Anneliese and Pete, sister and brother living in war-torn Munich, are wandering their town in search of food when they happen upon a great hall filled with books in different languages from all around the world. They meet a woman who invites them to return to this unique library where she introduces them to stories that kindle their imaginations and offer them hope. This fictional story includes back matter introducing the real "lady with books," Jella Lepman, her 1946 traveling book exhibit, and what is now the "Book Castle" in Munich, a permanent exhibition known as the International Youth Library.

2021 USBBY Outstanding International Book.

Author and illustrator both live in Canada.

Canada. Originally published in English in the United States by Kids Can Press in 2020.

A fictionalized retelling of how books from around the world helped children in Germany recuperate after WWII. Anneliese and Peter will never be the same after the war that took their father’s life. One day, while wandering the ruined streets of Munich, the children follow a line of people entering a building, thinking there may be free food inside. Instead, they are delighted to discover a great hall filled with children’s books — more books than Anneliese can count. Here, they meet the lady with the books, who will have a larger impact on the children’s lives than they could have ever imagined. The place between despair and hope can often be found between the covers of a book.