The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Schaffer

I had initially picked up this book because of the quirky title, quirkiness appeals to me. Whether it is a book or a decorative item or one of those household or office use 'tools' with a quirky touch.

Then came the reviews on the back of the book, they were all glowing, obviously, otherwise they wouldn't be featured on the back cover, or any part of the book for that matter. Now that I have finished reading the book, I want to share one of the reviews with you, which I now wholeheartedly agree with.

From the San Francisco Chronicle's Book Review, the reviewer wrote, "This is a book for firesides or long train rides." and I cannot agree more. I finished reading the book on a flight back from Hong Kong, the duration of which, including delay time after we boarded the plane (typhoon season, delays expected), totals approximately four and a half hours. Aside from breaking for a short lunch and rummaging through my bag for the iPod after the meal, my eyes were glued to the book and through it, time just flew by and the flight doesn't seem so much of a bore anymore.

I don't normally read historically themed literature/fiction, mostly because the details tend to be overwhelm me after a while and the book becomes a chore to finish. Now, after Dai Sijie (Chinese History) and Mary Ann Shaffer (British History), I realise that books that feature them in small sizes, i.e. a slice of history woven into a good story is actually a pretty good read while remaining educational.

This book features the history of Guernsey during the German occupation and just after freedom was regained from the occupiers and Guernsey was returned to British rule. While the history provides the backbone to the story, the writer's many observations were just as fascinating. I am intrigued by how news or the lack of it seems to impact our lives. How decisions made, whether by an individual or by a higher power (government etc), have effects that filters down whether intended or unintended.

On another note, this is the first account I have come across of German soldiers actually being really nice human beings, but of course, I have to admit I haven't read much about the history of wartime Europe and accounts of the Germans and Nazi Germany during the war other than the obvious which always paints them collectively in a bad picture. The survivors of Guernsey and subsequently the writer, painted a pretty genial picture of these soldiers, while there were still accounts of brutal and cruel soldiers, the accounts of nice ones are no less in number than the bad.

Overall, I would put this book right up there with the best literature I have read in my lifetime. Not as high as being a favourite but definitely a must-read and a recommended read.