London torn by war, connected by books
Grace Bennett arrives in London in August 1939 and dreams of a new beginning. But she ends up working as a clerk in a dusty little bookstore. And that's the problem - she understands business, but she's never had time to read. Then a nice young man introduces her to the Count of Monte Cristo and it's love. Grace falls completely into books and stories that distract her from the increasingly horrific situation. Men go off to war and many never return, children are evacuated to the countryside and destruction falls from the sky, depriving the inhabitants of their homes, livelihoods and loved ones.
And once in the shelter, when a terrified neighbor asks Grace to read aloud, they become regular story meetings that continue in the bookstore space. Listeners become friends, united not only by the comfort found in the power of words, but also by the willingness to lend a helping hand and not let the other fall.
