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What a fantastic little book. It really tugged at the emotions; laughing out loud one moment yet there was sadness at others. I couldn't put it down till I had turned the last page. The writing style in particular was captivating. Throughout it all came the stoicism of the ordinary people involved througout this dreadful period of history. The saddest moment of all was when I realised that Mary Ann Shaffer was no longer with us to give us another great book.
There is a colorful cast of characters on the island and you are drawn into their stories and want to keep reading the letters to find out more about them. How could a novel that contains only correspondence via letters be so engaging, heartrending and inspiring. I recommend you read this book to find out.Through the fictional letters of the inhabitants of the island of Guernsey we learn of their struggles to survive the Nazi occupation of their island in World War II. The letters contain tragic, heartbreaking accounts of the cruelty of war, as well as humorous and uplifting tales. I was moved by the everyday heroes in this book that came together in order to survive and thrive under the oppression of the German army.The odd name of the book made we think twice about reading it, but the story behind the name is really clever and the entire book is an enjoyable, quick read.
I found the letters trite and lacking in emotion. I keep waiting for this book to grab me. Boring. Perhaps my history background affected my perspective, but I learned nothing new or interesting. When I reached the end of the book, I felt cheated by the glowing reviews. The epistolary style was a real turn off. The characters were not well developed and the ending predictable. This book was a total disappointment.
A lovely romantic book. It took me to a place and time that I did not know that much about, but enjoyed very much learning about. I highly recommend this book.
P.S. So much information provided in such an unassuming, humble, but entertaining way.
The tone of the book and the letter-style format gently but unwaveringly captivated me. I recently purchased this book in an airport before a 4 hour flight, not really knowing anything about the author or any more about the subject matter than the cover and inside covers hinted at.
Excellent story. I finished the book shortly after arriving home.
After I finished it, I vowed to re-read it immediately, and get copies for two of my relatives (thus, my Amazon purchase). I highly recommend it.
My gift recipients loved it as much as I did.
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