Monday, April 26, 2010

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

This is a book that I have been curious about for over a year, but for whatever reason kept putting it off. Dumb, dumb, dumb. This is an AMAZING book. I know, I really love books, but I fell in love with this one very quickly and found it consumed my thoughts until it was finished. It is a beautiful, delightful, charming book that I simply adore.

This is the story about a group of people who survived WWII on an island that was expected to harbor the German military. It is a little island in the English channel, and they were completely cut off from any communication, food was scarce, they had sent most of their children to live with others in England proper and endured many hardships, including an ever changing and forcibly controlled curfew. One night, a group of people are stopped by a German guard, and in an impromptu decision, they create a literary society as a cover for why they were really meeting. Then, when the occupation and war are over, a woman discovers this island, it's people and the amazing stories they have to tell about this time.

I wish people still wrote letters after reading this. I am amazed at the voice that the authors were able to capture through the letter writing format. I was a little hesitant, curious as to whether or not it would get confusing, but the characters seemed so real to me. Such an amazing book (Laurel, really, give me another chance - try this one, if none of the others...) This book feels like that blanket most of us had as kids - friendly, comforting, inviting - I really did love this book and regret that I waited so long to read it. Please, give it a try.

1 comment:

Erin said...

Claudia said the same thing! I'll have to...someday...