly showed over and over again in this story.

I highly recommend this book to everyone. There are so many elements incorporated in this story that I truly think everyone will find something they connect with. Martin brought me to tears over and over again with her hauntingly beautiful story. The Keeper of Hidden Books is a worthy story in its own right but then when you realize it is based in a devastating reality it turns into a magnificent homage to so many brave and wonderful souls who did the best they could in a situation they didn’t deserve to be in.