Don't miss this wonderful epistolary experience! Book Review: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

“That's what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you to another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It's geometrically progressive - all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment.” 

What reader will be able to resist a book filled with heartfelt quotes like these? Add to it a post-war setting, a protagonist who thinks more with her heart than her head, a quiet, strong hero who is also handsome in a silent, brooding way, with a heart of gold; a bunch of characters that feel like long-lost friends by the time you are in the middle of the story, and a beautiful island as a backdrop for this simmering love story. Now that I’d say is a story no reader wants to pass up! And finally note the fact that this is an epistolary novel, and you will surely want to rush to read it!

In today’s times when emails and instant messaging have all but wiped out the art of good old letter-writing, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows comes as a breath of fresh air! Imagine an entire novel, written only as letters and little notes from and to the characters? And yet, we have a complete story! And what a delightful story it is!

In London, a writer is looking for an idea for her next book. Across the channel, a stranger finds a book that belongs to someone he doesn’t know, but loves what he reads, so much, that he writes to this person at the address he finds in the book. The letter reaches our writer; and she writes back to him. A simple letter-exchange. A little chit-chat. And thus begins an eventful story that takes us through experiences of the inhabitants of a remote island off the coast of England, during and after World War II. What begins as a one-off exchange of letters between these two characters, gradually extends to letters being exchanged by several characters, who are all so dear and real, that one forgets that one is actually reading a story and begins to believe in the story that unfolds through these letters.      

Let me ask you this; what do you make of an orphan child who tries to run away from her guardian’s care because that place is too foreign to her? What do you make of a girl who cries out of sheer frustration? Who is reluctant to commit to her beau who is too high-handed for her taste and who gives her a feeling that he never really 'listens' to her. What do you make of a woman who has lost her home to a bombing during war, but is keen to avert her eyes from the rubble that was once her home, so she can take a good look at the shimmering waters of the river beyond the rubble? What do you make of a friend who is so protective that he is always available to his friend, even when he is physically far, far away? Who runs to her aid and understands her, even better than herself? What do you make of someone who believes that goodwill can help even the most devastated souls? What do you make of someone who thinks cruelty is wrong and does everything to stop it; even if it means that she will die in the process?

Yes, we are all these people, sometime or the other, in our own lives, in our own way. And no matter what else we think, we all believe that good always triumphs, that love can conquer all; that for every nasty person out there, there are also good, selfless people who believe in the power of good and know the way to, and the importance of appreciating love.   

Through their warm, touching, uplifting letters, the wonderful characters in this marvellous book take us through an emotional roller coaster that ultimately has us believe in the strength of love and endurance in the face of the harshest of circumstances.

Think you have read enough World War II fiction? Think you have read enough warm and fuzzy romantic stories? Think you have read enough stories of struggling writers falling in love in a beautiful countryside? Think you have read enough stories about a handsome, brooding islander falling for a beautiful, cheerful city girl? Well, think again. Pick up The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and let all these beliefs melt away!

Recommended for anyone who believes that we humans are capable of boundless love and warmth. For anyone who trusts in the power of emotions and the stirrings of the heart. Just anyone, really, who loves to read a love story that touches one’s heart.     

P.S. There is now a movie adaptation made of this lovely read. But as a reader, I would urge you to adhere to the one golden rule all readers must follow: Read the book before you watch the movie.

Happy reading!