“Set in the unique realm of rare bookselling, a story of protecting the written word against a digital world threatening to destroy it.” — PW/BookLife

“Takes one into a world to which very few are privy.” — Readers’ Favorite (5/5)

“Quietly devastating…the fragile magic of holding history in your hands.” — NetGalley (5/5)

“Briscoe writes beautifully.” — San Francisco Book Review (5/5)

Recommended by OverDrive for library purchase.


"Peter Briscoe’s Between Memory and Oblivion follows Michael Ashe, an antiquarian bookseller navigating the shifting landscape of book collecting in an era increasingly dominated by digital technology. After losing his best library client, Michael embarks on a journey through Paris and Mexico, hunting rare volumes and negotiating with librarians, most notably Elizabeth Wyatt, whose embrace of digitization puts her at odds with his reverence for the physical book. His struggle to save printed books takes a unique turn when he uncovers the extraordinary story of Gabriel Naudé—the most learned man in France and the visionary architect of a legendary library built to safeguard knowledge from the relentless decay of time. This discovery transforms Michael’s quest from a personal struggle for survival into a passionate, public crusade to rescue the very soul of books from oblivion. Alongside professional struggles, Michael’s quest for love leads to a passionate yet contentious romance with Elizabeth. At the same time, Michael’s protest against a university’s plan to digitize and dismember a collection he painstakingly assembled, becomes a climatic point in the narrative. Can he succeed in his fight to save books and to find genuine love?

"Between Memory and Oblivion takes you to California, Paris, and Mexico, but its true landscape is the world of libraries, rare books, and the collectors and scholars who cherish them. Briscoe populates this world with richly drawn characters: Michael, haunted by loneliness yet driven by passion; María, his quick-witted assistant who finds her own awakening through books; George, the scholar-librarian; and Elizabeth, the ambitious digital resources librarian. Thematically, the novel explores the tension between preservation and progress, memory and forgetting, analog and digital. Briscoe’s narrative honors the tactile, serendipitous, and human aspects of book culture, contrasting them with the antiseptic efficiency of digitization. Through Michael’s battles—both internal and external—the novel asks whether the soul of a library, or a life, can survive if reduced to mere data, and whether the pursuit of perfection is itself a form of loss. I loved the gorgeous, exquisite prose, the elaborately developed characters, and the conflict that hits home powerfully, but it was what this book made me feel about printed books that makes it a must-read.—Rating 5 stars. Reviewed by John Grossman, The Book Commentary.

"Peter Briscoe's novel Between Memory and Oblivion is a marvelous trip into the world of rare books, libraries' special collections departments, and book-sellers and buyers. But more than a venture into this fascinating area, it is an argument for preserving rare books and books themselves. Michael Ashe travels throughout Europe and Central America in search of rare collections he can acquire and then sell mainly to American university libraries. A librarian himself, Briscoe reveals not only his fascination with this world but his passionate insistence that physical books cannot be replaced by electronic versions. He sees their downfall along with the decline of reading as the death of high art, intellectual inquiry, and perhaps humanity itself. Besides being a businessman in this beloved arcane world, Ashe evolves to igniting his concern in the intellectual ecosphere by adopting the methodology of the 1960s protest movement.

"As a product of graduate school literary studies, I share Peter Briscoe's concern, and even more, I appreciate his artistic call to arms. Between Memory and Oblivion dramatizes the conflict between books and computer screens in a romantic relationship between Ashe and a beautiful, rare books expert, as the lovers end up defending opposite sides of this controversy. She defends the economy of electronic preservation, and he advocates the preservation of books, especially the rarest of the rare. As a reader, I felt the potential tragedy looming before our world. A magnificent extra above and beyond the academic storm is Briscoe's erudite presentation of this hidden world, its history and its exquisiteness, along with the beauties of Paris, its restaurants, streets, and galleries; and of Central America's bungalows and beaches and, oh, the food and romance! I do not know if anything can stop Al's takeover of our culture, but I do know that Between Memory and Oblivion makes a magnificent argument for maintaining libraries, books, and reading itself."—Rating 5 stars. Reviewed by Jon Michael Miller for Readers' Favorite.


"Going into Between Memory and Oblivion, I didn't expect to connect so deeply with a story about a rare book dealer. As someone who works in tech and spends most of his time in digital spaces, I'm immersed in cloud computing, app ecosystems, and constant innovation. But Peter Briscoe's quiet, meditative novel resonated with me more than I anticipated —it made me pause and think about the costs of progress and the value of preserving the past. The protagonist, Michael Ashe, is something of a dinosaur in the modern world: a specialist in antiquarian books, selling rare and historic volumes to libraries that are increasingly prioritizing digital resources. Michael thrives on physical books, on the weight of leather-bound volumes and the smell of paper that's endured centuries. His knowledge of obscure titles and long-dead authors is encyclopedic. But when he returns from a buying trip and finds that his longtime client has retired — replaced by a librarian uninterested in physical acquisitions- his world starts to unravel.

"As someone who writes code for a living, I found Michael's devotion to analog fascinating. It's the complete opposite of what I do. But that contrast is what makes the book so interesting. His crisis-losing clients, being rendered obsolete, trying to sell beautiful things to people who only want searchable PDFs— isn't just about books. It's about relevance. And in a world that changes as fast as mine, that anxiety hits close to home. Briscoe writes beautifully, especially in the Paris sections. Michael's time there is filled with quiet melancholy. The city becomes a backdrop for both his professional pursuits and personal memories. When he reconnects with Elise, a former lover, the emotional stakes rise. Their final meeting is poignant. Elise tells him, "Please, never phone me again," and it's clear Michael waited too long to choose love over work. It's the kind of moment that sneaks up on you and stays with you.

"One of the things I appreciated most was the inclusion of María, Michael's young assistant. Her character provides a sense of continuity. She's curious, capable, and beginning to understand the depth of what Michael does. Their relationship is never romantic, but it's one of mentorship and mutual respect. In a novel so concerned with fading legacies, María is the thread that suggests something might survive after all.

"The book's pacing is slow and deliberate. At times, the detailed descriptions of old books, libraries, and 17th-century bibliographers like Gabriel Naudé border on the academic. I had to Google a few references just to keep up. But in the end, I didn't mind. These details grounded the story and helped me understand why Michael clings so tightly to his way of life. Between Memory and Oblivion is about more than rare books. It's about memory, legacy, and what happens when your life's work feels like it's slipping away. For readers open to a reflective and literary journey, it's a quietly profound read that asks us to think deeply about the things we choose to preserve— and the things we let go."—Rating 5 stars. Reviewed by Kyle Eaton for San Francisco Book Review.


"Michael Ashe is not giving up on physical books. He understands that the digital world is taking over the book world, and soon, books may be extinct. Michael is in search of books while also searching for love. He is very flawed and oftentimes isn't quite sure what he is looking for in a woman. But he is sure about the books he wants and the quest he is on. The pacing is slow, thorough, and takes its time to get us to where the author wants us to be. For those who enjoy books about books, libraries, and beauty, this is for you."—Rating 5 stars. Reviewed by Paloma E. Flores for NetGalley.