It is 1939, and nothing could prepare Marta and Janina for the Nazi occupation of their homes and families in Warsaw. Friends since childhood, the two women couldn’t be more different—Marta is Polish and a stubborn, practical planner; Janina is half-Jewish with fanciful ideas of war and heroism. Both avid readers, they find ways to join the war efforts using one of the only weapons that still feel safe to them: literature. While Marta and her father become active in the underground and work to salvage books in danger of being destroyed, Janina aids a secret library in the ghetto, lending and delivering books to orphans. As the round ups and executions intensify, these books become a life preserver for members of their community. But the closer Warsaw gets to liberation, the more dangerous it becomes for the women and their families- and escape may not be possible for everyone.