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Letters from a Lost Generation: First World War Letters of Vera Brittain and Four Friends
This poignant work collects correspondence written from 1913 to 1918 between Vera Brittain and four young men -- her fiance Roland Leighton, her younger brother Edward and their two close friends, Victor Richardson and Geoffrey Thurlow -- who were all killed in action during World War I.
The correspondence presents a remarkable and profoundly moving portrait of five idealistic youths caught up in the cataclysm of war. Spanning the duration of the war, the letters vividly convey the uncertainty, confusion, and almost unbearable suspense of the tumultuous war years. They offer important historical insights by illuminating both male and female perspectives and allow the reader to witness and understand the Great War from a variety of viewpoints, including those of the soldier in the trenches, the volunteer nurse in military hospitals, and even the civilian population on the home front. As Brittain wrote to Roland Leighton in 1915, shortly after he arrived on the Western "Nothing in the papers, not the most vivid and heartbreaking descriptions, have made me realize war like your letters."
Yet this collection is, above all, a dramatic account of idealism, disillusionment, and personal tragedy as revealed by the voices of four talented schoolboys who went almost immediately from public school in Britain to the battlefields of France, Belgium, and Italy. Linking each of their compelling stories is the passionate and eloquent voice of Vera Brittain, who gave up her own studies to enlist in the armed services as a nurse.
As World War I fades from living memory, these letters are a powerful and stirring testament to a generation forever shattered and haunted by grief, loss, and promise unfulfilled.
The correspondence presents a remarkable and profoundly moving portrait of five idealistic youths caught up in the cataclysm of war. Spanning the duration of the war, the letters vividly convey the uncertainty, confusion, and almost unbearable suspense of the tumultuous war years. They offer important historical insights by illuminating both male and female perspectives and allow the reader to witness and understand the Great War from a variety of viewpoints, including those of the soldier in the trenches, the volunteer nurse in military hospitals, and even the civilian population on the home front. As Brittain wrote to Roland Leighton in 1915, shortly after he arrived on the Western "Nothing in the papers, not the most vivid and heartbreaking descriptions, have made me realize war like your letters."
Yet this collection is, above all, a dramatic account of idealism, disillusionment, and personal tragedy as revealed by the voices of four talented schoolboys who went almost immediately from public school in Britain to the battlefields of France, Belgium, and Italy. Linking each of their compelling stories is the passionate and eloquent voice of Vera Brittain, who gave up her own studies to enlist in the armed services as a nurse.
As World War I fades from living memory, these letters are a powerful and stirring testament to a generation forever shattered and haunted by grief, loss, and promise unfulfilled.
448 pages, Library Binding
First published October 29, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
September 10, 2017
For some reason, I have never gotten around to reading Vera Brittain’s classic work, “Testament of Youth,” but that is something I must amend in the future, after being introduced to this work though one of my reading groups. However, it may take me some time to get over this, as “Letters From a Lost Generation,” is moving, tragic and, I must warn you, will leave you feeling somewhat wrung out when you get to the end…
The book consists of letters from and to Vera Brittain, and between her and her brother Edward, her finance Roland Leighton, Edward and Roland’s friend, Victor Richardson (the three were all at Uppingham School together) and a further friend, Geoffrey Thurlow, who trained with Edward. This book takes us from the 28th September, 1913 to the 24th June, 1918.
In 1913, Vera had just rejected a marriage proposal and was planning to go to Oxford – as was her brother. However, plans for Edward and his friends were interrupted by the declaration of war and Vera is present at the school speech day, when the prophetic speech by the Headmaster, included the words; “Be a man – useful to your country; whoever cannot be that is better dead.” As Vera initially takes up her place at University, the young men in her sphere are all desperate to get a commission and Vera, initially, is encouraging their efforts.
As time passes though, and those they know start to be killed, all of these letter writers will change their thoughts on the glory of war. Vera finds that she needs to do something, especially after getting engaged to Roland, and volunteers as a nurse. The distance between them is difficult for either to accept and they often talk of what their life should have been. As Roland later writes from the trenches, “I sometimes think I must have exchanged my life for someone else’s….” Much of the first half of this book concerns the relationship between Vera and Roland and their letters are extremely moving.
Little things in these letters bring events immediately to life. Whether it is Edward’s concern over losing his valise and the practicalities of trying to move his belongings as he is constantly on the move, Vera going from hospital in London to Malta and later France, where she finds herself nursing wounded German soldiers (trying to save, she writes ironically, the very men her brother is trying to kill), unpacking the belongings and clothing of one of the young men who has been killed, or Edward musing in letters, as he reads, “The Loom of Youth,” by Alec Waugh (brother of Evelyn and an author I have enjoyed reading myself). I don’t think I have ever cried on my daily commute before, but I have now. A wonderful, moving, if terribly sad, read.
The book consists of letters from and to Vera Brittain, and between her and her brother Edward, her finance Roland Leighton, Edward and Roland’s friend, Victor Richardson (the three were all at Uppingham School together) and a further friend, Geoffrey Thurlow, who trained with Edward. This book takes us from the 28th September, 1913 to the 24th June, 1918.
In 1913, Vera had just rejected a marriage proposal and was planning to go to Oxford – as was her brother. However, plans for Edward and his friends were interrupted by the declaration of war and Vera is present at the school speech day, when the prophetic speech by the Headmaster, included the words; “Be a man – useful to your country; whoever cannot be that is better dead.” As Vera initially takes up her place at University, the young men in her sphere are all desperate to get a commission and Vera, initially, is encouraging their efforts.
As time passes though, and those they know start to be killed, all of these letter writers will change their thoughts on the glory of war. Vera finds that she needs to do something, especially after getting engaged to Roland, and volunteers as a nurse. The distance between them is difficult for either to accept and they often talk of what their life should have been. As Roland later writes from the trenches, “I sometimes think I must have exchanged my life for someone else’s….” Much of the first half of this book concerns the relationship between Vera and Roland and their letters are extremely moving.
