I N C O N V E R S AT I O N W I T H
ADDISON ARMSTRONG The War Librarian is your second historical novel. What inspired you to write this story? What felt different, writing this book? We hear so much about women serving as nurses, Red Cross volunteers, and even yeomen in World War I, so I was shocked that I’d never heard about the women who worked as war librarians. I wanted their stories to be told, but there was more to it. Something about how massive the Library War Service’s undertaking was inspired me, because it demonstrated just how powerful the United States believed books could be, even—or especially—in times of war. I was also fascinated by the fact that the United States saw the vital importance of books and then, at the same time, went about banning many of the books that soldiers wanted to access. The irony of it seemed too powerful not to explore. As for Kathleen’s timeline, it seemed a natural fit when I realized how late women were accepted into the service academies despite centuries of war work. That being said, this novel was a lot harder to write than The Light of Luna Park. I think part of it was the classic second-novel syndrome; suddenly, writing was a job rather than a hobby, which meant all the insecurities and stressors and deadlines of any career interfered where they hadn’t before.
This novel is rooted in the real history of both the first volunteer librarians during World War I and the first class of women to attend the United States Naval Academy. What research did you perform in order to craft this novel? I did a lot of reading, that’s for sure! I read newspaper articles, ALA minutes and bulletins, Naval Academy yearbooks, interviews, American and German war propaganda, ALA booklists, librarians’ journals, and articles galore. Most of all, I have to thank Sharon Hanley Disher, because her book First Class gave me almost everything I needed to write about Kathleen’s experiences at the Naval Academy. My eternal thanks to Lieutenant Disher for her bravery both in attending the Naval Academy and in sharing her and others’ authentic experiences. Now, my most fun research came at the very end of the writing process. The Naval Academy had been closed because of COVID until just before my final edits were due, but it had just reopened, and so my mom and I (both vaccinated) flew to Annapolis and toured the Yard. I was able to sharpen a lot of my descriptions and details afterward. If only I could have flown out to France, too . . .
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Kathleen is such a strong, determined woman in a male-dominated field. How did you come to her character? Is she inspired by someone in particular? Kathleen wasn’t consciously inspired by anyone, but she’s a lot like my incredible little sister Ryan. Ryan is studying to be a pilot, and the aviation field is still shockingly maledominated; much of what the first class of women at the Naval Academy experienced is not as much a thing of the past as we like to believe. Ryan and Kathleen are both brave and determined and self-assured, as well as strong and assertive, but Ryan is not a lone wolf like Kathleen is for most of the novel. Ryan is bright and fun and the most loyal friend you’ll ever have. What about Emmaline? Is she based on a historical figure? Why did you want Emmaline to be a Russian immigrant? How do you think these details add to the story as a whole? Emmaline is not directly based on a historical figure, but I did take elements of a librarian named Mary Frances Isom to create her. The name may sound familiar, as I gave Miss Isom a cameo in the book, though I had to move up her arrival in France so she could interact with Emmaline. Really, Miss Isom arrived in France just as the armistice was being signed, and afterward traveled around the country setting up libraries and training volunteers. Some of the details of the conditions in which Emmaline would have lived are pulled from Miss Isom’s letters home, and the information
Miss Isom gives Emmaline in the story (about a librarian in her charge refusing to buy war bonds) is all factual. There were several reasons I made Emmaline a Russian immigrant, which was actually my agent Melissa Danaczko’s idea originally. It gave Emmaline a childhood connection to Nicholas as well as an additional reason to feel like an outsider during her youth; more importantly, the issues of censorship and Marxism paralleled nicely in her parents’ immigration story and in France. I also liked the idea of showing an immigrant as a core part of the American war effort. Most of the students I teach are immigrants, and nearly all their families are; America would not be America without them. Kathleen’s role model and guiding light is her grandmother, Nellie. What about Nellie and Kathleen’s relationship do you think is special, and why did you choose to focus on this familial bond in Kathleen’s story? In some ways, I think the relationship echoes that in The Light of Luna Park. Nellie is Kathleen’s mother for all intents and purposes. Their relationship is strong and supportive just like my relationship with my mom and with my grandmothers, Mimi and Nan. Emmaline and Nicholas’s relationship has a complex history and is put to the test against the backdrop of war. Can you share your thought process while writing this romance, and if there were any surprising aspects you came to along the way?
