As we get older our reading choices develop and change. Over the last couple years, I’ve found myself drawn to historical fiction novels more than ever, especially those focusing on Europe during World War II. A terrible time in history, I find these stories both horrifying and fascinating. Three of my favorite books of this period also happen to take place in France during this time.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah – This is an excellent book sharing the powerful story of two sisters and how they each cope with the Nazi occupation in France. I was completely taken away by the bravery of these women and have recommended this book over and over again.
2. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr – Another great book, this is a beautifully written story with flashes of scenes between characters and time 
periods. Two characters, a young blind girl in France and a brilliant German boy who is recruited by the Nazis, offer readers very interesting perspectives. As the book goes on we see how their worlds collide during wartime.
Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay – A haunting twist in the book has caused this story to stay with me years after reading it. In an attempt to save her brother from the Nazis during World War II, a little girl hides the boy in their special hiding place. Throughout the book we see her journey to get back to Paris and her brother.
These books are all so well written and I continue to look for other books by these talented authors!
Dream by Day 
I heard great things about all of these books. Stories written about WWII always fascinate me. As horrible as he was and as much as I wish the Holocaust had not occured, stories about people like Hitler always intrigue me. People filled with such hatred towards others based on religion and race are interesting and yet infuriating to observe. I just always wonder, why? I think I will give these a try soon.
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Each of these books was fantastic! I agree with you though and I think reading these stories and remembering what happened is another way of paying tribute.
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I loved all of these books!! Have you ever read anything by Elizabeth Wein or Ruta Sepetys?
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I haven’t, but I’ll have to look them up! Do they write historical fiction?
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They do! Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein and Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys were amazing!
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Oh those sound interesting! Thanks for recommending. 🙂
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The writing in All the Light We Cannot See is to die for! So gorgeously lush and vivid. I think Werner is an absolutely amazing character as well.
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I loved the writing! I really liked reading Werner’s sections of the story too!
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Agreed! For some reason, I really like historical fiction but it’s my least read genre o.o
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How funny! Sometimes it’s hard to find good historical fiction books though…
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So true! I really want to read more historical fiction that’s not about WWII. I feel like I read a lot of those.
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Yea, a big portion of the historical fiction I’ve read is focused on World War II as well, but there are so many good books about it out there!
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lol good point, I did not think about that..
Then again, I don’t really like reading about the 70’s or 80’s for some reason..
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All the Light we Cannot see was indeed a beautiful novel. Probably my favourite book from last year
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I love WWII books! Much like how you said it, it was a horrible time but still makes me wonder. I’m from the Philippines and our country has seen so much of this War that I want to snatch up any book that has of any relevance to this! 😊
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I loved ‘All the light we cannot see’. A very satisfying big read for the holidays
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I just found your blog and started scrolling through it, and this post grabbed me because I love WWII historical fiction. All three of these books are at the top of my list as well! I heard The Nightingale might be made into a movie.
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I love historical fiction from this time period too! Each of these books are some of my favorites, especially The Nightingale. I hope they do it justice if there’s a movie made out of it!
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