Little things in these letters bring events immediately to life. Whether it is Edward’s concern over losing his valise and the practicalities of trying to move his belongings as he is constantly on the move, Vera going from hospital in London to Malta and later France, where she finds herself nursing wounded German soldiers (trying to save, she writes ironically, the very men her brother is trying to kill), unpacking the belongings and clothing of one of the young men who has been killed, or Edward musing in letters, as he reads, “The Loom of Youth,” by Alec Waugh (brother of Evelyn and an author I have enjoyed reading myself). I don’t think I have ever cried on my daily commute before, but I have now. A wonderful, moving, if terribly sad, read.
November 5, 2017
This is a book for people who read and loved Testament of Youth or Vera Brittain's other works. It's very personal and gives us insights into how the war was viewed by those taking part. They are from the upper classes so it's from a different point of view of the ordinary Tommy.
Vera Brittain is an extraordinary woman. How she lived through what she did and survived is beyond me. A lesser person would have surely caved in. She lost all of those most dear to her heart and still she went on. I thought it a bitter blow that Edward survived for so long and almost made it. They were extremely close. Each was a pillar for the other to lean on. At times in some of the letters she comes across as very cold and detached, yet in others her compassion shines through. A complicated woman I think. I was expecting more from her letters after Roland died but they didn't really change at all.
One bit that touched my own heart was in a letter she wrote home after she arrived in Etaples. She felt comfortable there even though it was a far busier hospital than she had been used to. She praised the Matron highly and found the other VADs very friendly. Then she commented on the Military Graveyard that was not far away from them, saying it looked beautiful with all the long narrow graves covered in wild flowers. My Grand-Uncle had died of his wounds the previous September and is buried in that graveyard. I only discovered where he was buried about eighteen months ago. It was lovely to hear from a first hand account that he's buried in such surroundings.
Vera Brittain is an extraordinary woman. How she lived through what she did and survived is beyond me. A lesser person would have surely caved in. She lost all of those most dear to her heart and still she went on. I thought it a bitter blow that Edward survived for so long and almost made it. They were extremely close. Each was a pillar for the other to lean on. At times in some of the letters she comes across as very cold and detached, yet in others her compassion shines through. A complicated woman I think. I was expecting more from her letters after Roland died but they didn't really change at all.
One bit that touched my own heart was in a letter she wrote home after she arrived in Etaples. She felt comfortable there even though it was a far busier hospital than she had been used to. She praised the Matron highly and found the other VADs very friendly. Then she commented on the Military Graveyard that was not far away from them, saying it looked beautiful with all the long narrow graves covered in wild flowers. My Grand-Uncle had died of his wounds the previous September and is buried in that graveyard. I only discovered where he was buried about eighteen months ago. It was lovely to hear from a first hand account that he's buried in such surroundings.
June 6, 2008
This book is made all the more heartbreaking because it is real. It isn't a fictionalised account of the horrors or World War I - it is a snapshot of the lives and feelings of Vera Brittain and four young men - her brother Edward, her fiance Roland and two other friends, Geoffrey and Victor - through correspondence which passed between them throughout the war.
It demonstrates the waste of young life which characterised the Great War, and in fact all wars. This book remained with me when I closed the covers - I couldn't shake the tragic sense of futility. But it is a compulsory read for anyone interested in the period and wanting to understand it from a human point of view.
It demonstrates the waste of young life which characterised the Great War, and in fact all wars. This book remained with me when I closed the covers - I couldn't shake the tragic sense of futility. But it is a compulsory read for anyone interested in the period and wanting to understand it from a human point of view.
April 30, 2022
From the introduction: "Letters from a lost generation offers important historical testimony, then; but it also tells a powerful story of idealism, disillusionment, and personal tragedy representative of the common experience of thousands of people throughout Britain at this time. Perhaps best of all, the letters convey the uncertainty, confusion, and almost unbearable suspense of wartime."
November 6, 2017
A moving compilation of letters. I would have liked to have seen more of Vera's letters to her brother in the last year of his war. But, perhaps, he failed to send those letters back to his sister as he had sent the previous ones.
I suppose, as an American, I took some umbrage at their class distinctions which arose occasionally. Roland, Vera's fiancée and "leader of the 'three musketeers'", came across some graves (whether a cemetery or just random graves), was somewhat appalled that a major could be buried so near a lowly private, not knowing anything about either of these people. But making an immediate judgement on the quality of their civilian lives. I immediately thought of the American poet Joyce Kilmer, also a private who was killed in this selfsame war. It really peeved me. And it peeved me more that Vera agreed with him. I didn't know if it was a British thing or what. And the objection that they would be spending eternity in the same company.
Rant over, I think.
I will be looking to obtain Chronicle of Youth: The War Diary, 1913-1917 in the near future and then to face Testament of Youth, which I picked up several years ago but have not yet read.
The back cover has blurbs saying that the reader should be prepared to cry. Well, I did have a few tears, but it didn't generally happen when the people died but when those who were left remembered them.
I suppose, as an American, I took some umbrage at their class distinctions which arose occasionally. Roland, Vera's fiancée and "leader of the 'three musketeers'", came across some graves (whether a cemetery or just random graves), was somewhat appalled that a major could be buried so near a lowly private, not knowing anything about either of these people. But making an immediate judgement on the quality of their civilian lives. I immediately thought of the American poet Joyce Kilmer, also a private who was killed in this selfsame war. It really peeved me. And it peeved me more that Vera agreed with him. I didn't know if it was a British thing or what. And the objection that they would be spending eternity in the same company.
Rant over, I think.
I will be looking to obtain Chronicle of Youth: The War Diary, 1913-1917 in the near future and then to face Testament of Youth, which I picked up several years ago but have not yet read.
The back cover has blurbs saying that the reader should be prepared to cry. Well, I did have a few tears, but it didn't generally happen when the people died but when those who were left remembered them.
