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The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (original 2008; edition 2010)

by Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
10,966821226 (4.16)1 / 872
Member:YogicMich
Title:The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Authors:Mary Ann Shaffer
Other authors:Annie Barrows
Info:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (2010), Edition: Reprint, Paperback, 256 pages
Collections:2012, Your library, Read but unowned
Rating:***
Tags:None

Work details

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer (2008)

Recently added byUndreya, Bumwizard79, ljhliesl, LindaVer, Dnaej, TSCLibrary, private library, jabiru75, gatxanshan
2008 (62) 2009 (139) 2010 (63) book club (249) books (87) books about books (80) British (68) Channel Islands (268) England (356) epistolary (266) epistolary novel (83) fiction (1,180) friendship (113) German occupation (179) Guernsey (360) historical (114) historical fiction (555) history (88) letters (323) literature (73) love (63) novel (128) occupation (69) read (138) read in 2009 (92) read in 2010 (61) romance (161) to-read (106) war (115) WWII (1,086)
  1. 410
    84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (khuggard, DetailMuse, Cecilturtle, helgagrace, Sodapop, BasilBlue, kraaivrouw)
    khuggard: Another tale about book lovers who come together through letters, with the same post-war England setting.
    Sodapop: A Non-fiction story about book lovers told via their letters.
    BasilBlue: A book about books and booklovers for booklovers that incidentally has a real flavor of the late 40s and early 50s.
    kraaivrouw: Another book about people who connect via their love of books and reading.
  2. 251
    The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (writemeg)
    writemeg: Another deeply affecting, beautiful and heartbreaking story of books, love, small kindness and resilience during World War II.
  3. 100
    Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg (Caramellunacy)
    Caramellunacy: Both stories are bittersweet - tales of hardship, prejudice and hope although they are set in very different places and very different times. Fried Green Tomatoes jumps around but describes life, race relations and murder in a small Southern town during the Great Depression. Shaffer's novel deals with the occupation (and its aftermath) of the small Channel Island of Guernsey during WWII.… (more)
  4. 104
    Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson (cransell)
  5. 71
    The Postmistress by Sarah Blake (Anonymous user)
    Anonymous user: Both novels reflect on World War II from small, seaside towns, one an island in Europe, the other a small town in Cape Cod. The female leads are unique and interesting and are surrounded by great small town people.
  6. 50
    The Book of Ebenezer Le Page by G. B. Edwards (jill123, BasilBlue)
    jill123: Though they are different in style and tone, both books are set in the Channel Islands during the Nazi Occupation. I enjoyed the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, but I found Ebenezer Le Page to be an absolutely wonderful book. More complex and interesting than the Potato Peel Society.… (more)
    BasilBlue: Although written in a more elegantly sparse style, this book covers much the same territory, geographically and emotionally.
  7. 50
    The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett (BookshelfMonstrosity)
    BookshelfMonstrosity: Going in to the bookmobile to apologize for the disturbance created by one of her corgis, Queen Elizabeth II feels it would only be polite to check out a book. When she returns it, she checks out another . . . and then another. One of her pages becomes her abettor in the matter of securing books and reading them. Thus begins an amusing but also thought-provoking saga of how reading can change a person's habits and even outlook.… (more)
  8. 61
    The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher (MyriadBooks)
  9. 73
    The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield (Voracious_Reader)
    Voracious_Reader: The writing styles and the authors' love for the written word connect both period pieces in my mind even though their plots are extremely different.
  10. 30
    The Dig by John Preston (CatyM)
  11. 41
    Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay (vulgarboatman)
    vulgarboatman: Similar themes of a journalist discovering the layers of secrets around a mystery from WWII, along with an exploration of the effect of these events on the survivors, their families, and ultimately on the journalist herself.
  12. 30
    A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper (betsytacy)
    betsytacy: This YA novel, set in 1936, features 16-year-old Sophie, a royal orphan growing up with her siblings and cousin in a shabby castle on island kingdom of Montmaray, somewhere off the coast of England. The island's strategic location draws the interest of the Nazis.… (more)
  13. 20
    Excellent Women by Barbara Pym (nancyewhite)
  14. 42
    A Place of Hiding by Elizabeth George (KayCliff)
    KayCliff: Both books deal with the occupation of Guernsey by the Nazis.
  15. 20
    Miss Buncle by D. E. Stevenson (wandering_star)
  16. 21
    The German Occupation of Jersey, 1940 - 1945 - Notes on the General Conditions. How the Population Fared by Ralph Mollet (KayCliff)
  17. 10
    The book of lies by Mary Horlock (Nickelini)
    Nickelini: Very different books, but both are set on Guernsey and have a strong sense of place. Both books also cover the WWII occupation of the island. And finally, both books are compelling, quick reads.
  18. 10
    Plenty by David Hare (kraaivrouw)
    kraaivrouw: Both capture the desperation of post-war England in their own unique ways.
  19. 10
    War on the Margins by Libby Cone (betsytacy)
    betsytacy: This novel also covers the effects of the German occupation of the Channel Islands during World War II.
  20. 00
    Guernica by Dave Boling (infiniteletters)

