Our favourite part of the Mid Sussex Reading Challenge is hearing about what you’ve been reading – so we get very excited when new reviews drop into our inbox!
In this review, Sarah from East Grinstead recommends The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. The book was published in 2008 and became a New York Times Bestseller in 2009, before being adapted into a film in 2018. Have you read it?
I picked up a copy of this oddly titled book while on my first assignment for my travel job when working in Guernsey in 2015. Although it was not recommended to me, I have been recommending it to my travelling companions and friends ever since!
The book follows the life of Juliet Ashton – a writer from London – and her chance correspondence (due to a book) with an islander and subsequently, with his friends of the Literary Society, leading Juliet to eventually visit. It will transport you back to a time when life was hard during the island’s occupation of WW2. It’s tinged with heart-warming moments and heart-wrenching ones.
In 2018 it was made into a film, which I felt was a tad disappointing, not least as it was not actually filmed on the island, which is simply charming and feels a world away from anywhere.
So please don’t let the title (you will understand it’s meaning once you start reading) or the fact that this novel is written in the form of letters put you off. It is literary work at it’s best, especially as it was finished posthumously by the author’s niece.
Has Sarah inspired you to give The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society a go? Reserve your copy to collect from your local library here. We’ve also got the film and the audiobook if you’d like to check either of those out too!
Let us know about your favourite reads by submitting a review, posting in our Facebook group or tweeting us @WSCCLibraries using the hashtag #MidSussexReadingChallenge.
The views expressed in this review are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of West Sussex Libraries.
Mid Sussex Reading Challenge 2020 