The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Authors:  Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

I started reading this book on my Nook and was confused at first (doesn't take much).  I didn't realize the entire book was written in letters and notes (epistolary style).  It took me 20 pages or so to get used to it, but once I met all the characters, it all made sense.

The book takes place at the end of War World II.  The Germans had occupied Guernsey in the Channel Islands during the war.  Juliet, an author living in England, is searching for a subject for her next book.  She receives a letter from Dawsey Adams, a native of Guernsey, and a friendship blossoms between the two, as well as several others that live on the island.

Though the format of the book is different, the characters are wonderfully developed and you fall in love with them immediately.  Because it's written in letters, each character has his/her own voice.  I learned so much about what it would have been like during the German Occupation and the courage it would have taken each one to survive.  I think that's what made each character so endearing. 

I actually found a lot of humor in the book - through Juliet's letters - that revealed her wit and sarcasm (traits I love).  I cried at one point, and wanted to cheer in the end. 

Great book.

The Noticer

From the back cover:
Poverty.  A failing marriage. Old age. Lost dreams.  A failing business.  An unsure future.  To the residents of Orange Beach, Alabama, these desperations are dead ends.  Hopeless, barren places with no chance of change.

But to an old drifter named Jones with a gift for seeing what others miss, there is no such thing as a dead end.  It only takes a little 'perspective', he says, to recognize the miracles in our moments, the seeds of greatness tucked into our struggles.

As Jones mysteriously makes his way through this coastal town and into the searching hearts of its residents, he offers simple wisdom and sound hope.

"My contention is that you are right where you are suppose to be.  This may look like barren sand to you, but nothing could be further from the truth.  I say to you that as you lay your head down tonight, you are sleeping on fertile ground.  Think, learn, pray, plan, dream.  For soon .... you will become."

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This was my first book by Andy Andrews.  I wasn't even sure where to find it in the bookstore.  Christian? Fiction? Turns out, it was in the Self-help section.  I had no clue why when I first picked it up.

Now I know. 

I really enjoyed this book.  'Jones' finds Andy living under a bridge in Alabama.  Jones tells Andy in order to get help, he simply needs 'perspective' - essentially opening the door for what everyone struggling in his/her circumstances needs.

Perspective.

How you look at things.  How you look at your circumstances.

The Noticer takes you on a journey through Andy's life as he learns ways Jones has encouraged others - causing them to see the good in their situations, instead of giving up and calling it quits.

My favorite quotes in the book are ....

Talking to Andy (living under a bridge) ... "If you focus on the things you need, you'll find those needs increasing.  If you concentrate your thoughts on what you don't have, you will soon be concentrating on other things that you had forgotten you don't have - and feel worse! If you set your mind on loss, you are more likely to lose ... But, a grateful perspective brings happiness and abundance into a person's life."

While standing in church during a prayer session ... "I'd like us to pray for some smiling faces in this church .... I think more people would want to go to heaven, if they weren't afraid it'd be like church when they got there".

"Seeds of depression cannot take root in a grateful heart."

Talking to a man going through a divorce - admitting he has chased the American dream and rarely sees his family .... "I just think it's amazing that a person could lose everything, chasing nothing."

Explaining about five seagulls sitting on a dock.  One of them decides to fly away, so how many are left? A person would typically answer 'four'.  Jones replies, "No, there are still five.  Deciding to fly away and actually flying away are two different things.  Despite popular belief to the contrary, there is absolutely no power in intention."

There is something for everyone in this book.  You'll recognize many things you already know or have read (i.e. The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman), but it gives reminders of what we should always put into practice - putting our lives in perspective, which will always allow us to remember things could be worse.  Also, that 'where' we are is a good place to be.  God can use that.



My Rating:  4 Bookmarks

Unshaken

My first several posts will be about books I have read recently, but before this blog.  I wanted to have a record of the few books that have made me pause this year and maybe even kept me up at night. 

From the back cover:
In a harrowing story of survival, Dan Woolley recounts the nearly three days he spent trapped beneath the rubble of Haiti's collapsed Hotel Montana.  He details his survival methods - including using an iPhone app to treat his life-threatening injuries, conversations with strangers buried nearby, letters to his family, and the small and large decisions he made that affected his chances of surviving the 7.0 Haiti earthquake that took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

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I couldn't wait for this book to come out.  I have followed Sh*un Groves and the Compassion Bloggers since their first trip to different countries, which is where I first learned about Dan Woolley and his story.  Days after a 7.0 earthquake ripped through the country of Haiti, I diligently refreshed my computer, checking Shaun's blog, to learn the whereabouts of Dan and his traveling companion, David. 

I rejoiced when Dan was found (in the hotel's elevator shaft buried under 6 stories of concrete) and then pulled from the rubble of the leveled hotel.  He had been buried for 65 hours.  I knew God was going to write an incredible story through Dan's survival, and I couldn't wait to read it.

The book is just what you would expect it to be (knowing the outcome), but what I wasn't prepared for was the way it is woven into the life story of his wife's struggle with depression and how that shaped their family.  He does a beautiful job of relating his being buried under the rubble to the huge obstacle he and his wife had overcome in their marriage - both by the grace of God - who Dan gives full honor and glory to.

I was amazed at his insight, anticipating what he may need emotionally and physically in the next moment.  Part of any battle we face (a huge part, actually) is in our thought process.  Whatever we begin to 'think' is usually followed with an action.  Our will to move forward or to give up is decided by the strength of our minds.

Dan writes "Darkness can do funny things to your mind. ... My world had suddenly gotten very small, not only because of the elevator's size, but because I found myself taking refuge in my thoughts."  

His will to live was made obvious by keeping his thoughts on his family and their need for his survival.

So, where does one go after such a traumatic event, with an extraordinary story of rescue? He sums up his entire experience with the last sentence:  " ... my experience showed me that whatever is thrown at me doesn't matter.  I can hang on until the shaking stops because my God is unshakable.

Knowing what the ending was going to be with this book, I was still on the edge of my seat reading.  How does one process what's going on? Where did he find the strength? What were his thoughts in complete darkness with no assurance of rescue?

He answers all of these questions and gives an amazing tale of how he passed those 65 hours.  I highly recommend!

My Rating:  4 Bookmarks