SHAFFER, Mary Ann/BARROWS, Annie : The Guernsey literary and potatoe peel pie society

January 1946 : Author Juliet Ashton can't think what to write next. Out of the blue, she receives a letter from Dawsey Adams of Guernsey - by chance, he's acquired a book that once belonged to her - and, spurred on by their mutual love of reading, they begin a correspondence. When Dawsey reveals that he is a member of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, her curiosity is piqued and it's not long before she begins to hear from other members. As letters fly back and forth with stories of life in Guernsey under the German Occupation, Juliet soon realizes that the society is every bit as extraordinary as its name.

 

I read this novel years ago, when it was published in 2008, and still remember it. Why ? Not because it was particularly outstanding, but because I've been to Jersey and Sark several before that and loved it so much I wanted to learn more about those islands. I didn't get to Guernsey, though, but maybe someday ? I remember coming back home from Jersey and on the TV was the show Bergerac with John Nettles (who later went to the Midsomer murders) and exclaiming : "It's Elizabeth's castle ! I was there yesterday !". Nothing to do with the Elizabeth in the book, just reminiscing. Ah, good times...

 

It's a very lovely novel, very witty, with characters that you immediately love. At the beginning, you mix those names but soon enough, they become like real people to you. You laugh, you cry, you're having a very good time. What I particularly loved was the letters from Guernsey islanders who talked about "their" war, it felt vividly real. 

 

It's an epistolary novel and was artfully crafted. Of course, readers are going to adore all the literary references. There were even references about the Brontës, so I guess I can include this novel into my Brontë mania ! 

 

When Juliet came home one day and found her (former) boyfriend taking down all her books, putting them in boxes for the basement and filled her shelves with his sports trophies : hilarious ! Prince Albert being the best scarecrow in England ! Isola's love for the Brontës. What's not to love ? My only drawback : the French woman named... Rémy ? It's a man's name ! And near the end, when the "romance" took more place, I felt it was getting weaker and more conventional. But it's just near the end, and the rest of the novel is highly enjoyable.