The Last Bookshop in London

The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin  320 pages

Two young women, both eighteen years old, come to the big city of London from the English country side. Grace and Viv have aspirations of being shop assistant’s at Harrod’s. However, they need letters of recommendation, but only Viv has one. Grace had been living with her uncle’s family and running his store since the death of her mother. He was a mean man and refused to help his niece.

Upon their arrival in London, the girls had a place to stay---with Mrs. Weatherford and her son, Colin. Mrs. Weatherford had been her mother’s closest friend. The girls felt comfortable staying with her.

It’s August 1939. Hints of the impending war are being seen around London. Viv gets her position, leaving Grace to feel left behind. Mrs. Weatherford steps in and arranges for Grace to work at the Primrose Hill Bookshop. Browbeating the owner, Mr. Evans is more like it though. At first, Grace is extremely apprehensive about taking the position. She has never been a reader and knows nothing about books and literature.

When she arrives for her first day, she is dismayed by the clutter, the dust, and the lack of any kind of structural organization for the books. Grace knows how to organize and clean, so she gets to work.  It’s a daunting task, but she has no choice if she wants that recommendation letter.

Soon, Grace has made inroads to the mess. She even begins to offer help to the store’s customers. She meets one of the store’s regulars, George, an RAF pilot who loves the written word. George sees her distress and encourages her to read. She starts with “The Count of Monte Cristo.” As Grace falls into the story, she and George strike a small romance, sharing books and plotlines.

The Germans begin their attack on England with the London Blitz. Viv leaves Harrod’s to join the war effort with the ATS (Auxiliary Territorial Service – a branch of the British Army). Again Grace is left behind; With Colin recently drafted, she feels she cannot leave Mrs. Weatherford or Mr. Evans.

Grace, though does part and becomes an ARP (Air Raid Patrol) warden. With her partner, Mr. Stokes, she walks the blacked out streets, helping those who have been impacted by the nightly bombings. 

As the bombs fall, Grace, on her nights off, and Mrs. Weatherford are forced to join the rest on London’s citizens taking cover in the underground tube station. There she sees her neighbors and some of the bookshop’s customers. To make the nights less scary, Grace begins to read aloud. Soon, many of her tube-mates join the ever-growing circle around Grace’s voice. It is here, safe as possible from falling German bombs, that Grace begins to learn the power of books.

 Author Martin does  a wonderful job in pulling me in from the very first page. I also like how the Blitz is a character, doing what it needs to do so that Grace can stay connected.  I really enjoyed this novel, and The Last Bookshop in London receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.