The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (2008) (edit title/settings)

• Rated 5 stars

“read & discussed with book group--we all loved it”

• Rated 5 stars

“Outstanding! I wasn't sure what to expect when my mother recommended I read this book, but I am so glad she did! I thought the letters between the characters were so realistic and so genuine, that I could actually hear their voices in my head. The characters, the premise, the love and affection the characters have for one another is just so beautifully written that you can't help but want to go to Guernsey yourself. It's a shame this was Shaffer's only book before she died for she truly had a wonderful storytelling ability. If you want a touching Jane Austin-esque love story, this is your book! ”

• Rated 5 stars

“loved it!”

• Rated 5 stars

“Thoroughly enjoyed the book. Loved the human foibles of the characters portrayed so lovingly . ”

• Rated 4 stars

“Charming book.”

• Rated 4 stars

“Very good, I enjoyed it a lot.”

• Rated 0 stars

“Fascinating, informative, funny, poignant. Great way to learn History. Warm, 'real' characters”

• Rated 4 stars

“In January 1946, Juliet Ashton is on a book tour in England to promote her latest novel when she receives a letter from Dawsey Adams, a pig farmer who lives on the island of Guernsey. He has a book that once belonged to Juliet, Selected Essays of Elia by Charles Lamb. He really enjoyed it, and he is wondering if Lamb wrote other books. After the German occupation, there aren’t any bookstores left on the island, and Dawsey asks Juliet to recommend a good bookstore in London. This first letter is the beginning of a correspondence and friendship between Dawsey and Juliet. Dawsey talks about life in Guernsey during World War II and about how a book club helped him and his friends go through the hard times. Juliet falls in love with the island and its inhabitants.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is a beautiful and moving story. The fact that the whole book is a series of letters between the different protagonists makes the story more intimate. You feel close to the characters, and it makes you wish you could join their book club and live on the island.

This is Mary Ann Shaffer’s first and only book. She died of cancer a few months before it was published in 2008. Her niece, Annie Barrows, helped her finish writing the story. Annie is the author of the children’s book series Ivy and Bean.”

• Rated 5 stars

“I loved the characters, their stories, the format (letters and notes), the setting and how the book deals with World War II issues. Just charming, sweet, enjoyable, poignant. I really didn't want it to end.

P.S. I mostly listened to it (nicely done with different readers for each letter writer).”

• Rated 1 stars

“Lovely.”