Katie's Reviews > The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
My rating:
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
by Annie Barrows, Mary Ann Shaffer
by Annie Barrows, Mary Ann Shaffer
** spoiler alert **
When I first heard about this book, I assumed it was going to be yet another knock-off of The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood--you know, an eclectic group of strong-willed, spirited women rely on each other through love, loss and everything in between. THEN I heard that the book is about WWII and tells the story of the Germans' occupation of the Channel Islands, which sold me--WWII is one of my favorite subjects.
So THEN...I read the book, and it turned out I was pretty much right with my first assessment. I can almost commend it for its slightly historical subject...but even that was so Zlata's Diary* it was hard to take seriously.
Issues I Take With This Book:
1. Can the authors try a little harder to show us just how spunky and free-spirited Juliet is? We get it.
2. Utterly one-dimensional supporting characters: The Kook, The Brooding Enigma/Love Interest, The Wise Grandfather, The Good Friend with No Life of Her Own, The Religious Zealot, The Caring Grandmother...
3. Must Elizabeth be the biggest cliche EVER? And is she the most saintly, perfect woman who ever existed? The selfless, caring woman everyone loved made the ultimate sacrifice to save another.
4. Have the authors ever been around a four-year-old? I suspect not, because if they had, Kit wouldn't exist...and yes, I'm talking about the touching moment when Kit reveals her previously off-limits treasure box to Juliet. OMG, how symbolic...it's like she's letting Juliet into her heart!
5. Is Isola mentally retarded? I don't mean that to be offensive to anyone--I seriously don't get it.
6. The letter-writing schtick gets old. Who are all these people again? Do I need to remember who Clovis is vs. John Booker??
7. Predictability. With the very first letter Dawsey wrote to Juliet, I was like "okay soooo they'll be together at the end of the book." I was TOTALLY thrown off with the Remy/Mark Reynolds debacle though! And that crazy misunderstanding?? I thought they would NEVER be able to unite as lovers after THAT mess. Um, or a simple "Oh, is that your fiance?" would have probably solved everything pretty quickly.
The list goes on, but this should provide a bit of insight on the book's crappiness. I can't think of a single situation where this book is the answer--not if you want a WWII novel, a female-bonding book, a romance...no matter what you want to read, you'll always be better off looking elsewhere.
The book did, however, inspire me to read more about the occupation of the Channel Islands, so hopefully that will be something positive gleaned from experience.
*Does anyone remember this? Everyone hailed the diary of a little girl from Sarajevo as the next Diary of Anne Frank, but then it turned out that the publisher added a bunch of lines intended to pull at the heartstrings of consumers--I mean, caring readers--like "Oh, God, doesn't anyone remember us here in Sarajevo?"
So THEN...I read the book, and it turned out I was pretty much right with my first assessment. I can almost commend it for its slightly historical subject...but even that was so Zlata's Diary* it was hard to take seriously.
Issues I Take With This Book:
1. Can the authors try a little harder to show us just how spunky and free-spirited Juliet is? We get it.
2. Utterly one-dimensional supporting characters: The Kook, The Brooding Enigma/Love Interest, The Wise Grandfather, The Good Friend with No Life of Her Own, The Religious Zealot, The Caring Grandmother...
3. Must Elizabeth be the biggest cliche EVER? And is she the most saintly, perfect woman who ever existed? The selfless, caring woman everyone loved made the ultimate sacrifice to save another.
4. Have the authors ever been around a four-year-old? I suspect not, because if they had, Kit wouldn't exist...and yes, I'm talking about the touching moment when Kit reveals her previously off-limits treasure box to Juliet. OMG, how symbolic...it's like she's letting Juliet into her heart!
5. Is Isola mentally retarded? I don't mean that to be offensive to anyone--I seriously don't get it.
6. The letter-writing schtick gets old. Who are all these people again? Do I need to remember who Clovis is vs. John Booker??
7. Predictability. With the very first letter Dawsey wrote to Juliet, I was like "okay soooo they'll be together at the end of the book." I was TOTALLY thrown off with the Remy/Mark Reynolds debacle though! And that crazy misunderstanding?? I thought they would NEVER be able to unite as lovers after THAT mess. Um, or a simple "Oh, is that your fiance?" would have probably solved everything pretty quickly.
The list goes on, but this should provide a bit of insight on the book's crappiness. I can't think of a single situation where this book is the answer--not if you want a WWII novel, a female-bonding book, a romance...no matter what you want to read, you'll always be better off looking elsewhere.
The book did, however, inspire me to read more about the occupation of the Channel Islands, so hopefully that will be something positive gleaned from experience.
*Does anyone remember this? Everyone hailed the diary of a little girl from Sarajevo as the next Diary of Anne Frank, but then it turned out that the publisher added a bunch of lines intended to pull at the heartstrings of consumers--I mean, caring readers--like "Oh, God, doesn't anyone remember us here in Sarajevo?"
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Elizabeth wasn't exactly a "saint." She was an unwed mother during an age when that was very frowned upon AND she had an affair with the enemy who occupied the island. She certainly did have her problems and you could argue that she lacked good judgement. She seemed to be driven by her emotions, rather than good sense, to her own peril.
That sounds like a fair point, but this book has fortunately been all but erased in my memory, so I can't contribute too much to the conversation. I can say, however, that I don't think Elizabeth's actions (getting knocked up, fraternizing with the enemy, etc.) influenced how the author/s wrote the character's revered "spirit," for lack of a better term.
