Potato Pie and Tractors

Two book recommendations for ya.

The first I read a couple of months back, namely "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Pie Society" by Mary Ann Shaffer. It's a lovely book and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this tale of a writer who gets involved with the inhabitants of Guernsey and their recounting of their experiences during WWII. It's an interestingly indirect take on how the german occupation affected the islanders, but there's loads of humour in there and the obligatory love story. The only disappointing bit was the predictable happy ending - I hoped for something a bit more realistic.

I must be growing up.

The second I read just this weekend, in a couple of sittings. "A Short History of Tractors in Ukranian" by Marina Lewycka is as quirky as it is thought provokking. A tale which starts with the 80 something Ukrainian refugee father of our narrator announcing his intention to marry a blonde, buxom 30 something he met at the local Ukrainian Social Club. His two daughters find it difficult to be civil to each other but become united against their father's decision. As the siblings relationship progresses, family secrets and heartaches are revealed leaving our narrator to wonder how two children from the same family can have such differing experiences and views of life.