French-born author Elena Mauli Shapiro vividly recreates Paris during World War I in this captivating novel. 13 rue ThErEse follows Trevor Stratton, an American academic working in Paris who discovers a keepsake box dated back to the Great War. The box, Trevor discovers, belonged to a piano teacher named Louise Brunet. Inside it are mementos that give Trevor clues to Louise's life, including the love she lost in the war and her affair with a neighbor. Mesmerized, Trevor begins to imagine what life was like for the mysterious Frenchwoman.
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"This book reminded me strongly of the "Griffin and Sabine" books, with its strange time flow and souvenirs/letters. I enjoyed it immensely, even if it is a slow-starter and has left me slightly chronologically confused. "
— Elizabeth (4 out of 5 stars)
" This was a very hard book to rate -- went from thinking "how clever, I really like it", to "how weird, I don't think I like it" and back and forth -- finally settled on giving it a 3 as the middle point!! "
— Barb, 5/26/2011" Extremely unexpected. Unlike anything I've ever read.<br/> "
— Marie, 5/23/2011" This is such a clever book! I would never thought of basing a book around a box full of paraphernalia. This is a clever mystery and love story that unfolds all because of a box full of antique objects. And the box of objects really exist! "
— Carol, 4/20/2011" 3.5 stars<br/>A very unique, clever, creative and interesting first novel by Shapiro. I enjoyed the blending of French with English. The illustrations added charm to the book. "
— Deborah, 4/16/2011" This is the first book I have read in a whole month! Very enjoyable. A little confusing - jumping through time and space. I loved looking at the old photos. "
— Abranch71, 4/7/2011Elena Mauli Shapiro was born and raised in Paris. She holds a BA in English from Stanford University, an MFA in fiction from Mills College, and an MA in comparative literature from the University of California, Davis. She lives in the Bay Area with her husband.
Jefferson Mays, an Earphones Awards-winning narrator, is also an award-winning theater and film actor. In 2004 he won a Tony Award, a Drama Desk Award, an Obie Award, and a Theatre World Award for his solo Broadway performance in I Am My Own Wife, a Pulitzer Prize–winning play by Doug Wright. He holds a BA from Yale College and an MFA from University of California–San Diego.