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I had never heard of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and found it on a booklist that recommended positive, upbeat books and am definitely enjoying it so far! I had it on hold at the library and the woman in line next to me got very excited when she saw the title and soon all of us at the desk were chatting about the book, so it does come highly recommended 🙂
The book takes place after World War II and is all correspondence between the characters. The main character is an author named Juliet and her letters are funny and descriptive, and make you wish you knew her in real life. Learning about the challenges in London and Britain itself after the war is definitely interesting as well. Juliet enters into correspondence with a male book-lover who is a farmer on the island of Guernsey, and through him she learns about the The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society which began during the German occupation of the island. It is a quick, enjoyable read and I’m trying to make it last as long as I can!
“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.
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.”
Our book club enjoyed this book. In addition to being a pleasant read, it’s an opportunity to learn about a chapter of WWII history that I don’t think many of us knew much about. Did you know the Nazis occupied this British Isle?