Paula McLain Escapes into the Paris Underground

The Book Case

ABC News

Fiction, Arts, Society & Culture, Books

4.7 • 913 Ratings

🗓️ 8 January 2026

⏱️ 31 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Paula McLain’s Skylark is the GMA book club pick this month and we are so pleased she sat down with us too. This book is a beautifully written, touching and suspenseful story centered around the meaning of freedom, and the prices we pay to attain it. Paralleling two stories in Paris, one in the 17th century, the other on the dawn of WWII, each story takes us into the depths of the Paris underground, exploring hidden tunnels, abandoned quarries and secret rivers. There is a second Paris that is hidden under the streets that tourists know and love. And this story explores the lost depths of the city while handing readers unforgettable characters with page turning action. McLain herself is an amazing woman who has taken her challenging life and turned it into a gift for the written word. She shares her experience and how it shaped her writing. Join us for an unforgettable conversation with a terrific writer. Find books mentioned on The Book Case: ⁠https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/shop/story/book-case-podcast-reading-list-118433302 Books mentioned on this week's episode: Skylark by Paula McLain The Paris Wife by Paula McLain Love and Ruin by Paula McLain LIke Family: Growing up in Other People’s Houses by Paula McLain A Ticket to Ride by Paula McLain Circling the Sun by Paula McLain When the Stars go Dark by Paula McLain Martyr by Kaveh Akbar Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Why do growing businesses love working in Slack?
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0:18.3	Take us on home, Ashley from Carraway.
0:20.2	If we did have Slack tomorrow, I would explode.
0:23.4	Well, let's not let that happen.
0:25.1	Visit Slack.com slash podcast to get 50% of Slack Business Plus.
0:36.5	So here we are, book nerds, bibliophiles everywhere, bookcase fans, listeners. If you're new,
0:42.4	if you're old, we welcome you. I am the Kate Gibson part and we're very excited to be bringing
0:47.7	to you our first book of 2026. But before we tell you what the first book of 2020 is, because I know you guys have just been like on the edges of your seat not being able to sleep this entire holiday because you were wondering what it was. I'll introduce my co-host. Well, everybody's taking notes. Ah, yes. They want to take a note on what the book is. And the book is Skylark, is the name of it, S-K-Y, L-A-R-K, one word.
1:11.5	And the author is Paula McLean.
1:14.2	And I love these books.
1:15.9	It's a dual story.
1:17.6	It takes place in Paris, parallel stories.
1:20.3	There's a lot in common between the two stories.
1:22.9	One set in the middle of the 17th century in Paris, 1660 so, and the other just before World War II in 1939 and 1940.
	...

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