Great Britain's Great War: A Sympathetic History of Our Gravest Folly (Hardback)
Jeremy Paxman (author)
£25.00
Hardback
Published: 03/10/2013
- Not available
Jeremy Paxman's magnificent history of the First World War tells the entire story of the war in one gripping narrative from the point of view of the British people. It is now a major BBC television series. "He writes so well and sympathetically, and chooses his detail so deftly, that if there is one new history of the war that you might actually enjoy from the very large centennial selection this is very likely it" (The Times). We may think we know about it, but what was life really like for the British people during the First World War? The well-known images - the pointing finger of Lord Kitchener; a Tommy buried in the mud of the Western Front; the memorial poppies of remembrance day - all reinforce the idea that it was a pointless waste of life. So why did the British fight it so willingly and how did the country endure it for so long? Using a wealth of first-hand source material, Jeremy Paxman brings vividly to life the day-to-day experience of the British over the entire course of the war, from politicians, newspapermen, campaigners and Generals, to Tommies, factory workers, nurses, wives and children, capturing the whole mood and morale of the nation.
It reveals that life and identity in Britain were often dramatically different from our own, and show how both were utterly transformed - not always for the worst - by the enormous upheaval of the war. Rich with personalities, surprises and ironies, this lively narrative history paints a picture of courage and confusion, doubts and dilemmas, and is written with Jeremy Paxman's characteristic flair for storytelling, wry humour and pithy observation. "A fine introduction to the part Britain played in the first of the worst two wars in history. The writing is lively and the detail often surprising and memorable" (Guardian). Jeremy Paxman is a renowned broadcaster, award-winning journalist and the bestselling author of seven works of non-fiction, including The English, The Political Animal and Empire.
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
ISBN: 9780670919611
Weight: 624 g
Dimensions: 240 x 162 x 33 mm
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“Great Book”
This was the first time I had read a book by Paxman and I thought it may have been "highbrow". How wrong I was, it was an easy read but more importantly it was very informative. It gave an insight why so... More
“A serious book by an anything but unserious man”
After reading a headline in which Jeremy Paxman was branded as ‘unserious’, my first thought was that a Liverpudlian historian had poured scorn over his recently-released title, Great Britain’s Great War, for once... More
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