Hello, friends,

I’m excited to finally share the cover of my latest book with you as well as photos of a real-life character from Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade! The Parisian Chapter is the final installment of my library trilogy. The audiobook is read by Pauline Chalamet and features a full cast of eleven actors.

The gorgeous cover, created by James Iacobelli, highlights the street corner where the action in the novel kicks off. The Parisian Chapter follows a young woman from Montana who discovers the power of storytelling and writes her own Parisian chapter.

Paris, 1995: It’s been five years since Lily Jacobsen and her best friend Mary Louise arrived from Froid, Montana. Determined to establish themselves as artists – Lily, a novelist, and Mary Louise, a painter – they share a tiny sixth-floor walkup and survive on brie and baguette.

When Mary Louise abruptly moves out, Lily feels alone in the City of Light for the first time and is in need of a new way to support herself. She lands a job as the programs manager at the American Library in Paris. In the storied halls of the ALP, Lily meets an incredible cast of characters – her favorite author, quirky coworkers, broke students, and high society trustees – each with their own stories... and agendas. Personal dramas sometimes take precedence over books and patrons.

Between her hard-nosed boss not letting up and her best friend letting go, Lily is stressed and bewildered. When it becomes clear that the Library is facing serious financial struggles and its future is uncertain, she must look beyond her own problems in order to protect the ALP and the precious memories it holds. 

This moving, propulsive story features cameos from characters in The Paris Library and Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade. Lily’s story is a love letter to the artist’s life, the importance of friendship, and leaving home only to find it again.

I loved writing this novel. In the past, I’ve killed off several characters, which is painful. I’m happy to say that in this book, everyone survives! I’m sharing links here so you can pre-order it. Pre-orders are the best way to ensure that the authors you appreciate continue to have their work published.

Apple Books

Google Play

Libro.fm

Amazon

As promised, I’m continuing my Card series. Isn’t this a gorgeous photo of Kate Lewis? The “chauffeuse” is using a toothbrush to clean a spark plug.

Kate Lewis Hay was born on September 2, 1891 (some sources cite 1892). She was raised in Springfield, Illinois, and was educated at Vassar. In the First World War, she worked in Naval Intelligence in Washington DC before traveling to France to work for the Red Cross and later the American Committee for Devastated France. In her passport application below, you can see that she had to swear that it was not her intention to marry an officer or soldier in the American Expeditionary Forces upon her arrival in France. The Cards worked around the clock to help French civilians. Marriage was the last thing on their mind.

The Cards had a special nickname for drivers like Kate. Mary Needham explained, “We used this name ‘cochons’ so unthinkingly that we didn’t realize how strange it sounded to outsiders until a startled look at hearing girl-chauffeurs called ‘pigs’ would cause us to explain that the name had been self-inflicted. Because they took charge of the cars — even taking them apart and putting them back together when necessary — the chauffeurs always bore on themselves and on their uniforms blobs of grease. Inasmuch as they could never get their hands clean — not through the whole war — they’d insisted that they couldn’t eat at the same table with the others in the unit — that they must have a ‘cochons’ table. From that time forward, they were self-designated.” Here is another way of looking at those dirty hands:

Letter dated 20 August 1920 from fellow Card Marion Bartol to family back home:

“…Today we have spent in the toils of the Red Tape worm, beginning this morning with a visit to the Préfecture de Police to get our Cartes d’Identité….The Préfecture is on the Ile du Cité, so, armed with our passports, four photos, and a permit from the local concièrgerie we, Kate Lewis, Miss Clark, and I, got there at 9.45. At the desk we had to give our entire life history, going back one generation. This is in case you might be a German, or of German descent. I had to get twelve more pictures taken as I had used up all those I brought with me… After that Kate and I went to an office where we applied for permission to get permits to drive automobiles.”

In 1927, Kate married Colonel Arthur Sidney Hay, a retired Indian Army officer and a recipient of the Distinguished Service Order award. They lived in Fleet, Hampshire and had a son in 1928. When World War II broke out, Kate once again answered the call and joined the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF).

The incredible women of CARD deserve to be remembered. I hope that you will consider sharing this newsletter with friends to help spread the word. It is always a pleasure to talk to book clubs. Please get in touch if you’d like me to share photos and stories. My email address is pariswritingworkshop@yahoo.com.

There is so much going on in the US. As an educator, I want to acknowledge how far we’ve come as a society thanks to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Montanan author Caroline Patterson’s book The Stone Sister highlights how “backward children” used to be abandoned and left in institutions. Now, decades later, a friend’s daughter with Down’s Syndrome has headed off to a two-year college program in order to able to live independently. Open-mindedness has changed lives and families for the better. We need to educate ourselves and keep moving forward. Unfortunately, book banning continues, despite the fact that reading widely and taking an interest in others makes us better, more knowledgeable people. Dorothy Reeder, the real-life heroine of The Paris Library, wrote, “No other thing possesses that mystical faculty to make people see with other people's eyes. The library is a bridge of books between cultures.” Let us heed her words.

Thank you for subscribing to my newsletter and for taking an interest in my work!

My best,

Janet

PS Last month, I talked about my hopes of 25 things for 2025. I crossed the first one off my list. I got a terrarium, just like my grandfather’s. For Valentine’s Day, I hope that you will spend time with people and things that you love.