November 17, 2012
Letters from a Lost Generation, is a collection edited by Mark Bostridge and published in 2008, of the letters between Vera Brittain, her brother Edward, and their friends Roland Leighton, Victor Richardson and Geoffrey Thurlow. Both Edward and Roland sent their letters back to Vera for safe-keeping, so the collection of letters between those three is almost complete (barring some letters between Vera and Edward in the last year of Edward’s life). Many of Vera’s letters to Victor and Geoffrey were also returned to Vera eventually. These letters, along with Vera’s diary (published as Chronicle of Youth: The War Diary, 1913-1917) formed the backbone of her excellent memoir, Testament of Youth. I loved reading this book.
It should be fairly obvious that reading Testament of Youth before reading Letters from a Lost Generation would be sensible. Leaving aside the fact that the narrative overlay of Testament of Youth really helps with tracking the events behind the letters (although Bostridge does provide some bridging descriptions).
Being familiar with Testament of Youth helps with contextualising the colour of the letters. The occasional references to Roland’s Quiet Voice, which is one of the things that really gives a sense of him as a person (and his reaction to being admonished when he uses the Quiet Voice), make a lot more sense understanding the place he held in the Uppingham trio of Edward, Roland and Victor, as Brittain explains in Testament of Youth. Actually, I found Roland’s letters completely charming. Although Roland’s view of his own grand destiny—distinguished war service and then a life as a famous man of letters—gave me a sense that he was too big for his boots in Testament of Youth, he doesn’t come across that way in his letters. He comes across as very young, quite awkward, and really damaged by the loss of his illusions in war.
Edward, Victor and Geoffrey are also an interesting study in contrasts. To quote the Amazon description:
"Roland, ‘Monseigneur’, is the 'leader' and his letters most clearly trace the path leading from idealism to disillusionment. Edward, ‘Immaculate of the Trenches’, was orderly and controlled, down even to his attire. Geoffrey, the ‘non-militarist at heart’ had not rushed to enlist but put aside his objections to the war for patriotism's sake. Victor on the other hand, possessed a very sweet character and was known as ‘Father Confessor."
Each of the boys writes in a different tone, but their concerns are the same: the wish to do their job and be brave, a nostalgic yearning for their old public school days, the growing conviction that there is nothing glorious in war. At one point, Vera comments to Victor to the effect that he is very gung ho about the war, and he responds that if he didn’t maintain that way of thinking, he would break down in tears. Geoffrey frequently comments that he is very “windy” (frightened), and in fact was at one point invalided back to Britain to be treated for shell shock. He seems to want to just survive the war. Edward is reticent and controlled, and Roland seems willing to share most of what he is feeling with Vera. This, again, makes his letters touching and fascinating.
Vera anchors the letters. Few of the letters between Roland, Edward, Victor and Geoffrey have been preserved, so in the main the correspondence is between Vera and each of the others. She writes about what is being reported in the papers, such as Rudyard Kipling’s son Jack being missing in action, buying maps of the Western Front to try and figure out where they are, her fear that Edward might be sent to Gallipoli, and her empathy with their frustration at being stuck in camp in England, which ultimately leads her to volunteer as a VAD. I was surprised by how consistently her hatred of VAD work came through in her letters. This was more muted in Testament of Youth (probably with the benefit of hindsight). She repeatedly considered quitting, but her duty and the prospect of overseas service kept her working at the hospital until Victor’s serious injury ultimately brings her home from Malta.
Another thing that is interesting is how quickly letters travel between Vera and Roland during the early years of the war. Not quickly enough to prevent days of terror when Vera read of a battle near where she thought Roland was, but they exchanged letters every few days. This means the sheer volume of their correspondence is enormous; a stark contrast to the amount of time they spent together in person, which if I remember correctly could be counted in days on one hand. Towards 1916 and 1917, Vera frequently expresses frustration at the lag of up to two weeks for letters to travel from the front to England or back. Even the great British postal service brought to her knees under the ravages of war.
I thought Testament of Youth was a magnificent book, and Letters from a Lost Generation just adds to the emotion and understanding. Reading these young people’s experiences and their thoughts, hopes and fears in their own voices is fascinating and it is absolutely heartbreaking when there are no more letters from each in turn.
It should be fairly obvious that reading Testament of Youth before reading Letters from a Lost Generation would be sensible. Leaving aside the fact that the narrative overlay of Testament of Youth really helps with tracking the events behind the letters (although Bostridge does provide some bridging descriptions).
Being familiar with Testament of Youth helps with contextualising the colour of the letters. The occasional references to Roland’s Quiet Voice, which is one of the things that really gives a sense of him as a person (and his reaction to being admonished when he uses the Quiet Voice), make a lot more sense understanding the place he held in the Uppingham trio of Edward, Roland and Victor, as Brittain explains in Testament of Youth. Actually, I found Roland’s letters completely charming. Although Roland’s view of his own grand destiny—distinguished war service and then a life as a famous man of letters—gave me a sense that he was too big for his boots in Testament of Youth, he doesn’t come across that way in his letters. He comes across as very young, quite awkward, and really damaged by the loss of his illusions in war.
Edward, Victor and Geoffrey are also an interesting study in contrasts. To quote the Amazon description:
"Roland, ‘Monseigneur’, is the 'leader' and his letters most clearly trace the path leading from idealism to disillusionment. Edward, ‘Immaculate of the Trenches’, was orderly and controlled, down even to his attire. Geoffrey, the ‘non-militarist at heart’ had not rushed to enlist but put aside his objections to the war for patriotism's sake. Victor on the other hand, possessed a very sweet character and was known as ‘Father Confessor."
Each of the boys writes in a different tone, but their concerns are the same: the wish to do their job and be brave, a nostalgic yearning for their old public school days, the growing conviction that there is nothing glorious in war. At one point, Vera comments to Victor to the effect that he is very gung ho about the war, and he responds that if he didn’t maintain that way of thinking, he would break down in tears. Geoffrey frequently comments that he is very “windy” (frightened), and in fact was at one point invalided back to Britain to be treated for shell shock. He seems to want to just survive the war. Edward is reticent and controlled, and Roland seems willing to share most of what he is feeling with Vera. This, again, makes his letters touching and fascinating.
