Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Extraordinarily Moving Book a must read., 5 April 2005
By A Customer
I have read many books on the First World War and have awaited this book with eager anticipation following the Channel 4 TV programme on the same subject. I was certainly not disappointed by this work as it packed so much information into its pages. Richard van Emden has unearthed some incredible research on the boys that joined up, trained, fought and sadly died for our country in the First World War. I find it extraordinary that no one had ever thought to write about such a poignant subject. This book covers the story with great detail, highlighting some amazing cameos. Most incredible was the story of 15 year old Jack Pouchot who won the DCM for bravery. Imagine a 15 year old doing that today! Another gem unearthed was that of an officer of the Accrington Pals commissioned at the tender age of 15 years old. To be in command of men at that age defies description, yet he still led his men over the top on 1st July 1916, the infamous first day of the Somme to be met by withering German resistance. And all at just 16 years old! One can only feel immense pride intermingled with sadness at such actions. The sheer number of underage soldiers who fought in the British Army is staggering and van Emden's work cannot be praised too highly for shedding new light on this neglected sphere of the conflict. I still find it incredible that sitting here in the 21st century, writing this review on my PC, that it was only a few years ago that van Emden interviewed many of the veterans whose testimonies are contained within this book. The trenches, mud, machine guns and artillery seem a lifetime away, certainly from a different era, but credit must go to the author for his dedication in tracking down these men to capture their stories for the next generation. A wonderful, thought-provoking and highly poignant book, I cannot recommend it highly enough.
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22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Compelling reading, 13 April 2005
This is not a book I would normally buy, however, after seeing, by chance, the cover featuring three terribly young boy going out to war I thought I would try to read something a little different. This book has revealed a world of which I had little idea, but the stories of these boys, as young as thirteen, are both gripping and heart rending.There are fascinating picture sections too - there is a reproduction of a joining up form of a boy of fifteen, who became an officer and was later killed. His handwriting is so childlike, yet this boy was an acting Captain at sixteen! Other pictures show boys stripped to the waist who would be refused entry to the boy scouts today, never mind the army - and all these boys had been fighting in France. I am impressed that the author has found and interviewed survivors who are aged between 105 and 108 years old - what a fascinating story they have to tell. This has to be the last oral testimony from that devastating war. This is a superb book! What more can I say?
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A brilliant history, 30 Jun 2005
Boy Soldiers of the Great War is how history ought to be written. It's a riveting, deeply moving account of the tens of thousands of boys and young men who not only served their country, but, as van Emden shows, quite probably saved it.van Emden has done his homework and it shows on every page. While other oral histories simply collect and present first-person accounts, van Emden has discovered many previously untold stories, then puts them in social, political, personal and historical context. Once started, the book won't be put down. Once finished, it won't be forgotten.
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