Mary Ann Shaffer, an American writer, editor, librarian, and bookshop worker, was known for her literary passion which she interwove with her professional life. Her journey to the island of Guernsey in the English Channel in 1976, during which she was stranded at an airport due to fog, led her to read Jersey Under the Jackboot by Reginald Maughan, a book that inspired her to write her own novel. The book The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, became a posthumous success, completed by her niece Annie Barrows.

Shaffer's dream to publish her own book was realized with the novel that captures the German occupation during World War II, but her passing due to illness in 2008 meant she never saw her work reach the hands of readers. She is remembered for her single, yet significant contribution to literature, a book embraced by many for its charm and historical narrative.