Vera anchors the letters. Few of the letters between Roland, Edward, Victor and Geoffrey have been preserved, so in the main the correspondence is between Vera and each of the others. She writes about what is being reported in the papers, such as Rudyard Kipling’s son Jack being missing in action, buying maps of the Western Front to try and figure out where they are, her fear that Edward might be sent to Gallipoli, and her empathy with their frustration at being stuck in camp in England, which ultimately leads her to volunteer as a VAD. I was surprised by how consistently her hatred of VAD work came through in her letters. This was more muted in Testament of Youth (probably with the benefit of hindsight). She repeatedly considered quitting, but her duty and the prospect of overseas service kept her working at the hospital until Victor’s serious injury ultimately brings her home from Malta.
Another thing that is interesting is how quickly letters travel between Vera and Roland during the early years of the war. Not quickly enough to prevent days of terror when Vera read of a battle near where she thought Roland was, but they exchanged letters every few days. This means the sheer volume of their correspondence is enormous; a stark contrast to the amount of time they spent together in person, which if I remember correctly could be counted in days on one hand. Towards 1916 and 1917, Vera frequently expresses frustration at the lag of up to two weeks for letters to travel from the front to England or back. Even the great British postal service brought to her knees under the ravages of war.
I thought Testament of Youth was a magnificent book, and Letters from a Lost Generation just adds to the emotion and understanding. Reading these young people’s experiences and their thoughts, hopes and fears in their own voices is fascinating and it is absolutely heartbreaking when there are no more letters from each in turn.
September 26, 2017
If you've read Testament of Youth, Vera Brittain's classic war memoir/autobiography you will already know the story, but hearing the actual voices of her and the young men raise this book to another level. In their late teens when the first world war breaks out, we see their innocent nineteenth century ideals of the glory and honour of war shattered by the reality they face and the death of everyone they know.
A poignant, shattering, heartbreaking reminder of the death of innocence and the true birth of the twentieth century.
ps. If you haven't read Testament of Youth it's well worth it as a companion to this book since my one tiny complaint is that the editors give very little narrative. To understand what is actually happening particularly in the delicate, awkward, sensitive love affair burgeoning between Vera and Roland that other narrative is essential. I was confused, for example, about at what stage their 'friendship' turned to something much deeper, at what stage it was acknowledged by them, their friends and family. Also to get a sense not of what Roland looked like (for we have a photo) but the way Vera perceived him the autobiography is essential and an equally brilliant read.
A poignant, shattering, heartbreaking reminder of the death of innocence and the true birth of the twentieth century.
ps. If you haven't read Testament of Youth it's well worth it as a companion to this book since my one tiny complaint is that the editors give very little narrative. To understand what is actually happening particularly in the delicate, awkward, sensitive love affair burgeoning between Vera and Roland that other narrative is essential. I was confused, for example, about at what stage their 'friendship' turned to something much deeper, at what stage it was acknowledged by them, their friends and family. Also to get a sense not of what Roland looked like (for we have a photo) but the way Vera perceived him the autobiography is essential and an equally brilliant read.
October 24, 2019
This is a very moving and tragic epistolary audiobook containing a collection of letters exchanged between four young people during World War I. Vera Brittain was a British writer and pacifist, and this book is not fiction, but the actual letters exchanged between herself, her fiancé, close friends and her brother while she was working as a VAD nurse in England, France and Malta. The narrative was extremely well done, and I really enjoyed the old songs of the period.
March 9, 2015
Usually, I'm not much of an audiobook reader (listener?), as my mind wanders and I have trouble focusing on what I'm hearing for a long time. Neither am I an epistolary novel reader, for about the same reasons... I get characters mixed up and get bored quite easily. But I tackled this audiobook because of my interest in WWI and, I must say, because my eyesight is getting worse and worse and I might just have to get used to listening to books or not read at all.
Anyway, it was a great way to start. This audiobook is very well done, and I really got involved in the life of those young men and woman.
Anyway, it was a great way to start. This audiobook is very well done, and I really got involved in the life of those young men and woman.
August 3, 2014
A really interesting read for anyone who's read 'Testament of Youth' and wants to learn more about the conjunctions of these five young people flung into a world that nothing could prepare them for. The contrast in the letters and what it reveals about their characters is fascinating, from the very exploratory, didactic, only occasionally playful nature of Vera's own letters, which are very like her brother Edward's and also her fiance's, to Victor's which are very considerate and thoughtful if a little ponderous, and Geoffrey's which are a little slapdash and punctuated by constant exclamations of "Well!"
I am intrigued by the fact that *all* of them refer to Vera's fiance, Roland Leighton, after his death by capitalising his pronouns - talking about what He would have done and His things and how they feel about Him. He must have been a very extraordinary young man with a powerful and charismatic personality - or were his friends and fiancee all in need of a leader?
At the end of this I found myself wishing that we'd had the opportunity to see what all the young men involved would have thought and felt about the war in later life, not just Vera; but of course this is real, not a novel, and none of them lived to have that opportunity.
I am intrigued by the fact that *all* of them refer to Vera's fiance, Roland Leighton, after his death by capitalising his pronouns - talking about what He would have done and His things and how they feel about Him. He must have been a very extraordinary young man with a powerful and charismatic personality - or were his friends and fiancee all in need of a leader?
At the end of this I found myself wishing that we'd had the opportunity to see what all the young men involved would have thought and felt about the war in later life, not just Vera; but of course this is real, not a novel, and none of them lived to have that opportunity.
