BOOK: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, 274 pages


themed reading challenge (I know it doesn't really start until February, but some books are hard to get at the library and you have to take them when they come)


Guernsey Island, a small English holding just off the coast of France was occupied by the Germans during World War II. Just after the war, an English journalist begins a correspondence with some people from the island. They relate their experiences during the war and the occupation and through their letters, Juliet, the journalist, gets to know and appreciate them. The whole story is told in letters to, from or about Juliet. Each character had their own voice and their letters told so much more than what was printed.


It surprised me how such a sweet little story with quirky yet real characters could whack you with Nazi atrocities every now and then. But it also showed lots of brave and courageous moments. At its heart, this is a story about love and survival, with books and war thrown it. I quite enjoyed it. You know an author did a good job of describing a location when you want to visit after finishing the book. This is the second book set on Guernsey during the war I've read; I read A Place of Hiding by Elizabeth George several years ago.