The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Acknowledgments

The seed for this book was planted quite by accident. I had traveled to England to research another book and while there learned of the German Occupation of the Channel Islands. On a whim, I flew to Guernsey and was fascinated by my brief glimpse of the island’s history and beauty. From that visit came this book, albeit many years later.

Unfortunately, books don’t spring fully formed from their authors’ foreheads. This one required years of research and writing, and above all, the patience and support of my husband, Dick Shaffer, and my daughters Liz and Morgan, who tell me that they never doubted I would finish this book, even if I did. Besides believing in my writing, they insisted that I actually sit down at the computer and type, and it was these twin forces at my back that propelled the book into existence.

In addition to this small cluster of supporters at home, there was a much larger group out in the world. First and in some ways most important were my friends and fellow-writers Sara Loyster and Julia Poppy, who demanded and beguiled and cajoled—and read every word of the first five drafts. This book truly would not have been written without them. Pat Arrigoni’s enthusiasm and editorial savoir-faire were also instrumental in the early stages of writing. My sister Cynnie followed lifelong tradition in urging me to buckle down to work, and, in this case, I appreciate it.

I am grateful to Lisa Drew for directing my manuscript to my agent, Liza Dawson, who combines kindness, patience, editorial wisdom and publishing know-how to a degree I would not have believed possible. Her colleague Anna Olswanger was a source of a number of excellent ideas, for which I am in her debt. Thanks to them, my manuscript found its way to the desk of the amazing Susan Kamil, an editor both profoundly intelligent and deeply humane.

I am also grateful to Chandler Crawford, who brought the book first to Bloomsbury Publishing in England and then turned it into a worldwide phenomenon, with editions in ten countries.

I must tender special thanks to my niece, Annie, who stepped in to finish this book after unexpected health issues interrupted my ability to work shortly after the manuscript was sold. Without blinking an eye, she put down the book she was writing, pushed up her sleeves, and set to work on my manuscript. It was my great good luck to have a writer like her in the family, and this book could not have been done without her.

If nothing else, I hope these characters and their story shed some light on the sufferings and strength of the people of the Channel Islands during the German Occupation. I hope, too, that my book will illuminate my belief that love of art—be it poetry, storytelling, painting, sculpture, or music—enables people to transcend any barrier man has yet devised.

Mary Ann Shaffer

December 2007

It was my good fortune to enter into this project armed with a lifetime of my aunt Mary Ann’s stories and the editorial acumen of Susan Kamil. Susan’s strength of vision was essential in making the book what it wanted to be, and I am truly privileged to have worked with her. I salute her invaluable assistant editor, Noah Eaker, as well.

I am grateful, too, to the team at Bloomsbury Publishing. There, Alexandra Pringle has been a paragon of patience and good humor, as well as a font of information about how to address a duke’s offspring. I particularly appreciate Mary Morris, who dealt gracefully with a gorgon, and the marvelous Antonia Till, without whom British characters would be wearing pants, driving wagons, and eating candy. In Guernsey, Lynne Ashton at the Guernsey Museum and Art Gallery, was most helpful, as was Clare Ogier. Finally, I extend very special thanks to Liza Dawson, who made it all work.

Annie Barrows

December 2007