http://books.moonsoar.com/archives/20... ( )

This epistolary novel provided me with much entertainment on the day after my eye surgery. The story tells, after the fact, of the occupation by German troops of The Channel Islands, especially Guernsey and we do get a lot of insight into the difficulties they faced and of some of the atrocities that happened there and also in France and Germany. There are tears in this story along with the joy. But the story mainly concerns the time directly after the war learning about life on the island and how they are coping with rebuilding their lives as well as the damaged property. The characters are delightful (except the undelightful ones!) and there is also a love story. I got the feeling that there had been quite a bit of research which made the tale more compelling than it would have been without those darker elements, but I would still classify it as entertainment. However I do highly recommend it! We all need some fun in our reading and this one has elements that makes if a cut above “fluff.” ( )

I was told by someone whose opinion I normally trust that this was a piece of fluff, and so I was a little reluctant to waste my time reading it; however it is a book club selection for next week, so I started it this morning and finished it this evening. Yes, it’s a little fluffy (or I wouldn’t have been able to read it so quickly), but it’s also a very good story. It’s set in England and on the Channel Island of Guernsey immediately after World War II. It tells the story through letters, and some telegrams and diary entries. In the beginning, the primary letter writer is Juliet, who is a writer searching for a story. She begins a correspondence with someone in Guernsey about a book he found with her name and address in the flyleaf.

The stories of the islanders’ struggles and heroism during the Nazi occupation of Guernsey are heartbreaking. I love historical fiction where I learn something new, and this had a lot of facts I hadn’t known before. Interspersed throughout the book are the character’s reactions to works they’ve read in the course of their membership in the Literary Society of the title. Juliet eventually travels to Guernsey and falls in love with it and the people. In spite of the essential sadness of the story, some judicial use of humor by the author lightens the tone.

Normally, I’m not a fan of epistolary novels, since I usually think an author chooses this style to opt out of good plot and character development. In this case, though, the book ends up being a real page-turner (which for me means the plot is good), and I fell in love with many of the characters, especially Elizabeth, whom we only see through others’ eyes.

The book was well written for a first (and, unfortunately, only novel). I did have the conclusion figured out well before the end, but it’s such a quick read, I didn’t have time to get annoyed with the author for building in artificial suspense. Although it isn’t as great a novel, it reminded me a little of [The Book Thief] by [[Markus Zusak]].

All in all, a nice day spent reading an enjoyable book. I’m giving it 3½ stars. ( )

I loved this book. Very few books have made me laugh aloud on one page and then sob reading the next episode; this one did. Shaffer's writing can be simultaneously hilarious and heartbreakingly sad. Although this is not a great book, one that will become a classic, it is a very, very good book. Not only was I caught up in the plot, the characters, and the islands themselves but I also learned a great deal about WW II. Generally I do not like letter writing as a genre, but this book soon made me forget I was reading letters. As the book progressed, the stories seemed to be told by a shifting omniscient author, someone the reader knew could be trusted to distinguish truth from falsehood, courage from cowardice, honor from shame, true character from superficial appearances. The main character, Juliet, and her literary twin, Elisabeth, have always followed an unerring inner moral compass. Each of them possesses extraordinary courage and the energy, knowledge, and strength to change their world. What is almost as tragic to the reader as the story itself is the knowledge that this is Shaffer's first and last novel. She has left us a truly wonderful gift. Our book club is going to mimic the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by annually having a "choose your own book and share it with the rest of us" meeting. ( )

J'ai adoré Le cercle littéraire des amateurs d'épluchures de patates de Mary Ann Shaffer : Guernsey pendant et après la guerre, ça parle d'amitié, de solidarité, d'amour aussi, sur un mode épistolaire.

Quel plaisir de trouver un espace de fraîcheur ! Un bouquin spécial et unique. ( )