A note from Janet Skeslien Charles

The news from Paris... and Montana

Bonjour de Paris! Welcome to my second newsletter. Today, I’ll share what I’ve been up to, the real-life character who stole my heart, details on how to win a copy of Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade (and nine other historical novels!) as well as some upcoming events.

I’m back from a ten-day, nine city tour. What a whirlwind of airports, bookstores, and a love of literature! After events in 2020 were cancelled for The Paris Library, it felt great to connect with book lovers in person and to share the stories of the real-life heroines in Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade. Un grand merci for your support! Thanks to you, the book was a USA Today bestseller and an international bestseller!

After the tour, my husband & I spent a few days in Montana, and were glad to visit Glacier National Park with family. On the way there, we met with my fomer Girl Scout leader, who’d tried to bring the outside world to a group of sullen small-town girls. When she taught us how to make quiche, I remember grumbling, “Why can’t we just have pizza?’” But here I am, thirty years later, loving quiche. Becky planted seeds. It took decades, but they grew.

In my latest novel, which takes place just 40 miles from the front in World War I, my favorite character is Jessie “Kit” Carson¹, the NYPL librarian who brought the concept of children’s libraries to France. Tracking down this elusive librarian was not easy. Unlike the wealthy women she worked with in the American Committee for Devastated France, she did not write an autobiography, and there was no interest in her papers. I got to know Jessie through the women who worked with her. In her memoir, Mary Needham, a volunteer from Michigan, described the dangers that the women faced:

“Offensives were taking place everywhere,” Needham noted. “Events happened so quickly, activity became so feverish, that from one day to the next we had no opportunity to recover from fatigue… More than one hundred miles we traveled that day over shell-torn roads – I riding rumble seat without any springs. When I arrived in Paris I almost fell into my bed from utter exhaustion.

“I was awakened by Kit’s voice but I was too tired to answer. It came again, mixed with the sounds of the sirens. ‘Get up. There’s an air raid. Get up! The Germans are coming.’

“‘Let them come,’ I mumbled.

“By that time, Kit was upon me like a Boston policeman! ‘You will get up,’ she said between her teeth as she flung the bedclothes off me, leaving me shivering. I did get up.”

The scene shows Jessie’s tenacity. I also got to know her through a handwritten letter. I’m grateful to Gail Baden, a descendant of a Goodwill Tour participant, who kindly shared it. In the letter from Jessie to her mother, the excitement at meeting Anne Morgan, daughter of financier JP Morgan, is palpable. “I have heard her give the most thrilling talk on France before the National Civic Association and it makes my blood hum to realize what a task I am undertaking to do… I didn’t realize that Miss Morgan would be such a fairy godmother.” Gail purchased the letter on eBay.

One of the greatest honors of writing novels is to have book lovers reach out and share stories of their own.

The courageous women who helped rebuild France deserve to be known. If you haven’t picked up a copy yet, I hope you’ll check out the novel at your local library or bookshop. Or enter the “Historical Fiction Beach Book Bonanza” for a chance to win a copy! The giveaway encompasses ten different novels. There’s action, romance, friendship, unforgettable characters, twists, great settings, and plenty of period detail for book lovers to enjoy. To enter, head over to my Instagram page.

I’ve reached out to the five winners of Parisian artist Sonja Bajic’s map of The Paris Library. Sonja is hard at work on another map, this time for Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade. I can’t wait to share her beautiful work with you! Newsletter subscribers will automatically be signed up for a chance to win.

In the meantime, here is some information about upcoming events in France. If you are nearby, I hope that you’ll consider attending!

Sunday, May 26 at 3 p.m. Franco-American Museum, (Pictured above. The novel is set here.) Blérancourt, France (event in French)

Thursday, June 6 at 7 p.m. The Red Wheelbarrow Paris, France

Saturday, June 15 at 4 p.m. Bill & Rosa's Book Room Boulogne-Billancourt The event is free, sign up at brbookroom@gmail.com

Thank you so much for subscribing to my newsletter. I appreciate your interest!

My best,

Janet

1. Photo of Jessie Carson by Harry C Ellis, courtesy of the American Library Association archives