Sophie's Little Library

The Paris Secret  By Natasha Lester 1928: Skye Penrose is a free-spirited 10 year old, growing up in an isolated Cornish cottage with her irascible younger sister Liberty and her outcast mother, when she meets 11 year old Nicholas Crawford. They quickly form the kind of close friendship that can only be described as soulmates. 1939: Skye, now a talented pilot, joins the war effort in the limited way she is allowed to by the men who don’t believe women should be able to fly planes. In her dangerous role, she comes across her estranged sister and Nicholas, who she hasn’t seen since she was 14, and who is now engaged to Frenchwoman Margaux Jourdan. 1947: Christian Dior releases his first collection of clothing to a country and world desperate for beauty and extravagance after years of war and utter despair. He names a perfume after his flower-loving, Resistance-fighting sister Catherine. 2012: Kat Jourdan is a fashion conservator, who comes across a wardrobe full of 65 haute c...

Not so long ago, I said to my mother, “remember when we were young, and we would spend the day at home playing café?” We would hunt through the pantry and freezer, write up a menu with our discoveries and spend hours getting our café setting just right. Tablecloth, a small vase with the fresh seaside daisies that were always present but exploded in our front garden each summer. Even now, those daisies make me smile. They’re so reminiscent of home. We’d welcome our most loyal customer and serve her regular cup of tea with milk and sugar, ask what she would like to eat and busy ourselves creating a meal. A fruit platter for the best customer in town? Of course! Two party pies with sauce and a teaspoon to scoop out the meat? Coming right up! Those days, that game, the memory is just wrapped in love. When I shared how special that memory is with Mum, she looked at me for a moment and said, “Those games, those days – we had nothing. We couldn’t go anywhere, pay to do anything because ...

The Nightingale is such a popular book, and for good reason. Like most people, I fell completely in love with it. It was beautifully written, with complex and layered characters and a well-paced storyline. I sobbed my little heart out at the end of the book (and I know I'm not alone there!!) If you loved The Nightingale, here are 3 more books I guarantee you will enjoy.  Happy reading! Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon     Why you should read it I love the concept of a fictional story about real people, and Nancy Wake is a brilliant subject. I honestly did not know anything about The White Mouse before I read this book, and I am completely in awe of her. It is incredible to think many of the stories in this book really happened. The writing was truly fantastic. The characters were really lovable, and the storyline was fast-paced. There were a couple of scenes in particular that stuck out, one that was so barbaric it made me feel sick and another so horrifyingly...

It never fails to amaze me how a book can be simultaneously horrifying and beautiful. ⁣ ⁣ This is a story about Róża and Shira, a Jewish mother and daughter, who have fled their home after the Nazis moved through their village, killing the rest of their family. The book opens with Róża and Shira hiding in the loft of a barn desperately trying to hold completely still and not make any noise. Jennifer Rosner details their life hiding in the barn so well, even I was fearful of making any noise while reading. ⁣ ⁣ Shira is 5 years old and a musical prodigy. To help her keep quiet, her mother whispers a story to her about a young girl living in an enchanted garden who must be quiet - but her small yellow bird who is free to sing loudly. Shira expresses her music through this imaginary bird, who she keeps cupped safely in her hands. ⁣ ⁣ For a long time, the story is about life in the barn and keeping as quiet and still as possible. In time, as German soldiers are circling closer to their ...