The Collector of Burned Books

Paris, 1940. German writers exiled by the Nazi Party have established a library in Paris dedicated to preserving banned books and forbidden texts smuggled back into Germany. For six years, Corinne Bastien has spent time in this library, hiding secrets within its walls. When the German army occupies Paris, she loses access to the library and the information the Allies will need to liberate the city. Christian Bauer is a German professor opposed to the Nazi Party who has worked to protect his family and preserve books deemed dangerous by Nazi ideology. When Goebbels assigns him to oversee the "relocation" of France's libraries, Bauer is forced into military service. In Paris, he attempts to protect people and ideas from the Party's reach, hoping to preserve knowledge for a future Germany and recover something he has lost. Two people form an unlikely friendship as they work to preserve truth against those who seek to destroy it. Winner of the Christianity Today Book of the Year Award. Includes discussion questions.