The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

A friend of mine, Jade Walker, gifted me The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society back…well, I don’t even know when. A while now. I finally read it and wow.

Enchanted. Delighted. Smitten.

This book is a marvel.

At first I didn’t think I’d like it. It started with a letter and not too many pages in I realized the whole book would be an exchange of letters.

Ugh.

However, that’s how good the writing and storytelling was. I gobbled up this book like I haven’t gobbled up a book in a while.

Basically, if you’re a reader, this book will suck you in. If you’re a writer, this is a first-rate lesson in how to do justice to the craft.

Here’s the review I left on Goodreads and Amazon for it:

What a phenomenal book. This should be a must read for any writer. It’s a study in how to do it write. A masterpiece of weaving a tale, creating endearing characters, even adding a touch of suspense and mystery…will Elizabeth survive the camps or not? Who will ultimately raise her little girl?

Yes, it was pretty predictable that Juliette would become Kit’s mom and marry Dawsey, but it still was so much fun watching it all come together.

And all the writers did just through letters! That’s what I appreciated most as a writer. Different characters and character voices. Especially how much I came to care for Elizabeth, even though we never formally meet her. Here’s the SPOILER ALERT: when I got to the part where you learn Elizabeth was killed in the camp, it hit me like a punch in the stomach. There’s a “show don’t tell” rule all writers are taught. Even though the whole novel is really being “told,” this part in particular was a stunning example of “show don’t tell.” So emotional. I felt like crying.

And then the poetry that all the characters used expressing their thoughts and feeling via their letters created so many wonderful turns of phrases:

“My worries travel about my head on their well-worn path, and it is a relief to put them to paper.”

“The moon was coming up and the sky was colored in mother-of-pearl, like the inside of a shell.”

“…their white hair piled like swirls of whipped cream atop their heads.”

Everything about this book was beautiful. The characters, the writing, the heart-warming story, the history (well, of course WWII and all its horrors was not beautiful, but people working to overcome the horrors was), and most of all this:

“Whenever we are willing to be delighted and share our delight, as Mary Ann did, we are part of the ongoing story of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.”

So grateful a friend gifted me this book, shared her delight, and indoctrinated me into this society!

Have you read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society?