The Guernsey literary and potato peel pie society

You must admit, the title alone is intriguing. What is potato peel pie, who would eat it, and what does it have to do with something as pretentious as a literary society? The Guernsey literary and potato peel pie society is a novel written by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. It's set up as a collection of letters exchanged in post-war England starting January 1946. Juliet, the central correspondent, is a newly popular published author struggling to start her next book. On the one hand, she doesn't want to disappoint her fans. On the other, she doesn't want to write more of the same.

At the same time, Juliet, like the people around her, is trying to come to terms with life after the war - why is there more rationing now that the war's over? how long until my flat is resurrected from that pile of rubble? why didn't I know what happened in Guernsey? and above all, how can I make up for the lost time?

You can't regain lost time but you can try to make sense of what happened and that's exactly what Juliet intends. A letter from someone who found her name and address in the flyleaf of a book he bought secondhand, starts a whole new set of friendships with island dwellers who were cut off entirely from the mainland during German occupation. These people are hungry for news, both old and new and Juliet is happy to oblige.

I found this to be a wonderful story and a thoroughly enjoyable way to learn a little history. It doesn't take long for the characters to come to life. I learned as much about them through their writing styles as I did through the contents of their letters. Their many stories are varied so the novel doesn't come across as a heavy or hopeless book despite the fact that horrible things are talked about. Hilarious things are talked about too.

I enjoyed the structure of the book. Although I wouldn't want a steady diet of reading other people's correspondence, it's fun when well done and this one is well done. No other text is inserted except for an introductory line before each letter telling you who wrote it - much better than skipping down to the signature for each letter.

Two other books I would recommend in a similar format are Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn, and Life on the refrigerator door : notes between a mother and daughter by Alice Kuipers. Don't read the refrigerator door book without a box of tissues handy.

If you like fictionalized history or reading about ordinary people's lives, The Guernsey literary and potato peel pie society is a must read. I've seen it in hard cover and audio book. It's published by Dial Press, August 2008. ISBN for the book is 987-0-385-34099-1.