War is a series of unimaginable horrors, but it’s also a setting in which unbreakable relationships are forged. Emmaline makes the best friends of her life in her month and a half in France, and she falls in love with a man she will never stop loving. I wanted something bright to shine throughout the chaos and destruction of World War I, and Nicholas and Emmaline’s relationship became that beacon of hope. Novels about women’s voices finally being heard are gaining in popularity among readers. What do you feel The War Librarian adds to this category of fiction? What are some of your favorite books in this vein? I hope that The War Librarian shows that it isn’t just women from a century ago whose voices deserve to be heard. It’s not just Emmaline’s story that needs to be uncovered but Kathleen’s, too—and Kathleen, born in 1954, could be you or your mother or your grandmother. Women are also trendy to write about, whereas other marginalized groups do not receive the same privileges. I tried to include some windows into the historical experiences of people of color rather than just of white women. However, I encourage readers to seek out historical fiction by authors of color. I recommend The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett, Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia, Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson, The Water Dancer by Ta-Nahesi Coates, Conjure Women by Afia
Atakora, and Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford. Some of my other favorite historical fiction books centering women’s voices are Kate Quinn’s novels, everything by Kate Morton, Ariel Lawhon’s Code Name Hélène, The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel, and Sue Monk Kidd’s The Book of Longings. What do you want readers to take away from The War Librarian? I hope they come away with a renewed belief in the transformative power of words and books. I also want readers to feel empowered by Emmaline’s and Kathleen’s stories and by the continuous progress we’ve made as a society. Without giving anything away, did you always know how the story would end? It’s one of the few things I did know! I usually have a pretty clear idea of how my story will start and end, but I don’t really know what happens in the middle until I write it. What’s next for you? I’m currently teaching elementary-school English-language learners, which has always been my dream. I definitely want to keep writing historical fiction and am hoping to publish a middle-grade historical fiction book in addition to more adult novels.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1.
2.
What was the most surprising or interesting fact you learned about the United States Naval Academy or World War I after reading The War Librarian? The War Librarian is not only a story about resilience in the face of hardship but also of the power women have within themselves to effect change. Share a time in your life where you were faced with an obstacle and overcame it or advocated for something you were passionate about. What did you learn about yourself and the world around you?
3.
What do you think both Kathleen’s and Emmaline’s greatest strengths are? What are their weaknesses? How do these shape who they are throughout the novel?
4.
Emmaline facilitates a book club in order to create an inclusive environment for all the soldiers. What other opportunities do you feel book clubs create for readers? What are some of the positives you’ve taken away from being in a book club?
5.
Discuss how grief and loss shaped both Emmaline’s and Kathleen’s lives and the similar and different ways in which they dealt with these emotions. How do you think you would have handled their circumstances if you were Emmaline or Kathleen?
6.
What was your favorite scene in the novel, and why?
7.
If you were in Emmaline’s shoes, how would you have handled her lifechanging decision toward the end of the book? Do you feel Emmaline ultimately made the right or wrong choice, and why?
8.
What do you think is special about Emmaline and Nicholas’s relationship? How did each of them help the other grow and change throughout the novel? Do you have a favorite scene of theirs, and if so, what is it?
9.
Discuss how Emmaline’s identity as a Russian immigrant shaped her story and the choices she made throughout the novel. If her background had been different, do you feel her story would have changed? If so, how?
10.
What about Kathleen? Do you think her life would have taken a different turn if her upbringing had been more “traditional” for the time period? If so, how?
11.
What were your thoughts about the ending?