New York, New York – July 28, 2008 – Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), the world’s largest bookseller, announced today that Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows’ The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (The Dial Press) is the next selection in the Barnes & Noble Recommends program.  The book goes on sale tomorrow, July 29, and can be purchased at any Barnes & Noble store or online at Barnes & Noble.com (www.bn.com/recommends).

“The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, compiled as a series of letters, radiates love for the written word in every way,” said Jaime Carey, chief merchandising officer of Barnes & Noble, Inc. “Drawn together by their love of books and affection for each other, the unforgettable characters of this story tell a moving tale of endurance and friendship.”

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society begins in January 1946, when popular author Juliet Ashton, much like her fellow British citizens, is emerging from the dark days of World War II. Juliet, in search of her next book subject, is exchanging a series of letters with her publisher and her best friend, when she receives an unexpected query from Mr. Dawsey Adams. Dawsey, a farmer on the island of Guernsey in the English Channel, has come into possession of a book that once belonged to Juliet. As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, much is revealed about Dawsey’s Guernsey and the islanders’ recent lives under Nazi occupation. Before long Juliet is learning about the curious beginnings of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and exchanging letters with its other members – Isola the vegetable seller, Eben the fisherman, and blacksmith Will Thisbee, creator of the famous potato peel pie. Touched by the stories the letters deliver, Juliet can’t help but travel to Guernsey herself – a decision that will have surprising consequences for everyone involved. Through the chorus of voices they have created, Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows have composed a rich tale that celebrates the power of hope and human connection in the shadows of war.

One of Barnes & Noble’s booksellers who voted for this selection said, “Clear your calendars and take the phone off the hook. You don’t want to be interrupted once you start this book!” Another bookseller added, “I fell in love with the characters, and became so enamored with Guernsey that I had to get out a map to make sure it was real.”
 
The Barnes & Noble Recommends program includes:

• Barnes & Noble store events. Reading group discussions of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society will be held in Barnes & Noble stores across the country. 
• Author appearances.  Meet Annie Barrows at Barnes & Noble stores.  Visit www.bn.com/recommends for information on author appearances and other in-store events. 
• An online book club.  Join Annie Barrows in the Barnes & Noble.com online book club, and discuss The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society with her and other readers. Log on to www.bn.com/bookclubs throughout September.
• A free reading group guide.  Ask any Barnes & Noble bookseller for a copy of our free guide to starting your own reading group.  The guide can also be found online at www.bn.com/recommends.

Selections for Barnes & Noble Recommends are chosen by the company’s booksellers from across the country.  Each selection is a book that Barnes & Noble recommends unconditionally, believes is “unputdownable” and is especially appropriate for book discussion groups.

The previous nine Barnes & Noble Recommends selections were:

• Diane Setterfield’s The Thirteenth Tale (Atria Books).
• Chris Bohjalian’s The Double Bind (Shaye Areheart Books).
• Mohsin Hamid’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist (Harcourt).
• Paulette Jiles’ Stormy Weather (William Morrow).
• Sarah Addison Allen’s Garden Spells (Bantam Books).
• Maggie O’Farrell’s The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (Harcourt).
• Marisa de los Santos’ Belong to Me (William Morrow).
• Tom Rob Smith’s Child 44 (Grand Central Publishing).
• Ethan Canin’s America America (Random House).

Each of these novels, including The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, qualify as riveting reads, books of exceptional quality, worthy of stimulating discussion.