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December 15, 2024Letters From A Lost Generation was edited by Alan Bishop and Mark Bostridge. It contains a collection of letters between Vera Brittain and her fiance Roland Leighton, her brother Edward as well as two other friends, Victor Richardson and Geoffrey Thrulow. Starting a year before the start of the Great War and ending just before its end, we gradually begin to know Vera and her friends. These memorable letters allow us a glimpse into a bygone world, which of course mostly revolved around the war. But their mail tells many more, different stories as well; Small personal struggles and ambitions, we get to witness how friendships grow and are even part of an evolving love story between Vera and Roland. However, of course the war is omnipresent. Each of Veras four friends end up in the trenches of the Western front, where many romantic illusions about war are quickly shattered into pieces. Vera too, despite not fighting herself, is involved in the war effort, working in various hospitals. This book seemed to me a confirmation of the saying: “There are no winners in war”. Because even though the allies won in the end, everyone of Veras friends had to pay with their lives, with noone except Vera reaching 24 years of age.
I have read a few books about the first world war now, but none touched me as deeply as Letters From A Lost Generation. The first half of the book is dominated by letters between Vera and Roland. As mentioned, we get to witness how they grew closer and closer, despite only meeting rarely in person. Roland describes his own feeling, which was emblematic of the attitude in the youths of the day during the beginning of the war, eloquently when writing: “I feel, however, that I am meant to take some active part in this war. It is to me a very fascinating thing – something, if often horrible, yet very ennobling and very beautiful, something whose elemental reality raises it above the reach of all cold theorising.” Rolands view on war, as I imagine that of many other young men did as well, changed once he was actually at the front, writing not a year later: “Let him who thinks that War is a glorious thing, who loves to roll forth stirring words of exhortation, invoking Honour and Praise and Valour and Love of Country with as thoughtless and fervid a faith as inspired the priests of Baal to call on their own slumbering deity, let him but look at a little pile of sodden grey rags that cover half a skull and a shinbone and what might have been Its ribs, or at this skeleton lying on its side, resting half crouching as it fell, supported by one arm, perfect but that it is headless and with the tattered clothing still draped round it; and let him realise how grand & glorious a thing it is to have distilled all Youth and Joy and Life into a foetid heap of hideous putrescence. Who is there who has known & seen who can say that Victory is worth the death of even one of these?”
Despite many thought-provoking reflections on and descriptions of life in the trenches, we also get to have a look into another important sector. Vera begins working as a nurse, first in London, then on Malta and finally in France. In her letters she often talks about her job, the cases she has had and her daily life besides nursing (which takes second place, after seven days a week working in the hospital). This, even if not less gruesome, but more civilian perspective on the war was really refreshing and made the read much more varied.
It is no secret (assuming you read the flap copy or the books introduction), that none of Veras friends survive the war. Despite that, when Vera gets the message, on the day of their presumed reunion, that Roland got killed, I had to put the book down for a moment. Never having read a collection of letters before, I did not expect to connect as deeply as I did with everyone of these young adults. It feels really personal, at times even a bit noisy, reading about their innermost struggles and feelings. This makes it all the harder when you read of someone like Roland or Edward, being reported as having died, because you feel as if you really knew them and in a way you did. Edwards death, a few months before the end of the first world war, even brought tears to my eyes, something which I can not remember happening because of a book. Vera lost it all, for the same thing to happen all over again.
Reading Letters From A Lost Generation, confirmed my rather anti-militarist and anti-nationalist views. It was refreshingly different from all the books on the Great war I have read until now, as it was much more personal and involving. The book left me wanting to read more about the war, as well as more letter collections in general. All things considered I really enjoyed this read and would recommend it whole-heartedly to everyone interested in some world-war-one history, despite it not being a light read.
I have read a few books about the first world war now, but none touched me as deeply as Letters From A Lost Generation. The first half of the book is dominated by letters between Vera and Roland. As mentioned, we get to witness how they grew closer and closer, despite only meeting rarely in person. Roland describes his own feeling, which was emblematic of the attitude in the youths of the day during the beginning of the war, eloquently when writing: “I feel, however, that I am meant to take some active part in this war. It is to me a very fascinating thing – something, if often horrible, yet very ennobling and very beautiful, something whose elemental reality raises it above the reach of all cold theorising.” Rolands view on war, as I imagine that of many other young men did as well, changed once he was actually at the front, writing not a year later: “Let him who thinks that War is a glorious thing, who loves to roll forth stirring words of exhortation, invoking Honour and Praise and Valour and Love of Country with as thoughtless and fervid a faith as inspired the priests of Baal to call on their own slumbering deity, let him but look at a little pile of sodden grey rags that cover half a skull and a shinbone and what might have been Its ribs, or at this skeleton lying on its side, resting half crouching as it fell, supported by one arm, perfect but that it is headless and with the tattered clothing still draped round it; and let him realise how grand & glorious a thing it is to have distilled all Youth and Joy and Life into a foetid heap of hideous putrescence. Who is there who has known & seen who can say that Victory is worth the death of even one of these?”
Despite many thought-provoking reflections on and descriptions of life in the trenches, we also get to have a look into another important sector. Vera begins working as a nurse, first in London, then on Malta and finally in France. In her letters she often talks about her job, the cases she has had and her daily life besides nursing (which takes second place, after seven days a week working in the hospital). This, even if not less gruesome, but more civilian perspective on the war was really refreshing and made the read much more varied.
It is no secret (assuming you read the flap copy or the books introduction), that none of Veras friends survive the war. Despite that, when Vera gets the message, on the day of their presumed reunion, that Roland got killed, I had to put the book down for a moment. Never having read a collection of letters before, I did not expect to connect as deeply as I did with everyone of these young adults. It feels really personal, at times even a bit noisy, reading about their innermost struggles and feelings. This makes it all the harder when you read of someone like Roland or Edward, being reported as having died, because you feel as if you really knew them and in a way you did. Edwards death, a few months before the end of the first world war, even brought tears to my eyes, something which I can not remember happening because of a book. Vera lost it all, for the same thing to happen all over again.
