Two Good Books

I just finished reading two books that I thought were very entertaining and good reads. I thought I would pass them along in case you're in the mood for a good book.

The first is "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society." This book is a series of letters written between a lady in London and people on the island of Guernsey, which is part of the Channel Islands. I liked the letter-style of the book because it was short tidbits of everyone's life and made the book go by fast. The letters mostly have to do with the German occupation of the Channel Islands during WWII. I didn't want this story to end. I loved reading about the daily lives of the funny and interesting people.

My sister-in-law- Heather introduced me to the second book, "A Year in Provence." The author writes the book in seasons about his and his wife's first year living in Provence. They moved from England into an old stone farmhouse. He shares his experiences with the local people and their love for food, disregard for time, their mannerisms, and love of wine. It's considered a travel book, but a very fun and fast-paced one. (The first couple pages were a little slow but after that it got much better.) I really enjoyed this book too. It will make you want to go to France and eat their food. One of my favorite lines was at the end of the book. The couple woke up to a kitchen with no electricity, therefore no way of cooking Christmas dinner. What the author says sums up the French: "It is at a time like this, when crisis threatens the stomach, that the French display the most sympathetic side of their nature. Tell them stories of physical injury or financial ruin and they will either laugh or commiserate politely. But tell them you are facing gastronomic hardship, and they will move heaven and earth and even restaurant tables to help you."