Ratings

Content Ratings based on a 0-5 scale where
0 = no objectionable content and
5 = an excessive or disturbing level of content

Guide to Rating System

LANGUAGE

VIOLENCE

SEXUAL CONTENT

ADULT THEMES

Ratings Explanation

Language: Swearing and use of the names of Deity.

Violence:  The story takes place during and after WWII. Bombings and some war time violence. Abuse of slave workers and those in a concentration camp. One character is shot while in a concentration camp.

Sexual Content: Mention made of brothels and the women who work in them.

Adult Themes: War. Death of loved ones. One of the characters is homosexual.

Synopsis

Juliet Ashton is a writer, but in post-WWII England she is tired of writing about the war. While longing for something different to settle her mind upon,  she receives a curious letter from Guernsey. A Mr. Dawsey Adams, who is in the possession of a book Juliette once owned, writes to ask her help in locating more of the author’s works and his biography, as there are no longer any bookstores on Guernsey. Through this encounter, Juliette becomes acquainted with several of Guernsey’s inhabitants. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is composed entirely of letters written between the characters in the book, and through them the story of the German occupation of Guernsey unfolds. Juliette’s wit and humor along with interesting characters and happenings, keep this war-time book from feeling heavy and sad.

This is the perfect book to curl up with on the couch. While heartbreaking in many ways, I fell in love with the characters and the details about them. My favorite character was the eccentric Isola, followed closely by her claustrophobic and jealous parrot Zenobia.

As a book lover myself, another enjoyable aspect is the part that literature plays in the lives of the characters. During the war, literature lifted their spirits and helped make life bearable.

©2009 The Literate Mother