Bam cooks the books's Reviews > The Bookbinder

**Happy Publication Day!**

A companion book to Pip Williams' first book about Oxford University Press, The Dictionary of Lost Words, this one deals with the bookbinding girls at the press. The story is set at the beginning of WWI, where we meet twin sisters, Peggy and Maude Jones. The girls began working at the bindery at the age of 12, as had their mother and grandmother before them. Peggy longs to take the time to read the pages that pass through her hands but is constantly reminded that her job is to fold them, not read them. Still, a sizable collection of pages and books have found their way to the narrowboat on the Oxford canal where they live. Peggy has a dream: to someday cross the street and study at Somerville. 'There's something about being told you can't have access that makes you long for a place.'

One of the things holding Peggy back is her sister Maude who is a bit different and needs minding. The other is Peggy's lack of education, having quit school to be with her sister at work. And how would she pay for college? Fortunately for her, her intelligence and drive come to the attention of some well-placed women who have befriended her and she learns there is a possibility she can get a full scholarship to Somerville IF she can pass the entrance exams.

As we know, the history of the world is seldom told through women's experiences but here we have the chance to see what it was like on the home front during WWI. The women not only keep the home fires burning, cooking, cleaning, raising children, but fill many of the jobs that are vacated by the men who have gone off to the war.

In her spare time, Peggy volunteers to read and write letters for some of wounded soldiers in the hospital and there she meets a soldier from Belgium whose face has been badly disfigured. Soon a little romance is blooming between the two but would she be willing to give up her dream for him? And what about Maude?

Any lover of books might enjoy learning more about the process of printing and binding books in those days. So fascinating! And there's also the backdrop of the war and the women's suffragette movement, strangely only meant for some.

I received an arc of this novel from the author and publisher via NetGalley. Many thanks! My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.