Bookshop West Portal is thrilled to host Meg Waite Clayton in conversation with Carol Edgarian in celebration of Meg's newest book, The Postmistress of Paris, which releases on 11/30/21.

Chosen by Publishers Weekly for their list of notable fall literary books, The Postmistress of Paris sweeps readers into the lives of writers and artists, expats, and ordinary citizens caught up in the dark early days of the German occupation of France. This novel—inspired by the courageous efforts of real-life Chicago heiress Mary Jayne Gold and fellow American Varian Fry in smuggling artists and intellectuals out of war-torn Europe — brings vividly to life a historical moment that has new relevance in today’s world of closing borders.

Wealthy, beautiful Naneé was born with a spirit of adventure that transcends her Midwestern roots. For her, learning to fly is freedom. When German tanks roll across the border and into Paris, this woman with an adorable dog and a generous heart joins the resistance. Known as the Postmistress because she delivers information to those in hiding, Naneé uses her charms and skill to house the hunted and deliver them to safety.

Meg Waite Clayton is a New York Times bestselling author of seven prior novels, including the international bestseller and National Jewish Book Award finalist The Last Train to London (published or forthcoming in twenty languages); the Langum Prize–honored The Race for Paris; The Language of Light, a finalist for what is now the PEN/Bellwether Prize; and The Wednesday Sisters, one of Entertainment Weekly’s 25 Essential Best Friend Novels of all time. She has written for the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Washington Post, and public radio, often on the subject of the particular challenges women face. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Carol Edgarian is the author of the New York Times bestseller Three Stages of Amazement and the international bestseller Rise the Euphrates, winner of the ANC Freedom Prize. Her articles and essays have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and W, among many others. She is cofounder and editor of Narrative, a digital publisher of fiction, poetry, and art, and Narrative in the Schools, which provides free libraries and writing resources to teachers and students around the world. Edgarian lives with her family in San Francisco.

Meg Waite Clayton: The Postmistress of Paris