Reading Letters From A Lost Generation, confirmed my rather anti-militarist and anti-nationalist views. It was refreshingly different from all the books on the Great war I have read until now, as it was much more personal and involving. The book left me wanting to read more about the war, as well as more letter collections in general. All things considered I really enjoyed this read and would recommend it whole-heartedly to everyone interested in some world-war-one history, despite it not being a light read.
March 31, 2016
There are certain books you like, certain books you love, certain books you escape to, and then, every blue moon there is a book that is so monumental a read it creates a bend in the road. Your life is then marked as before or after that read. In no particular order, mine are Northanger Abbey, The Silver Chair, Catching Fire, The Seven Year Old Wonder Book, and now Letters From a Lost Generation.
I was drawn to this book, I confess, after seeing the movie adaptation of Testament of Youth. Reading these letters, hearing the words "one of my men was killed and I am going through his pockets and tying up his belongings in a handkercheif" and other such examples has moved me more than any other war story I have ever encountered because these are the words written by a twenty year old boy as he actually sat in a trench and wrote home to the girl he loved. These letters have a poignancy that no work of fiction or even memoir could possess. These are the words of young people written directly as horrifying things are happening around them. Nothing else in the literary world can compete with that.
Throughout this book I have laughed, I have cried, and over and over again I have said to myself "yes! That is exactly how that is." There are so many profound thoughts in these letters I want to copy them out and paper my walls with them. I have been repeating the words of Roland Leighton's poem "Villanelle" to myself all day. I do not think I have shut up about this book since I started reading it. In fact, I am rereading it already.
Read this! It will change your life. If however, you do not love it as I do, please don't tell me. You may just break my heart.
I was drawn to this book, I confess, after seeing the movie adaptation of Testament of Youth. Reading these letters, hearing the words "one of my men was killed and I am going through his pockets and tying up his belongings in a handkercheif" and other such examples has moved me more than any other war story I have ever encountered because these are the words written by a twenty year old boy as he actually sat in a trench and wrote home to the girl he loved. These letters have a poignancy that no work of fiction or even memoir could possess. These are the words of young people written directly as horrifying things are happening around them. Nothing else in the literary world can compete with that.
Throughout this book I have laughed, I have cried, and over and over again I have said to myself "yes! That is exactly how that is." There are so many profound thoughts in these letters I want to copy them out and paper my walls with them. I have been repeating the words of Roland Leighton's poem "Villanelle" to myself all day. I do not think I have shut up about this book since I started reading it. In fact, I am rereading it already.
Read this! It will change your life. If however, you do not love it as I do, please don't tell me. You may just break my heart.
October 8, 2017
This was a wonderfully written, but heartbreaking, collection of letters between Vera Brittain, her brother, and 3 friends of theirs. They were all quite articulate young people.
At the beginning of the correspondence, they were quite enthusiastic about the war, believing that it would end war forever, and that it was necessary, and even desirable, because it would shake England out of her complacency. The young men were going to do the patriotic, heroic thing and they didn't want to be late getting to the front.
As time went on, all of them realized that war is not glamorous or even meaningful. As one after another learned of the deaths of friends and ultimately died themselves (except for Vera), they grew more and more disheartened.
One of the things that struck me about these letters was how sanitized they were. While they all experienced the mud, lice, and rats for which the war was famous, they hardly mentioned the physical nightmare of their lives. The letters were overwhelmingly about the feelings and thoughts of these young people. In spite of everything, they were still quoting poetry and talking about books.
I loved Testament of Youth, written some years after the war, when Vera had had time to process her feelings. But these letters, written as it was all happening, were so much more moving. The two books taken together gave a deeper understanding of what the war meant to Vera Brittain. I am now keen to read her diary and other writings.
At the beginning of the correspondence, they were quite enthusiastic about the war, believing that it would end war forever, and that it was necessary, and even desirable, because it would shake England out of her complacency. The young men were going to do the patriotic, heroic thing and they didn't want to be late getting to the front.
As time went on, all of them realized that war is not glamorous or even meaningful. As one after another learned of the deaths of friends and ultimately died themselves (except for Vera), they grew more and more disheartened.
One of the things that struck me about these letters was how sanitized they were. While they all experienced the mud, lice, and rats for which the war was famous, they hardly mentioned the physical nightmare of their lives. The letters were overwhelmingly about the feelings and thoughts of these young people. In spite of everything, they were still quoting poetry and talking about books.
I loved Testament of Youth, written some years after the war, when Vera had had time to process her feelings. But these letters, written as it was all happening, were so much more moving. The two books taken together gave a deeper understanding of what the war meant to Vera Brittain. I am now keen to read her diary and other writings.
August 14, 2015
The contents of the letters written by Vera, Roland, Edward, Victor and Geoffrey will make you smile and cry; you will feel pain for their losses, fear for their lives and pray with Vera that her boys will make it through the War; you will feel angry and powerless while reading the description of young men killed or died of wounds, and you will think of the anguish that thousands of families felt when a telegram would destroy their hope: "Regret to inform..." but also their relief when a postcard or a letter came instead, telling them everything was fine. This book touched my heart deeply and opened my eyes on what the Lost Generation has gone through, and it did so letting them speak to me through their own words.
April 12, 2013
Don't read this without a box of hankies at hand. Obviously time has dated the letters, which can seem rather patronising occasionally, but if you can get past that, this gives you a moving and very personal insight into what it was like (if anyone can imagine anything like the Great War without experiencing it) to be separated by war, to endure war, and what coping mechanisms you used to survive. You can't read it in one go, it's a book to be dipped in and out of, but it's a truly amazing and incredibly moving collection.
August 24, 2016
Incredible to realize that these letters were written by teenagers. Try and picture American teenagers of today doing the same. Hahahahahahahahaha
The whole story of Vera and her lost boys is just so heartbreaking, and all the worse because you know it was repeated literally millions of times over, in one of the most stupid and unnecessary of wars.