(see all 35 recommendations)

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English (794)  French (13)  Spanish (5)  Catalan (4)  Dutch (3)  German (2)  Finnish (2)  Norwegian (1)  Portuguese (Brazil) (1)  Danish (1)  Hungarian (1)  All languages (827)
Showing 1-5 of 794 (next | show all)
I'd give this book 3 and 3/4 stars - I've rounded that up to 4 for the sake of expedience. :)

This is a nice little book - it has a lovely cast of characters that, for the most part, I would love to be friends with. It is charmingly written in a style that is a bit different - in the form of letters, most of which are to or from Juliet (the main character). It is informative regarding the effect of WWII on Guernsey - a British Isle - and a small community of the residents there. It is fiction but I'm certain much of it is based on fact of situations that occurred to many during the war.

But this book isn't about the war. It takes place a few short years after the war. The central character is a London writer who happens to become acquainted with a few residents of the isle of Guernsey. She travels to meet them and finds herself there. This book didn't arouse strong emotion in me, but I did enjoy it and would recommend it.

( )
  ABShepherd | May 15, 2013 |
A charming story with interesting characters and lots of little details about WWII and post-WWII life. The plot doesn't entirely hold together when I think about it (I want to buy the romance but am not 100% convinced by it; several incidents in the second half seem to come out of left field), but the plot isn't why you read this book. You read it for the characters and the setting, both of which are great. ( )
  castiron | May 10, 2013 |
meh... ( )
  thecamomile | May 10, 2013 |
I nice little tale, I like how it was written in letter format. Likeable characters and a very fast read. Good for a sunday afternoon lie down. ( )
  jodes101 | May 9, 2013 |
A truly wonderful book. A story of love and sorry - recommended reading for anyone - indeed everyone. ( )
  jvgravy | May 5, 2013 |
Showing 1-5 of 794 (next | show all)
"The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society," written by the late Mary Ann Shaffer and her niece, children's author Annie Barrows, stays within modest bounds, but is successful in ways many novels are not. This book won't change your life, but it will probably enchant you. And sometimes that's precisely what makes fiction worthwhile.
 
You could be skeptical about the novel's improbabilities and its sanitized portrait of book clubs (doesn't anyone read trashy thrillers?), but you'd be missing the point. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a sweet, sentimental paean to books and those who love them.
 

» Add other authors (21 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Mary Ann Shafferprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Barrows, Anniemain authorall editionsconfirmed
Boehmer, PaulNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Duerden, SusanNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Kapari-Jatta, JaanaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Landor, RosalynNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Lee, JohnNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Mills, JulietNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Ridelberg, HelenaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Epigraph
Dedication
Lovingly dedicated to my mother, Edna Fiery Morgan, and to my dear friend Julia Poppy Barrows, Fiery Cynthia mother
First words
Dear Sidney,
Susan Scott is a wonder.  We sold over forty copies of the book, which was very pleasant, but much more thrilling from my standpoint was the food.
Quotations
Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad books. -Isola Pribby
Men are more interesting in books than they are in real life. -Isola Pribby
Perhaps there is some secret sort of homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers. How delightful if that were true. -Juliet
I can't think of anything lonelier than spending the rest of my life with someone I can't talk to, or worse, someone I can't be silent with. -Juliet
I think you learn more if you're laughing at the same time. -John Booker
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Wikipedia in English (3)

Book description
Beginning at the end of WW2, this book is told through the form of letter between writer Juliet Ashton and her friends. Juliet initially receives a letter from a man on the island of Guernsey asking for more books. She becomes so in love with stories and descriptions of life in Guernsey that she decides to go herself. Through the letters she sends home and the letters from her new friends the stories of people's lives are revealed. This book points out that the lives of people were more important than the formality of the writing.

This book may not have the most literary value bu there were so many allusions to books that I couldn't keep track. It made me realize that I had really not read that many books. It also was a book that made me want to learn more about people and not just be content with what's on the surface. The people in Guernsey were just so interesting.
Haiku summary

Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0385341008, Paperback)

January 1946: writer Juliet Ashton receives a letter from a stranger, a founding member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. And so begins a remarkable tale of the island of Guernsey during the German occupation, and of a society as extraordinary as its name.

(retrieved from Amazon Thu, 03 Jan 2013 11:12:58 -0500)

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(summary from another edition)

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