A beautifully written and read audiobook that really came alive for me thanks to the amazing and talented narrators. While Paris Slept is read by four narrators in a variety of excellent accents and I really felt that I was part of this emotional story. The novel has a dual timeline- set in Paris in 1944 and Santa Cruz in 1953 and illustrates the difficult decisions made in wartime and the ensuing trauma this can bring. It is a moving and emotional story, I felt great empathy for the characters and it has really stayed with me.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital audiobook.

A fascinating take on WW2, and the Nazi occupation, and how families move on from the trauma they experienced.
As I was listening to the (excellent) audiobook, it took me a little time to follow the different narrations and understand who was who in relation to each other.
The characters were excellent and I was constantly moved by the predicament each of them were in. The narrators were absolutely wonderful, the French and American accents were superb and helped me distinguish who was talking extremely easily.
Fantastic reading experience, and a wonderful book. Highly recommend.

I nearly dnf’d this as I couldn’t get into it but I’m so so glad I carried on! I loved the story. I really enjoyed that it was narrated by a number of people, each of importance to the singular story and of different generations. It helped you to get a full picture and made it really interesting. The audiobook format was perfect for this story. The narrator was amazingly adaptable and brilliant at accents. I’m glad I kept reading.

In general I tend not to read Holocaust fiction often - I find it utterly unbearable, utterly heartbreaking and totally uncomfortable. However, there is a wealth of fantastic fiction written about this terrible period of our history and I’m so glad I chose to listen to this book. This is the story of two couples - David and Sara, and Jean-Luc and Charlotte, and a little boy called Sam. The novel switches between Paris under German occupation in the 1940s and America post- war 1950s and switches between the accounts of each character. Sara and David are Jewish, daily living with the fear of being captured by the Nazis and expecting their first baby. Charlotte is a nurse when she meets Jean- Luc who has been injured trying to sabotage the trains carrying Jews away from Germany. Their lives collide one night on a station platform. I listened to this on audiobook. There are several narrators - switching voice as the book switches between accounts. I found this really affective, both in terms of developing a sense of the characters and in reducing any confusion between narratives. The narration greatly added to the story, swelling the tension, the fear and the heartbreak. I found the voicing of Sara and David in particular very compelling. This is an epic story of love, courage, selflessness, family. Beautifully written and thoroughly researched, this is so carefully paced - the escape feels dangerous, long and difficult. The years in Auschwitz feel dark, soulless and endless. This absolutely gets a 5 stars from me. With thanks to Netgalley and Hachette U.K.Audio for a digital copy of this audiobook.

Audio version of this book 📚- WOW 😯 what an emotional rollercoaster of a read/listen! It really opened my eyes as to the hardships and terrible things that people had to live through. Showing how a mothers love was so strong that she did the hardest thing imaginable to save her baby . It showed how even many many years after the war had ended the ripples of the effect carried on and had a huge impact still on people’s lives. The narrators were fantastic and made it such a gripping listen and the characters so believable, highly recommend

An absolutely fantastic book and the audible narration was brilliant. I was hooked on this audible from the beginning. A heartbreaking and emotional read based around WW 2. I've no hesitation in giving this listen 5 stars.

While Paris Slept is a heartbreaking story that examines the horrors of the Second World War, and the impossible decisions ordinary people were forced to make.
Charlotte and Jean-Luc flee Paris in order to save the life of a Jewish baby. His parents are forced onto a train bound for Auschwitz and beg Jean-Luc to save their child. The book follows their dangerous escape into Spain and the horrors of the convention camp.
After the war, the actions taken by these people return to haunt them and difficult decisions have to be made once again.

The audio book of While Paris Slept by Ruth Druart was an all-consuming and compelling listen for me.
From the moment it started I could not stop listening to this book. Set during WWII in France a young French couple ,David and Sarah give away their new born baby in desperation for safekeeping to a young stranger - Jean-Luc - as they are taken to Auschwitz.
Jean-Luc and his girl friend Charlotte end up in California, taking the baby with them.
Fast forward years later and David and Sarah have survived Auschwitz and begin the search for their child.
The narration is done by Frazer Hadfield, Heather Long, Jane Collingwood and Luke Thomson and all four execute their delivery brilliantly and had me engaged the whole way through. This is my favourite read of the year so far. A dazzling debut!! Thank you to Netgalley and to Hachette Audio Uk for my gifted copy.

This book was totally amazing. It moves from the story of World War II in France to the next generation starting their lives in America. Each step was amazing. The main vein running through the whole book is unconditional love. I have read a lot of books about World War II and how people escaped the Nazis but this one was very special as it didn’t just cover the painful journey and loss, it looked at how people began to live again after the war. I’ve never read a book which dealt with the separation of Jews and their children. This book was so well written, I could imagine the pain and the anguish that families went through. I found the ending was fitting for the story. And that theme of unconditional love went on until the very end of this book. I listen to this as an audiobook and thought that the accents the narrator used and her overall reading voice was perfect for this story, it brought the story to life. I would really recommend listening to this book.