The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
“ I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.” January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb….

As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends—and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society—born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island—boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.

Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.

Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises, and of finding connection in the most surprising ways.

Customer Reviews: Read 295 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

A True Delight! July 25, 2008
281 out of 287 found this review helpful

What a wonderful book! Having just finished this one, I am still smiling and thinking of the characters. Had I the time and money, I'd be booking a trip for Guernsey right this minute. As it is, I feel as though I've already visited and been made to feel at home.

Set in both London and Guernsey Island, this novel follows author Juliet as she becomes friends with the inhabitants of the island shortly after the end of World War 2. Told in epistolary style, Juliet learns of the occupied island and its deprivations, as well as the resounding spirit of the people who live there. As she writes, she becomes more and more intrigued with the stories of the people who survived the hard times, and she decides to create a book based on their experiences. In order to gather more information, Juliet moves temporarily to the island and soon finds herself immsersed in the culture and relationships.

This is absolutely one of the most delightful books I've read all year. The characters are real, the relationships are unique, and Juliet is hysterically funny, as well as warm hearted and genuine. I did have a bit of trouble keeping all the characters straight in the beginning, but once I caught on, I was enthralled. The pages just fly by and while you will learn a little of what happened to Guernsey during World War 2, you will learn much more about love and friendship. Highly recommended!

5 out of 5 stars

For Lovers Of Literature And Life July 22, 2008
82 out of 85 found this review helpful

I wasn't that eager to read this lovely book. The title sounded silly and I've read a few other books that were told entirely in the form of notes or letters like this one and I wasn't too impressed. And an aunt and her niece authoring a book together? I couldn't imagine it. Yet, miraculously, THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY manages to offer wonderful well rounded characters, a genuine sense of historic time and geographic place, some real inspiring stories of courage under hardship during World War II and a sweet if rather predictable love story.

The book takes place in England during the mid 1940's when the country was recovering from the effects of the long war years. The central character of the novel is Juliet, a thirty something single Londoner who has had some success writing a humorous newspaper column and is now looking for a book subject. Through chance and a mutual love of the power of literature Juliet begins corresponding with a group of diverse people on the British island of Guernsey who used books and the fellowship they found discussing them to help them get through the hideous occupation of their island by the Germans. The authors do a wonderful job giving unique voice and style to each of the letter writers (maybe having two authors really helped in this case) long before Juliet meets her new friends face to face. In the second half of the book, also written in letter form, Juliet is on Guernsey herself and this part of the book is not quite as strong as the beginning as the plot settles in to more of a traditional love story form and the literature themes are somewhat lessened. Still,through its final page, this is an original and entertaining book.

5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful July 25, 2008
63 out of 67 found this review helpful

During World War II, the Germans occupied Guernsey in the Channel Islands, so close to France that, apparently, you could see cars on the highway on a clear day. The Germans built heavy fortifications against the islanders, built a concentration camp on Guernsey, and Guernsey's children were evacuated to England.

Juliet Ashton is an author looking for her next great idea, when she receives a letter from Dawsey Adams, who lives on Guernsey, about Charles Lamb, to whose works we was introduced through the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society. The Society came to be in an unusual fashion: one evening after curfew, on their way home, some of its members were stopped by German soldiers, and Elizabeth McKenna had to make something up on the spot. Over time, the members got together whenever they could to talk about what they'd read. That's how Isola, for example, became addicted to Wuthering Heights.

Juliet lives in a London that was decimated by war; her apartment by the Thames has been lost, as well as all of her books (as you can imagine, horrifying). But her career as a writer is going well, and she has a potential love interest: the handsome and rich Mark. But Juliet's life changes as she receives more and more letters from the Guernsey Islanders, and she decides that she just might have to pay them a visit

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is an utterly charming novel, written in an epistolary fashion, between not only Julia and her new friends, but her best friend from childhood and her brother (who also happens to be Juliet's publisher). It's a sweet, funny novel, and it reminds me a lot of 84, Charing Cross Road--mixed with a little bit of Excellent Women (Penguin Classics). The characters are all wonderful--you can't help but wishing you'd known them yourself--even Adelaide Addison. Each member of the cast of this book has his or her own unique voice. Some of the stories told in this book are tragic; some are funny; but I guarantee that all of them will be touching.

3 out of 5 stars

A delightful bit of fluff August 8, 2008
56 out of 63 found this review helpful

There is so much to like about this book that I almost feel guilty for only giving it three stars. The book consists of a series of letters written during the post-World War II years from and to Juliet, a London-based writer, Juliet's publisher, Sidney, Juliet's friends, Juliet's suitor, and a group of residents of Guernsey (in the Channel Islands) who formed a book club of sorts during the German occupation of the island. In the course of their correspondence, Juliet develops a friendship with the members of the unfortunately named Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society while discovering what their lives were like during the German occupation. The writing is beautiful and by the end of the book you feel like you know all of the characters extremely well -- especially the simple country folk of Guernsey who discover the magic of books while trying to survive the depredations of wartime. So what's the problem?

