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Stranger in the House: Women's Stories of Men Returning from the Second World War
 
 

Stranger in the House: Women's Stories of Men Returning from the Second World War [Illustrated] (Hardcover)

by Julie Summers (Author)
4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
RRP: £18.99
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Frequently Bought Together

Stranger in the House: Women's Stories of Men Returning from the Second World War + Nella Last's Peace: The Post-War Diaries Of Housewife 49 + Nella Last's War: The Second World War Diaries of 'Housewife, 49': The Second World War Diaries of 'Housewife 49'
Price For All Three: £22.28

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 363 pages
  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster; illustrated edition edition (1 Sep 2008)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0743295528
  • ISBN-13: 978-0743295529
  • Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 16 x 3.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 130,205 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Product Description
Over 4 million ex-service men were demobilised between 1945 and 1947. These men, changed by injury or experience, returned to a Britain that had also adjusted in their absence. In STRANGER IN THE HOUSE, Julie Summers talks to the women who were left to cope at home without their menfolk and explains how the longed-for homecomings were sometimes difficult for all concerned. With the majority of young men away fighting, wives, daughters and mothers maintained the home front by going out to work, running the household, looking after the family and becoming the main breadwinner. Of course most of these women looked forward for the safe return of their men, but often did not realise that they themselves had been changed by their own time coping alone. When the war was over there were many wives who had to deal with an injured, emotionally-damaged husband, children who had never seen their father before, mothers whose sons did not want to speak about their horrific experiences and those who thought their fiances were dead only to find them reappearing after they had married another.Julie Summers has spent hours speaking to the women involved and listening to their often sad, sometimes joyous, stories. Families were long affected by the fall-out of the war's survivors, from depression to alcoholism to marital disharmony and divorce and many have spoken here for the first time about those challenges. An enlightening, fascinating insight into a little-known aspect of our recent history, STRANGER IN THE HOUSE is a moving and honest look at how ordinary women's private lives were altered forever.

About the Author
Julie Summers is a writer, researcher and historian. Her books include Fearless on Everest: The Quest for Sandy Irvine, and a biography of her grandfather, the man who built the 'real' bridge over the River Kwai, The Colonel of Tamarkan. She lives in Oxford.

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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Stranger in the House: Women's Stories of Men Returning from the Second World War
80% buy the item featured on this page:
Stranger in the House: Women's Stories of Men Returning from the Second World War 4.7 out of 5 stars (3)
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Customer Reviews

3 Reviews
5 star:
 (2)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
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Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A study of warmth and humanity, 26 Sep 2008
By Michael Swaine (UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
One of Julie Summer's strengths as a biographer is her capacity to allow her subjects to speak for themselves - but at the same time, throughout this fine book, the reader always has a reassuring sense of the author's guiding hand.
These stories of the women so directly affected by the last war are often deeply moving, full of their humanity and strength. The author successfully conveys the complexity of their feelings, the ambivalence felt by many of these women - glad to have their menfolk back home, and yet reluctant to give up the hard-fought-for freedom and independence they had gained during the war years.
The depth and quality of research is never in question, allowing the reader to feel safe in the author's hands. The chapter on the Army Postal Service, for example, and the vital role it played in maintaining morale, was excellent: a dry subject brought vividly to life.
The author's understanding of and empathy with the awfulness of the experiences of some of the returning men is exemplified in the chapter on returning POWs from the Far East: men forever damaged by their horrendous ordeal in Japanese camps. An ordeal that was literally unspeakable - which is to say because of the understood agreement that no-one would mention those lost years afterwards, neither the men, nor their families. That so much further damage was caused to the men and to their families by this inhuman silence is movingly evoked in this section of the book.
My only reservation is that this book feels slightly incomplete - certainly as a social history study. There is a predominance of stories from soldiers serving in the Far East, and particularly those who were unfortunate enough to be taken prisoner; there is also a seeming bias towards returning officers and career soldiers. Perhaps these reflect the author's own areas of expertise - and to be fair, she never does claim this book to offer a representative section of society, nor that it is a comprehensive study of post-war British society.
Finally, I would have to say that this is a hugely readable book - the writing style and presentation is beautifully clear, warm and full of confidence. It was a pleasure to pick up, and a pity to finish it.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars In safe hands..., 19 Nov 2008
By M. Parkes (England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
When Julie asked me if she could include my parents' story in Stranger in the House I agreed because I felt strongly that my mother's experiences, like those of tens of thousands of other women, deserved our attention. Julie has been sensitive and thorough in her research and she's done a marvellous job of shedding light on this little known aspect of wartime experiences. There is much we can learn from these stories and it is important, I believe, that each contributor is allowed to speak for themselves. My parents and I were in safe hands.
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10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Evocative stories, 18 Sep 2008
By Janie Hampton (England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
The moving and beautifully told story of the way that women - wives, sisters and mothers- coped when their menfolk came home from the war, often very traumatised and difficult to live with. Real life experiences, with lessons for us all, even now.
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