After presenting The Paris Library, Janet Skeslien Charles is thrilled to return to AF to discuss her latest novel Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade. The book celebrates the little-known story of the 350 women who worked forty miles from the front in World War I France. Join us to discover the American Committee for Devastated France, called Le Comité américain pour les régions dévastées (CARD) in French. Founded by millionaire Anne Morgan and her long-time love Anne Murray Dike, this international group helped rebuild devastated French communities. When the German army attacked, the women of CARD evacuated thousands of civilians. They earned the Croix de Guerre (War Cross medal) for their courage under fire. CARD also brought something that the French had never seen—children’s libraries. After the war, librarian Jessie Carson turned ambulances into bookmobiles and trained the first French female librarians. The French called Anne Morgan “a generous and intrepid friend of France,” and she was given the rank of commander in the Legion of Honor. In 2017, a stamp was issued in her honor by La Poste.
About Janet Skeslien Charles
Janet first learned French in rural Montana, where she was inspired by her neighbor, a war bride from Rouen. The French language was not only a refuge, it fueled her imagination. She is a New York Times and #1 international bestselling author. Her novels have been translated into 37 languages. Her shorter work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, The Sydney Morning Herald, and Montana Noir. She now lives in Paris, where she is working on the final installment of her library trilogy.