The whole story of Vera and her lost boys is just so heartbreaking, and all the worse because you know it was repeated literally millions of times over, in one of the most stupid and unnecessary of wars.
January 15, 2016
Again like its twin book testament of youth..beautiful and heartbreaking. I recommend reading testament of youth first then this one for a full understanding of the letters and the circumstances in which they were written.
March 20, 2009
On of the most moving books I have ever read. Real letters and real stories written between four individuals. Changed my impression of this era of history.
September 8, 2012
Read all her biography books on WW1 this was very good added more to the story especially her own tragic love story
March 5, 2017
Letters from a Lost Generation, is a collection edited by Mark Bostridge and published in 2008, of the letters between Vera Brittain, her brother Edward, and their friends Roland Leighton, Victor Richardson and Geoffrey Thurlow. Both Edward and Roland sent their letters back to Vera for safe-keeping, so the collection of letters between those three is almost complete (barring some letters between Vera and Edward in the last year of Edward’s life). Many of Vera’s letters to Victor and Geoffrey were also returned to Vera eventually. These letters, along with Vera’s diary (published as Chronicle of Youth: The War Diary, 1913-1917) formed the backbone of her excellent memoir, Testament of Youth. I loved reading this book.
It should be fairly obvious that reading Testament of Youth before reading Letters from a Lost Generation would be sensible. Leaving aside the fact that the narrative overlay of Testament of Youth really helps with tracking the events behind the letters (although Bostridge does provide some bridging descriptions).
Being familiar with Testament of Youth helps with contextualising the colour of the letters. The occasional references to Roland’s Quiet Voice, which is one of the things that really gives a sense of him as a person (and his reaction to being admonished when he uses the Quiet Voice), make a lot more sense understanding the place he held in the Uppingham trio of Edward, Roland and Victor, as Brittain explains in Testament of Youth. Actually, I found Roland’s letters completely charming. Although Roland’s view of his own grand destiny—distinguished war service and then a life as a famous man of letters—gave me a sense that he was too big for his boots in Testament of Youth, he doesn’t come across that way in his letters. He comes across as very young, quite awkward, and really damaged by the loss of his illusions in war.
Edward, Victor and Geoffrey are also an interesting study in contrasts. To quote the Amazon description:
"Roland, ‘Monseigneur’, is the 'leader' and his letters most clearly trace the path leading from idealism to disillusionment. Edward, ‘Immaculate of the Trenches’, was orderly and controlled, down even to his attire. Geoffrey, the ‘non-militarist at heart’ had not rushed to enlist but put aside his objections to the war for patriotism's sake. Victor on the other hand, possessed a very sweet character and was known as ‘Father Confessor."
Each of the boys writes in a different tone, but their concerns are the same: the wish to do their job and be brave, a nostalgic yearning for their old public school days, the growing conviction that there is nothing glorious in war. At one point, Vera comments to Victor to the effect that he is very gung ho about the war, and he responds that if he didn’t maintain that way of thinking, he would break down in tears. Geoffrey frequently comments that he is very “windy” (frightened), and in fact was at one point invalided back to Britain to be treated for shell shock. He seems to want to just survive the war. Edward is reticent and controlled, and Roland seems willing to share most of what he is feeling with Vera. This, again, makes his letters touching and fascinating.
Vera anchors the letters. Few of the letters between Roland, Edward, Victor and Geoffrey have been preserved, so in the main the correspondence is between Vera and each of the others. She writes about what is being reported in the papers, such as Rudyard Kipling’s son Jack being missing in action, buying maps of the Western Front to try and figure out where they are, her fear that Edward might be sent to Gallipoli, and her empathy with their frustration at being stuck in camp in England, which ultimately leads her to volunteer as a VAD. I was surprised by how consistently her hatred of VAD work came through in her letters. This was more muted in Testament of Youth (probably with the benefit of hindsight). She repeatedly considered quitting, but her duty and the prospect of overseas service kept her working at the hospital until Victor’s serious injury ultimately brings her home from Malta.
Another thing that is interesting is how quickly letters travel between Vera and Roland during the early years of the war. Not quickly enough to prevent days of terror when Vera read of a battle near where she thought Roland was, but they exchanged letters every few days. This means the sheer volume of their correspondence is enormous; a stark contrast to the amount of time they spent together in person, which if I remember correctly could be counted in days on one hand. Towards 1916 and 1917, Vera frequently expresses frustration at the lag of up to two weeks for letters to travel from the front to England or back. Even the great British postal service brought to her knees under the ravages of war.
I thought Testament of Youth was a magnificent book, and Letters from a Lost Generation just adds to the emotion and understanding. Reading these young people’s experiences and their thoughts, hopes and fears in their own voices is fascinating and it is absolutely heartbreaking when there are no more letters from each in turn.
It should be fairly obvious that reading Testament of Youth before reading Letters from a Lost Generation would be sensible. Leaving aside the fact that the narrative overlay of Testament of Youth really helps with tracking the events behind the letters (although Bostridge does provide some bridging descriptions).
Being familiar with Testament of Youth helps with contextualising the colour of the letters. The occasional references to Roland’s Quiet Voice, which is one of the things that really gives a sense of him as a person (and his reaction to being admonished when he uses the Quiet Voice), make a lot more sense understanding the place he held in the Uppingham trio of Edward, Roland and Victor, as Brittain explains in Testament of Youth. Actually, I found Roland’s letters completely charming. Although Roland’s view of his own grand destiny—distinguished war service and then a life as a famous man of letters—gave me a sense that he was too big for his boots in Testament of Youth, he doesn’t come across that way in his letters. He comes across as very young, quite awkward, and really damaged by the loss of his illusions in war.
