Blitz Spirit

Voices of Britain Living Through Crisis, 1939-1945

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Pub Date 8 Oct 2020 | Archive Date 22 Oct 2020

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Description

'Finally, a book that is proving very therapeutic in these difficult times... Full of doubt, fear, anger and rueful comedy, they give the lie to the idea that the Brits maintained a stiff upper lip, but it's immensely consoling to know that our forebears sometimes thought that they were living through the end times but survived to enjoy better and brighter days.' Jonathan Coe, The Times

'With 34 million of us in Tier 3, these Mass Observation diaries have an added fascination: it's impossible to read them without coming across parallels on almost every page, people's characters revealing themselves under wartime restrictions just as they do under Covid ones.' The Times


'A great book - such a good read.' Jeremy Vine

'Brown's book features an eclectic selection from the wartime years and is full of fascinating and sometimes surprising insights.' Mail on Sunday


'Moving and unexpectedly funny, it's these words that may offer comfort.' Woman's Weekly

'What extraordinary voices of Britain living through crisis! A brilliant testament to resilience.' Anne Glenconner

'A stirring and evocative account of life on the home front. Full of surprises that bring a fascinating perspective on the blitz spirit.' - Deborah Cadbury, author of Chocolate Wars and Princes at War

***

Throughout the Second World War hundreds of people kept diaries of their private daily lives as part of a groundbreaking national experiment. They were warehousemen and WRENs, soldiers and farmhands, housewives and journalists, united only by a desire to record the history they were living through.

For decades their words have been held in the Mass-Observation Archive, a time capsule of ordinary voices that might otherwise have been forgotten. These voices tell the human story behind the iconic events of those six years, of the individuals grappling with a world turned upside down. From panic-buying and competitively digging for victory to extraordinary acts of bravery, Blitz Spirit is a remarkable collection of real wartime experiences that represent the best and worst of human nature in the face of adversity.

Resonant, darkly funny and deeply moving, this new collection will reveal what it was like to live through a crisis of unprecedented proportions. A cacophony of hope, cynicism and resilience, Blitz Spirit celebrates ordinary lives - however small - and shines a light on the people we were, and the people we are now.

'Finally, a book that is proving very therapeutic in these difficult times... Full of doubt, fear, anger and rueful comedy, they give the lie to the idea that the Brits maintained a stiff upper lip...


Available Editions

EDITION Other Format
ISBN 9781529347050
PRICE £16.99 (GBP)
PAGES 320

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Average rating from 28 members


Featured Reviews

The Mass Observation Project was set up just before WW2 to record the experiences of ordinary people during an extraordinary time. People of all ages, with all sorts of occupations, from housewives, factory workers, nurses, teachers, journalists; training to retired and from all over the country, from villages, towns and cities, write in their diaries to record their war.

This book collects many of these diary extracts together to take us through the war. It is a fascinating look at not only what was happening to people, but how they were feeling about things. I raced through the first half of it, but slowed down later on and It felt as though it dragged on a bit later on. I think this is actually just how the writers of the diaries were feeling themselves, and it translated into their writing. I'd recommend this book to anyone with any interest in the subject.

*Many thanks to netgalley and the publishers for a review copy in exchange for an honest opinion.*

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The Mass Observation diaries are endlessly fascinating, and paint a varied portrait of wartime life around the country.

While this book is very good, I feel it might have been better to concentrate on fewer diarist to give a fuller picture of certain lives

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