The Library of Leaving: A Novel

The Library of Leaving: A Novel

From the author of Teddy , a dazzling historical novel about an American librarian in 1920s Switzerland who must face the truth of decisions she made to survive during the First World War. In the wake of the Great War, American Helen Fox lives a solitary life in Switzerland as a librarian, cataloguing books left as bequests by diplomats and other expatriates. Bookish and buttoned up, Helen is shocked when she receives a package that hints at her far more colorful past: it’s a draft chapter of a novel written by a man she knew intimately during the war—a soldier she nursed at a camp in the Alps for wounded Allied troops. Though he claims his book is fiction, Helen is afraid of what it might reveal about who she used to be, really, and whose side she might have been on. . . . Bursting with literary references and testament to the power of reading, this lush and atmospheric tale of love, grief, and betrayal interweaves Helen’s own recollections of her life—including her affair with an exiled Austrian baron—with pages from her ex-lover’s supposedly fictional book and other dispatches. The Library of Leaving is both a story of a wartime romance and a meditation on how books read or written tell—and sometimes distort—the truth of a life. "It’s a case of spy versus spy, of love that is both transactional and romantic, of amorphous identities and ephemeral allegiances. Mired in the elements of tragedy, the novel teems with references to Greek classics, a paean to the power of the written word to change the course of history. Dunlay’s sophomore effort, following Teddy , holds its own against the masters of the literary espionage novel, as intricate in its cat-and-mouse intrigue as any LeCarre thriller.” ⎯ Booklist (starred review) " The Library of Leaving gives us historical fiction bursting with elegance and sophistication. Emily Dunlay's engrossing prose constructs a literary labyrinth that reveals layers of mystery and intrigue in a vivid 1920s European milieu. A top notch escape into an alluring era." ⎯ Matthew Pearl, author of The Dante Club “A twisty story of love, war, and secrets . . . . Dunlay’s extensive research into the roles of various actors in WWI is evident, but an equally resonant theme relates to the power of books to sustain a life of meaning during hardship. A carefully crafted historical puzzle.” ⎯ Kirkus Reviews " Teddy is a luscious joyride of a novel, a portrait of a lady who’s a beautiful welter of lust, appetite, and longing. Teddy is Lily Bart with gusto and moxie, Isabel Archer with tenacious grit. I rooted for her gleefully until the surprise ending, which Dunlay pulls off with sly, masterful timing. Glamorous and suspenseful, this is a literary romp." - Kate Christensen, Pen/Faulkner award winning author of The Great Man and Welcome Home, Stranger “Effervescent and cool, Teddy is the perfect read if your trip to Capri gets canceled and your La Dolce Vita itch needs scratching.” - Washington Post " Teddy is a glitteringly glamorous and gossipy trip to 1960s Rome with a chaotically charming protagonist and a transporting setting, all with a mystery at its heart. Dunlay’s gorgeously immersive novel will fill a Lessons in Chemistry shaped hole on your shelf (and heart)." - Ellery Lloyd, New York Times Bestselling author of The Club "The glamour of La Dolce Vita and the repressive sexism of the 1960s pulse through this captivating exploration of the female psyche.” - People "As if  Mad Men  had a baby with  The White Lotus , this novel has it all: atmosphere, glamour, danger, a heroine at the center of a web she doesn’t understand, so you want to protect her even as you cheer for her to escape. Teddy is the beautiful flaw, the ungovernable passion at the center of every woman that makes us perfectly imperfect, human, and real." - Jenna Blum, New York Times bestselling author of Those Who Save Us and The Lost Family Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, Emily Dunlay studied English literature and creative writing at Princeton University and later trained and worked as a specialist librarian for antiquarian books in New York and Abu Dhabi. She currently lives in California.