A Deep Dive into The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan

Jennifer Ryan's The Underground Library (2024) is an historical fiction novel set in London during World War II, particularly during the Blitz. The story combines themes of friendship, resilience, community, and the power of books in difficult times.

Plot Overview and Major Characters

The novel follows three young women whose lives intersect through the Bethnal Green Library in East London:

• Juliet Lansdown, an upper-class lady from Upper Beeding, West Sussex, who moves to London after applying for a job as the new deputy librarian of the Bethnal Green Library (BGL). Juliet arrives in London, glad to be away from her stuffy, traditional parents and determined to make a difference as part of the war effort, revitalize a struggling library, and prove her abilities in a male-dominated environment.

• Katie Upwood, a middle-class young lady from Bethnal Green who has recently completed secondary school, and is biding her time as a library assistant at the BGL until she leaves for university. However, Katie faces difficulties when her school sweetheart—who had enlisted for the war—is reported missing in action and she discovers she is pregnant.

• Sofie Baumann, an upper-class young lady of Jewish heritage from Berlin. Her family finds a way for Sofie to escape Nazi Germany before she or her family can suffer from the worsening conditions surrounding German Jews. Her sister and father are able to get her a work visa to London, and she leaves her family behind. Once in London, however, she finds herself working as a domestic servant for an irritable, suspicious old man who mistreats her.

  
  

When bombing damages the library during the Blitz, Juliet and her friends, as well as the Library supporters, establish a makeshift library in a London Underground station where residents shelter each night from the bombings. The underground library becomes a symbol of hope, comfort, and community amid wartime hardship.

The Novel's Strengths

Strong Sense of Community

The novel effectively portrays ordinary people coming together during wartime, showing how books, friendship, and mutual support help people endure adversity.

Balanced Perspectives

Alternating chapters give Juliet, Katie, and Sofie equal, well-developed depth without one overshadowing the others.

Engaging Historical Setting and Authentic Character Growth

Ryan vividly recreates London during the Blitz and incorporates real historical elements, including the use of Underground stations as shelters. Ryan based her novel on the real shelter and underground library at the Bethnal Green tube station.

Additionally, each of the protagonists confronts distinct wartime heartbreaks—social stigma surrounding single motherhood, missing partners, and religious persecution—and discovers inner resilience.

Likable Characters and Found Family

The three main women are easy to root for, and their personal struggles create emotional investment in the story.

As with Jennifer Ryan's other WWII-centric books like The Kitchen Front and The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle, the novel excels at showing how deep friendships form and sustain people through profound crisis.

Celebration of Books and Libraries

For readers who love books, the novel offers an uplifting tribute to libraries as places of learning, refuge, and connection. It highlights how stories provide comfort, escape and community spirit, especially as it helped calm and soothe people during The Blitz.

The Novel's Weaknesses

While The Underground Library is generally praised for its heartwarming tone, both critics and readers alike point out weaknesses in its plot.

Predictable Plot

Some reviewers felt the story followed familiar World War II historical fiction patterns, with few major surprises. It can feel like some narrative arcs are given short shrift, and the story tends to suffer in the middle due to pacing issues.

Pacing and Focus Issues

The novel's primary hook—moving the BGL underground—takes a long time to happen because Ryan takes quite a while setting up the backstories of our three main heroines.

The narrative momentum also suffers in the middle chapters as the focus shifts away from the library. Much of the subplots surrounding Juliet, Katie and Sofie end up feeling repetitive and pedestrian.

Finally, while Ryan spends a lot of time on Juliet and Katie's stories, Sofie's narrative arc feels different and could have been more engaging had it been given more time to develop. When she is detained by the police and subsequently moved from London to an internment camp, it feels like things could start to go wrong for Sofie. But instead, she not only finds a welcoming Jewish community and a way back to London, but her problems feel easily resolved compared to the journeys of her two friends.

Limited Character Depth

Critics have noted that most emotional conflicts are resolved too quickly, reducing the psychological complexity of the characters. All three characters get their happily-ever-afters, which minimizes the grimness and trauma many suffered through during the war.

Additionally, some of the antagonists are very one-dimensional, and can sometimes veer into comically evil territory. This works against the narrative and main characters, since conflicts aren't as nuanced as they could be.

Heavy Reliance on Inspirational Themes

The novel repeatedly emphasizes the healing power of books and community. While uplifting, some readers may find these themes overly sentimental or repetitive.

Multiple Storylines Compete for Attention

With three protagonists and several sub-plots, it can feel like not enough time is spent on individual narrative arcs, which means that narrative and character development may be lacking. This criticism is reflected in reviews that describe the novel as focusing more on events and exposition than deeper character exploration.

Overall Assessment

The Underground Library is an uplifting, accessible historical novel that celebrates courage, friendship, and the enduring importance of books during wartime. Readers who enjoy World War II home-front stories, strong female protagonists, and library-centered fiction will likely find it a good read. Those looking for darker realism, complex literary style, or deeply layered character studies may want to look elsewhere.