Book For This Week - 8/14/10

The Guernsey Literary
and
Potato Peel Pie Society
by
Anne Barrows
and
Mary Ann Shaffer




Watch an interview with the author HERE

From Publishers Weekly:

"The letters comprising this small charming novel begin in 1946, when single, 30-something author Juliet Ashton (nom de plume Izzy Bickerstaff) writes to her publisher to say she is tired of covering the sunny side of war and its aftermath. When Guernsey farmer Dawsey Adams finds Juliet's name in a used book and invites articulate—and not-so-articulate—neighbors to write Juliet with their stories, the book's epistolary circle widens, putting Juliet back in the path of war stories. The occasionally contrived letters jump from incident to incident—including the formation of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society while Guernsey was under German occupation—and person to person in a manner that feels disjointed. But Juliet's quips are so clever, the Guernsey inhabitants so enchanting and the small acts of heroism so vivid and moving that one forgives the authors (Shaffer died earlier this year) for not being able to settle on a single person or plot. Juliet finds in the letters not just inspiration for her next work, but also for her life—as will readers."

(I just finished listening to this book.  Disc four is stuck in my car CD player but thankfully it got stuck when I tried to eject it after I had listened to it and I was able to finish the book on my little walkman player.  Please follow the links by clicking on the title,  the authors name and the word HERE above to learn more info.   This book is so delightful.  WWII is a favorite topic of mine to read historical novels about and this book takes the horror of German Occupation and the concentration camps and balances it with joy,  friendship and love.   A must read folks!  Don't miss it!!!)