Over 1,000 miniature books: a Montreal collection bound by a grand story

Over 1,000 miniature books were donated to Montreal’s Jewish Public Library, a collection from Holocaust survivor, Lilly Toth, who arranged to have them given to the library upon her death in 2021.

From Shakespeare to cookbooks, the variety of the collection may be large, but their miniature size makes them unique.

“On each wall of her bedroom, were these walls of miniature books, these custom made bookshelves,” says Eddie Paul, Senior Director of Library and Learning Services at Montreal’s Jewish Public Library. “I’d never seen so many [miniature books] in one place before, so I was quite astounded.”

Born in Hungary, Toth lived through the Holocaust. When the Germans occupied Hungary in March 1944, her father was drafted into a forced labour battalion. Both parents were taken away in October 1944 after an organization allied with the Nazis took control of the Hungarian government.

“Lilly and her parents were in hiding, but the family was betrayed by neighbours,” explains Paul. “Her parents were taken away and they were killed.”

Toth was then taken to the shores of the Danube River with a friend of hers, bound together.

“They knelt by the shores of the river, and they were both shot,” says Paul. “Lilly’s friend was killed instantly, Lilly fell into the river, she managed to untie herself from her friend, and she swam a kilometer down the river.”

Toth was rescued and eventually recovered. She remained in Hungary until 1957 when the Hungarian Revolution broke out. She fled to Canada and settled in Montreal, where she already had family.

Open Gallery 4 items

She volunteered regularly at the Montreal Holocaust Museum and died at the age of 96, but her collection of tiny books lives on.

“For my first impression, […] I thought, ‘is this it?’,” recalls Dr. Kristen Howard, historian, on when she first saw the collection. “I had come in expecting a 1,000 miniature books to take up an entire room.”

Howard’s role was to curate the collection – after cataloging 76 of the over 1,000 books, she realized just how big the miniature book collection really is.

“[It’s] incredibly special because of the story of the donor,” says Howard.

But what sets miniature books apart from regular sized books? Howard explains that today, the goal is primarily in collecting and owning, rather than in reading. And that they are easily portable.

“These were often used by, for example, travelers, merchants or soldiers who might carry these books with them,” she says. “And then the goal would be to read.”

The smallest book in Toth’s collection: a Bible as tiny as a fingernail. She also had numerous Hungarian books sought after by collectors.

“For her, they weren’t just valuable books, but they’re a touchstone to her, her culture that she left behind,” says Howard.

The library is launching Toth’s collection for the public to enjoy as of May 15.

(Courtesy of Lilly Toth, Montreal Holocaust Museum Collection)

“Lilly was very understated about the whole collection,” recalls Paul, who met Toth before she passed.  “Lilly was very funny.”

“She was a firecracker,” says Howard. “That’s how I would describe Lilly from her testimony, she had an unwavering spirit.”

For more: jewishpubliclibrary.org