The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society characters

Appears from the start

A London writer emerging from the Second World War after years of publishing humorous columns under a pen name. Juliet is searching for a subject with more substance when a letter from Guernsey introduces her to the island's wartime reading society. Curious, independent, and deeply attached to books, she begins corresponding with its members and becomes absorbed in their lives.

Appears from the start

A quiet Guernsey farmer who acquires an old Charles Lamb volume that once belonged to Juliet and writes to ask her help finding more of Lamb's work. His letter begins Juliet's connection with the island. Dawsey is reserved, observant, and generous, and he was one of the wartime literary society's original participants.

Appears from the start

Juliet's publisher and one of her closest friends. Sidney exchanges affectionate, teasing letters with her, manages her career, and remains a dependable source of advice as she abandons an unpromising book idea for the story of Guernsey.

Appears from the start

Sidney's sister and Juliet's closest confidante. Sophie is married and living in Scotland, and her correspondence gives Juliet a private place to discuss writing, grief, romance, and her growing attachment to the people of Guernsey.

Appears from the start

A bold Guernsey woman whose quick invention of a literary society saves her friends when German soldiers catch them out after curfew. During the occupation Elizabeth repeatedly resists cruelty and helps people at great personal risk. By 1946 she is absent from the island, and the uncertainty surrounding her weighs on every member of the group.

Appears from the start

An eccentric maker of preserves and herbal remedies who becomes an enthusiastic society member. Isola is direct, warm-hearted, and fascinated by people; books give focus to her curiosity, and her candid letters quickly make her one of Juliet's most distinctive correspondents.

Appears from the start

A dignified Guernsey resident whose home hosted the meal that led to the society's invention. Amelia endured occupation, separation, and family loss, and she remains protective of Elizabeth and Elizabeth's young daughter. She is initially cautious about Juliet's wish to write about the group.

Appears from the start

A Guernsey fisherman and society member whose grandson was evacuated to Britain before the German occupation. Eben's wartime account joins the pleasures of reading with the islanders' hunger, danger, and long separation from their children.

Appears from the start

Elizabeth's young daughter, cared for collectively by Amelia, Dawsey, Isola, and the other islanders while her mother is absent. Kit is energetic, wary of strangers, and central to the improvised family Elizabeth left behind.

Also known as Mark Reynolds

Appears from the start

A wealthy American publisher who courts Juliet with confidence, expensive gifts, and plans for a glamorous future. Mark is attractive and attentive but dislikes the extent to which Guernsey and its people begin to command Juliet's loyalties.

Appears from the start

A society member whose dry wit and unexpected engagement with religious writing enliven the group's history. John had worked as a valet and found ways to use his former employer's identity during the occupation.

Appears from the start

A German military doctor posted to Guernsey during the occupation. Christian rejects the occupying force's contempt for islanders, treats local people humanely, and forms a forbidden relationship with Elizabeth. He is Kit's father.

First appears in chapter 2

A French woman who survived imprisonment with Elizabeth in Ravensbrück. Frail after the war and burdened by what she witnessed, Remy gives Elizabeth's friends the first direct account of her final months and is invited into the society's circle of care.