The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Mary Ann Shaffer

**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~** "...Then Elizabeth drew in her breath and stepped forward. Elizabeth isn't tall so those pistols were pointing at her eyes, but she didn't blink. She acted as if she didn't see those pistols at all. She walked up to the officer in charge and started talking. You've never heard such lies. How sorry she was that we had broken curfew. How we had been attending a meeting of the Guernsey Literary Society and the evenings discussion of 'Elizabeth and her German Garden' had been so delightful that we had all lost track of time. Such a wonderful book - had he read ...  Read the complete review

If we are not to judge a book by its cover, does that include the title? Over the last few years there has been an obvious trend of very quirky and eye-catching titles (A History of Tractors in Ukrainian, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, The Sunday Philosophy Club) among the bestseller lists and I must admit I have bought and read several novels just from the title alone. "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" is the latest one to catch my eye with an unusual title; I hadn't heard of the authors, nor had I read any reviews of the book. I just knew from the title I had to take a closer look. The story is told through a series of letters ...  Read the complete review

I have just joined a reading club and this was the second book that we had decided to read. The first was a complete disaster so we all had high hopes for this one! The title was certainly intriguing and when I received my copy I liked the simple sleeve design with the Guernsey post marks on the letter. I have never visited Guernsey but I did visit Jersey for my honeymoon, I knew about the hard time the people had suffered during the Occupation so this made me even more keen to start reading. The story begins not long after the end of the Second World War, an author Juliet Ashton is contacted out of the blue by a Guernsey resident, ...  Read the complete review

It's funny how a letter can change your whole life! The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a really great story, a book that you will not want to put down. I first came across this when it was chosen as the new book for our book club to read. It was published at the end of 2008 so it has not been around long but soon became a best seller and a mush talked about book. To be honest it probably wasn't one that I would have picked up on my own, I think the title has something to do with that but I am glad I got to read it. The subject matter is interesting, not something that you would think you could make a story out of and a funny one at ...  Read the complete review

I read this a few weeks ago but despite making numerous attempts to write a review of it, I simply wasn't able to capture how wonderful this book is. It feels like a warm comforter and cup of hot chocolate on a winter evening - it is one of the most heartwarming books about World War II I have ever read and has brought tears to my eyes as I read about the courage, humanity and gentle humour of the islanders on Guernsey during the war. It is an epislatory novel, consisting entirely of letters - and occasional diary entries - between the main characters. It begins when Dawsey Adams, an islander on Guernsey gets in touch with Juliet Ashton, a young writer based ...  Read the complete review