The Girl from the Channel Islands

Hedy Bercu left Austria in 1938 to escape the pending persecution of the Jews by the Germans and arrived in Jersey, part of the Channel Islands where she thought she would be safe. Then in 1940 members of the German Army arrived on Jersey. Not everyone was able to leave the island. Those who stayed faced impeding starvation, freezing winters with little fuel, confiscation of radios resulting in loss of contact with what was happening elsewhere in the world and constant fear - especially if your heritage was Jewish.

Hedy did have one friend, Anton, but eventually he became a conscript in the German Army. Hedy had promised Anton that she would look after Anton's wife while he was away. As she was able to read German and English, Hedy had a work as a translator for the Germans. At least this meant that she had a little money to help her survive. Part of Hedy's work was to distribute petrol rationing coupons and she began to save a few for the local doctor so that he could continue to visit patients on the island. This, of course, had to be done in strict secrecy. Then she met a young German officer who was sympathetic to her situation and who risked his life to help her when she was in danger.

The Girl from the Channel Islands by Jenny Lacoat is based on a true story.

Two other books about living in the Channel Island during German occupation are Dancing with the Enemy by Diane Armstrong and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by  Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows.

Dancing with the Enemy

Set on Jersey in the Channel Islands in 1940 when the German army takes over the island, the story is told from the perspective of Dr Hugh Jackson who decides to remain on the island to tend to his patients, teenager, Tom Gaskell, who with two friends attempts to escape from the island and ends up being a prisoner of the Germans, and Xanthe Maxwell, a young doctor from Australia who visits Jersey in 2019. Xanthe becomes interested in the history of Jersey during the Second World War when she reads Dr Jackson's diary and meets Bob Blampied who lived in Jersey during the German occupation.

Dancing with the Enemy by Diane Armstrong shows the affects of German occupation of this small island on the citizens of Jersey and how they struggled to survive. It shows how people react in different ways to extreme stress - some risking all to help others while some protect themslves by reporting neighbours to the enemy or working with them. It is a study of survival, loss and of hope. 

While learning of this period of Jersey's history, Xanthe finds family connections to the island and also decides, with the assistance of Daniel, how she wants to approach the next stage of her life.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society is a story of the affects of German occupation on the neighbouring island of Guernsey.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Written as a series of letters dated 1946 Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows have written a novel depicting life on the island of Guernsey. When author Juliet Ashton is contacted by Dawsey Adams requesting information about the life and books of Charles Lamb she is unaware of the extent to which her life is about to change. In the letter Dawsey mentioned The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and subsequent correspondence on that topic introduced Juliet to the members of the society and also to a project recording the occupation of the island by the Germans during the war. 

Aspects of living in an occupied country are revealed throughout the book as well as attempts to adjust to life after war. The book is populated with a wonderful and sometimes quirky cast of characters and throughout the novel there are many references to and quotes from books read by the literary society members. And of course there is a little romance to add to the enjoyment of reading this book.

Postscript: In April 2018, the film, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, was released - an excellent film.

La's orchestra saves the world by Alexander McCall Smith is also about the inhabitants of a small village coping during the Second World War.

In 2022 Dianne Armstrong's book, Dancing with the Enemy, was published set on the Jersey during World War II.