The authors obviously have a knowledge and love of great literature, but their loving description of so many classic and wonderful books and authors can't help but remind the reader of the elements that are missing here. The characters in the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society are so unfailingly good and lovable that they ultimately don't seem real. There's a token curmudgeon and, of course, there are the Nazis, but it's all a bit WWII lite. I kept waiting for some depth or nuance, some real sense of wonder or horror, or just a new perspective, but nothing really develops. It's a sweet little story and I liked the book, but I doubt it will stay with me very long. It's enjoyable, well-intentioned and commendable, but ultimately, like the potato peel pie of the title, made with love but not truly satisfying.

I have no doubt most people will probably like this book quite a bit and that I'll probably be in the minority with my lukewarm review. It's just that when I think back a year from now on books about WWII that I've read over the years or even the books I read during 2008, a heartbreakingly beautiful and original novel like The Book Thief will stay with me and I'll read it again, while I'll probably have trouble remembering much about The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society other than a general warm and fuzzy sense. It's a feel-good book and that's probably enough for a lot of people, but I can't help wishing there had been a little more to this novel.

5 out of 5 stars

For me, a remarkable 5 star book. July 29, 2008
20 out of 27 found this review helpful

This review is of a book I received free through the Vine Voice Program.

Ever since I finished reading this book I have been trying to decide how to express the pleasure I had in reading it. I only hope I can come close. The book is written completely in letter form. There is no dialogue at all except for the small amount which is contained within some of the letters. I have never read an entire book written in this way and was concerned that it would be difficult to get close enough to the characters to make me see and understand them, but I am glad to say that these two authors, Mary Ann Shaffer and her niece Annie Barrows, made each character come alive within the pages of this book. They very obviously spent time doing extensive research and then plotting the book in order to use this unusual method for telling their story.

The story opens with a letter dated 8th January, 1946, from Juliet Ashton to her publisher Sidney Stark. As you can tell from the date, World War II is over but only just barely. England is beginning the slow process of returning to normal. Juliet has been writing a column for a London newspaper during the war but not under her own name. These have been gathered by her publisher into a single volumn and she is about to embark on a promotional tour to sell the book. She knows she wants to write more serious material but has not come up with an idea for another book. Out of the blue, (and I say thanks to the wonderful British Postal Service), she receives a letter addressed to her at what used to be her flat but which is now a pile of rubble. The writer of the letter, Mr. Dawsey Adams,lives on the island of Guernsey and has, somehow, gotten a book written by Charles Lamb. Inside the book was written Miss Ashton's name and address. Would she consider helping him by sending the name and address of any book stores in London so he could search for more books by Lamb? He states that reading Charles Lamb's account of a roast pig made him laugh during the German Occupation of Guernsey, especially since a roast pig figured prominently in the formation of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. And so it begins, with a simple request for help in finding books. How had the book gotten to Guernsey? Having a naturally inquisitive nature Juliet is drawn into finding out more about this very unusually named organization.

From this point on, the lives of everyone who knows and comes to know Juliet will be changed by the letters she receives from the members of the Society. The authors use letters from Juliet, her publisher, her friends and the people of Guernsey to tell the story of the German Occupation of that tiny island. The horrific deprivation, the utter isolation, the agonies these people suffered by being completely cut off from everyone and everything they knew for five long, brutal years. The decision which had to be made by parents of whether to send their children to England or keep them with them on Guernsey after it became apparent that the island would be invaded. They had only one day to make this decision. Keep your child with you and not know what you would be forcing that child to suffer or send your child away and not even know where the child was, who they were with, how they were.

Through the letters we also see the experiences in Concentration Camps and find out why three of the characters were sent away. And what happened to them while they were in the camps. It is difficult to read about these things but we need to remember, to make sure we never forget what human beings did to other human beings.

I highly recommend reading this book. It is a presentation of a truly remarkable event in history presented in a remarkable manner. It started off making me laugh out loud, then it began to become more somber when the experiences of the islanders began to be revealed. I knew of the invasion of Guernsey but that is about as far as my knowlege went. It never crossed my mind to wonder about the deprivation of every single item which makes life enjoyable, fuel, food, clothing, shoes, candles. Burning your books in order to have heat for a small amount of warmth. And yet, this book shows the strength these people found within themselves and the friendships which were formed or strengthened by enduring hardships together. I don't know how the book will be marketed. It is more than just a book about history, it is more than a story of a young woman finding her purpose in life, it is more than recounting the experiences which made people be resourseful and strong. But it is all of these things. I'm going to make sure each family member and friend I know has an opportunity to read this, I think it is that important.

*****Added 8/3/08 After reading this book I kept having that niggling feeling that I knew this story from somewhere. After a moment of searching the internet I discovered the answer. In 2005 I watched a Masterpiece Theatre presentation on PBS called Island at War. It told this same story, relying of course on interaction between the islanders and the German occupiers. It was a very good series if you are interested in continuing your exploration of this chapter of English history. jel*****

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