The Book of Lost Names

As she walks the beautiful streets of Aurignon, Eva thinks of her father and the necessary documents she must forge to free him. Unfortunately, the invaluable art pens Monsieur Gougon gave her had to be left behind in Paris because, if found, they would have put Eva under direct suspicion for forgery. As she moves up and down the streets, she looks for an art supply store so she can replace them. Suddenly, Eva notices a man with a limp, dressed in a heavy trench coat despite the warm weather, following her. She recalls that she had seen him on the previous two streets as well. Spurred into caution, Eva hides in a doorway to avoid him, only to crash into him upon her exit. Eva asks him if he is following her, but the man says no and vanishes down the road. Fifteen minutes later, Eva finds a small bookstore that sells art supplies and stumbles into an enchanted place, immediately swept away by the “familiar scents of paper, leather, and binding glue” (61) that transport her back to her days in the libraries of Paris. The older woman working at the store recognizes Eva as a kindred spirit and gives her a book as a gift. She reminds Eva to stay safe in such a dangerous world as France has become.

That evening, Eva works diligently on her father’s documents long into the night until she falls asleep from exhaustion. Just after dawn, a knock at the door wakes her, and, thinking it is Madame Barbier, she answers—only to find the tall trench-coat man from the previous day. Petrified that their ruse is up, Eva slams the door on him only to find that he has wedged his foot inside while promising that he is “a friend” (65). The man reveals himself to be Père Clément, a local priest who has spoken with Madame Barbier about Eva’s talent for forging documents. Though Eva vehemently denies that their story about being Russian immigrants is false, Madame Barbier is herself a Russian immigrant and recognizes that Mamusia is Polish, traveling under false papers. Père Clément reveals that he too has “friends with ink-stained fingers” (66) and proposes that he and Eva can be of some use to each other. As he leaves, Eva knows that she must protect her mother since their cover story has been exposed.

While Eva’s worry bleeds into her early morning conversation with her mother, Mamusia is not concerned, convinced that a Catholic priest would not double-cross them. She urges Eva to go see him at the Église Saint-Alban because she feels that Père Clément may hold the key to finding and freeing Tatuś. Eva agrees and takes Mamusia to the bookstore from the day before to leave her someplace safe because she is unsure whether or not they can trust Madame Barbier.

Since the church is only two blocks from the bookstore, Eva reaches it quickly and goes inside to find an empty chapel. She sits in a pew, and the longer she waits, the more nervous she feels that she is making a mistake. Finally, the door opens, but it is not Père Clément; instead, a young couple, their faces cloaked by hats and scarves, rush in. The young woman makes a quick sign-of-the-cross, and they both enter the confessional together. Eva is confused. Although she is not Catholic, she remembers seeing in movies that Catholics treat confession as a private, individual matter, not a joint one. She also finds it odd that the woman crossed herself at “her head before moving to her right shoulder, her chest, and then her left shoulder” (72) in a formation more like a diamond than the original Catholic cross. Not long after, the couple emerges from the confessional as the man hides papers inside his shirt.

As Eva wonders what is going on, Père Clément surprises her and asks her to follow him. He leads her to the antiquated library of the church, a place filled from floor-to-ceiling with ancient texts. Just like in the bookstore, Eva is entranced by the books and is drawn to one at random—Epitres et Evangiles. Père Clément then reveals why he asked her to come: He and his allies need someone with Eva’s artistic talents to forge documents for Jewish people on the run. Eva mentions that she must free her father before considering becoming a professional forger, and Père Clément implies that his connections throughout the Catholic Church may be able to help her. He suggests that Eva forge a letter from the Argentine consul stating that Tatuś is an Argentine citizen and must be set free. Germany and Argentina have a diplomatic agreement that Germany won’t imprison their citizens—not even Jews. He tells her to think his proposal over and insists that Eva and Mamusia can trust Madame Barbier from now on.

Back in Florida, the older Eva Abrams argues with her 35-year-old son Ben about her impending departure to Berlin. Ben, who believes his aging mother is better suited to a nursing home than an airport, tries to convince her that she has no business flying to a country she “ha[s] no connection to” (82), but Eva knows that there is so much about her past that she kept from Ben’s life, much like she kept the identity of her own mother from her son.

Eva realizes that Ben would rather be elsewhere worrying about his own life than worrying about hers, so she promises to change her trip to accommodate his concern. Content with this, Ben hugs her and leaves, unaware of the fact that Eva has actually moved her flight up six hours earlier and will be in Berlin by the next morning.

In Aurignon, Mamusia is under the impression that Eva will be able to secure Tatuś’s release immediately and then leave for Switzerland as a family. However, Eva is certain it won’t be as easy as Mamusia thinks. A knock at the door brings a promise of dinner from Madame Barbier, and when Eva questions her about “betraying” them to Père Clément, Madame Barbier quickly informs Eva that their cover story is not believable in any way, proving that she has saved their lives, not betrayed them.

The dinner is a feast, which is quite atypical for wartime; Madame Barbier has an agreement with a farmer who offers her food without expecting ration cards. Over dinner, Barbier shares her hope that Eva and Mamusia will be there for some time. Mamusia proclaims that they will be leaving as soon as Tatus is free, prompting Madame Barbier to accuse Eva of taking help and then absconding. Eva assures her that she has not made a decision yet, which silences Mamusia, but Eva ultimately struggles with the idea of leaving if so many people need her help.

After dinner, Eva heads back to the church to find the library prepared for her, complete with an official form from the Argentine consul, blank papers, and pens. A typewriter and the copy of Epitres et Evangiles joins them. Eva begins crafting a letter identical to the one from the consul and is lost in her artwork when the door opens, frightening her into hiding the papers in her waistband. It is a young man, handsome and weathered. Initially, Eva is unsure whether he is friend or foe. He snakes the papers from her waistband and reveals that he too is a forger, and that he learned all about her from Père Clément. He advises her to change her fake identity from Colette Fontain to something new before she continues on, since it is dangerous to adopt the name of a living Parisian woman. Instead, he pulls a name from the death records—Marie Charpentier—and tells her to create new documents for herself using this identity. He leaves without telling Eva his name.