Book Review: June

The same teacher who gave me "The Miser of Mayfair" recommended this book. You might recognize it. You might have seen the movie. It's worth it. One hundred percent.

I got my copy from the Book Rack which means
it was only $6 and half that because we had credit there.
A good deal all around because this is definitely
staying on my shelf for years to come.

One of the things you'll notice right away is the format. This is all told in letters. It is quite a stunning piece of work because you get to know the characters in a different way.

The correspondence isn't too difficult to keep track of. There are helpful hints with each letter, since the address, the receiver and sender's names are all on it. There are even italic sentences that say From Juliet to Sidney in case you are really confused. 

Juliet Ashton is our protagonist, a writer and Londoner, emerging from the shadows of World War II. During the war, she wrote pieces that were comedic and meant to help people forget the doom hanging over them. However, she writes to her friend and editor, Sidney, she wants to get away from that and write something more serious. 

What I find amazing about the letters are the depths of the details. After the war, many things were scarce. Ration card were handed out and you had to use those to get anything. It really puts you into the perspective of post-war time when she mentions that, "Do you suppose that a lavish bonus could spur her on to butter?" Most everything is considered a luxury and making-do is the motto. Items that we consider everyday and have no trouble finding in a grocery store were prizes.

Each character makes their unique voice heard in their letters. The conversation always adds more information and is never dull. Somehow Shaffer and Barrows manage to draw in various memories and events into these letters so that the characters are expanded upon until we can recount that a young Juliet threw a book at the elocution mistress.

The novel really begins once we hear from Dawsey Adams. He is a pig farmer on the island of Guernsey and asks Juliet for a small thing, the name and address of a bookstore so that he may purchase the works of Charles Lamb. Such a small correspondence, yet it blossoms. Bibliophiles know that there are few things as satisfying as discussing a favorite book with a friend.

Soon Juliet is becoming invested in the island and the more she hears about it, the more she wants to go there. Can you see the issue? When a book is composed of letters and depends on them, you must have someone for the main character to communicate with. If Juliet goes to the island, then she must write letters to someone off the island, or just someone so that the story continues. Never fear - Shaffer and Barrows have orchestrated a masterpiece of engineering. Once Juliet becomes engrossed in the island, she writes to Sidney and Sophie among others. Other characters also say their piece, writing their letters that we have collected in this book. It is marvelously coherent. 

On a side tangent, I have made a potato pie, not a potato peel pie, but still, a similar concoction, although I think mine is a more savoury dish than the pie that the islanders made. 

Back on track, Juliet is a wonderful character as well. She asks questions, she takes action, and she doesn't let anyone bully her. She is quite a likable character and I feel a kinship with her since she is a writer. It is also her love of books that makes me so happy, because her sentiments are passionate. There are so many well written comments on the nature of books, and just the love of books that it makes a reader feel heard. 

Barring all that, I think you should just read this to learn what the title means and understand how the islands were affected during the war. This is quite a fascinating and page-turning book.