The Keeper of Hidden Books

The primary relationship in The Keeper of Hidden Books is the lifelong friendship between Zofia and Janina. Their loyalty to each other withstands years of separation, trauma, and stress, underscoring the enduring nature of friendship, and these sentiments are echoed through the bond shared by all of the members of Bandit Book Club as well. Zofia and Janina meet when they are young children, and they realize from the start that they balance each other well. As the narrative states:

Zofia had never been gregarious, more the kind to keep to herself and tuck into a book than drum up conversation with people she didn’t know. [...] On Janina’s first day in school, she’d strode over to Zofia with enviable confidence and shared some of the flower-shaped butter cookies her mother baked, filling in any silence between them with animated chatter that made Zofia instantly like her. (11)

Even into adulthood, Janina acts as Zofia’s foil; she is outgoing when Zofia is reserved, and lighthearted when Zofia longs to engage in serious conversation. Even when they are not together, Zofia imagines what Janina might do in each social situation and uses her knowledge of her friend’s habits to become more approachable or welcoming. By establishing the two best friends as foils, Martin emphasizes the enduring nature of true friendship, for she depicts this friendship as a central feature of both characters’ identities.

Although Zofia’s friendship with Janina is the central friendship in the novel, it is not the only friendship with staying power. The Bandit Book Club—comprised of Zofia and Janina plus Danuta, Kasia, and Darek—coalesces around the members’ shared love of reading and their desire to fight back against the Nazi regime. Despite terrible hardships, the book club persists in supporting each other through years of wartime conditions and German occupation. Their tenacity is evidenced in their clever methods for keeping their meetings and reading materials secret, and this ongoing effort emphasizes their dedication to each other. Likewise, Kasia and Danuta, who die together in the fight for Old Town, are as devoted to each other as Zofia is to Janina. Reflecting on their deaths, Zofia muses, “Kasia would never have left patients behind. Likewise, Danuta would never abandon Kasia” and compares this truth to the fact that she and Janina “had never separated through the uprising” (381). The Keeper of Hidden Books therefore explores and celebrates the power of steadfast friendships that offer comfort and community and remain unbroken despite difficult circumstances.

In The Keeper of Hidden Books, Madeline Martin stresses the sanctity of cultural heritage by using her fictional story to depict the broader historical realities of the Nazis’ destruction of art, literature, and other cultural artifacts; these cruel methods were used as a means of controlling various populations. Faced with the potential erasure of their culture, Zofia and the other characters dedicate themselves to hiding works of literature in order to preserve their cultural heritage and collective identity, putting themselves in grave danger in the process. In Chapter 10, for example, as library closures become more rampant, Zofia reflects on this cause, thinking, “Most of their lending libraries were closed, as was the National Library, whose employees continued to work without pay, sacrificing their […] livelihood to care for the books. It was an act of passion in a time when everyone’s bellies were empty” (116). The librarians’ ongoing dedication underscores the sanctity of cultural heritage, and the novel depicts many acts of self-sacrifice wherein characters prioritize the protection of art, literature, and other cultural objects over their own safety.

Accordingly, Zofia’s thoughts often highlight the fact that books, manuscripts, and other works of art help to preserve the collective Polish identity. Eyeing a new list of banned books that she is forced to remove from the library’s collection, Zofia thinks, “Was it not enough that the Germans had taken their museums, silenced their music, and commandeered their printing presses? Now Hitler was taking away their literature as well. Pretty soon, there would be nothing left of Poland” (116). This is a historically accurate depiction of Nazi tactics in the areas they occupied, for the Nazi regime forced multiple groups into compliance by attacking their shared cultural and national identities. Zofia’s observations and actions demonstrate her understanding of this tactic; she sees how important it is for a population to remember their history and preserve their stories, hopes, traditions, and scientific knowledge.