Edward, Victor and Geoffrey are also an interesting study in contrasts. To quote the Amazon description:
"Roland, ‘Monseigneur’, is the 'leader' and his letters most clearly trace the path leading from idealism to disillusionment. Edward, ‘Immaculate of the Trenches’, was orderly and controlled, down even to his attire. Geoffrey, the ‘non-militarist at heart’ had not rushed to enlist but put aside his objections to the war for patriotism's sake. Victor on the other hand, possessed a very sweet character and was known as ‘Father Confessor."
Each of the boys writes in a different tone, but their concerns are the same: the wish to do their job and be brave, a nostalgic yearning for their old public school days, the growing conviction that there is nothing glorious in war. At one point, Vera comments to Victor to the effect that he is very gung ho about the war, and he responds that if he didn’t maintain that way of thinking, he would break down in tears. Geoffrey frequently comments that he is very “windy” (frightened), and in fact was at one point invalided back to Britain to be treated for shell shock. He seems to want to just survive the war. Edward is reticent and controlled, and Roland seems willing to share most of what he is feeling with Vera. This, again, makes his letters touching and fascinating.
Vera anchors the letters. Few of the letters between Roland, Edward, Victor and Geoffrey have been preserved, so in the main the correspondence is between Vera and each of the others. She writes about what is being reported in the papers, such as Rudyard Kipling’s son Jack being missing in action, buying maps of the Western Front to try and figure out where they are, her fear that Edward might be sent to Gallipoli, and her empathy with their frustration at being stuck in camp in England, which ultimately leads her to volunteer as a VAD. I was surprised by how consistently her hatred of VAD work came through in her letters. This was more muted in Testament of Youth (probably with the benefit of hindsight). She repeatedly considered quitting, but her duty and the prospect of overseas service kept her working at the hospital until Victor’s serious injury ultimately brings her home from Malta.
Another thing that is interesting is how quickly letters travel between Vera and Roland during the early years of the war. Not quickly enough to prevent days of terror when Vera read of a battle near where she thought Roland was, but they exchanged letters every few days. This means the sheer volume of their correspondence is enormous; a stark contrast to the amount of time they spent together in person, which if I remember correctly could be counted in days on one hand. Towards 1916 and 1917, Vera frequently expresses frustration at the lag of up to two weeks for letters to travel from the front to England or back. Even the great British postal service brought to her knees under the ravages of war.
I thought Testament of Youth was a magnificent book, and Letters from a Lost Generation just adds to the emotion and understanding. Reading these young people’s experiences and their thoughts, hopes and fears in their own voices is fascinating and it is absolutely heartbreaking when there are no more letters from each in turn.
August 7, 2025
Such a haunting book which does not leave you. The descriptions of the conditions on the front line in France as depicted in letter form are harrowing. Even though a lot is known about the First World War, to imagine these four lads living through it and not surviving mirrors the experiences of countless families at the time.
August 3, 2015
This is a compilation of the letters between Vera Brittain and Roland Leighton (her fiance), Edward Brittain (her brother), and two friends, Victor and Geoffrey. But the overwhelming bulk of the letters are with Roland and Edward.
Roland and Edward both sent her letters to them back to her for safe-keeping, so the book has both sides of the conversation, which is terrific. And the correspondence is a nice addition to Testament of Youth, Vera Brittain's WWI memoir, which used snippets of many of these letters. The overwhelming amount of correspondence between Vera and Roland, as well as the emotional tones of the letters, give a much clearer sense of how she was so in love with someone despite having so little in-person contact (I believe, in total, they spent 17 days together in person).
The letters are also interesting because their personalities and opinions are presented without the veneer inevitable in the memoir, which Vera wrote to be read by others. These letters reveal some class snobbery on the parts of Vera and Rolland, who both seemed to believe that the lives of officers (who came from the upper and upper-middle classes) were somehow more important than the lives of the "ordinary" soldiers. I suppose this makes sense given the time period, but it was still interesting to read.
I have one caveat and one slight criticism of the book. The caveat is that the book does not stand on its own. It is a very, very nice addition to Testament of Youth, and it adds to that memoir. But the letters do not serve as a substitute for reading Testament of Youth (and as are they not intended as such, this isn't really a criticism). So definitely read Testament of Youth first.
My one criticism is that the letters are organized chronologically, which would under other circumstances make sense. However, in this case, and especially with the correspondence between Roland and Vera, because they wrote to one another almost daily, but there were somewhat large delays between when a letter was written and when it reached its destination, the conversations weren't chronological. In other words, if Roland wrote to Vera on November 18, that letter would appear before her letter on November 19. However, her November 19 letter was actually responding to a letter that he had written on November 13, which is now a half dozen pages back. It made the read somewhat disjointed at times, and it also meant the reader isn't experiencing the letters as Vera and Rolland did. This was especially disconcerting when they had a brief spat - because you read the letter (from Rolland) that caused the argument - then read several random letters that had been written before that particular letter from Rolland arrived - then you read Vera's response - and then a bunch more random letters before Rolland responded to Vera's response and apologized. Although it would have been a very difficult task, I think the letters would have been better organized by conversation, rather than by a strict chronological order.
Overall though, I think this is a must-read for any fan of Testament of Youth who would like more insight into the people's personalities.
Roland and Edward both sent her letters to them back to her for safe-keeping, so the book has both sides of the conversation, which is terrific. And the correspondence is a nice addition to Testament of Youth, Vera Brittain's WWI memoir, which used snippets of many of these letters. The overwhelming amount of correspondence between Vera and Roland, as well as the emotional tones of the letters, give a much clearer sense of how she was so in love with someone despite having so little in-person contact (I believe, in total, they spent 17 days together in person).
The letters are also interesting because their personalities and opinions are presented without the veneer inevitable in the memoir, which Vera wrote to be read by others. These letters reveal some class snobbery on the parts of Vera and Rolland, who both seemed to believe that the lives of officers (who came from the upper and upper-middle classes) were somehow more important than the lives of the "ordinary" soldiers. I suppose this makes sense given the time period, but it was still interesting to read.
I have one caveat and one slight criticism of the book. The caveat is that the book does not stand on its own. It is a very, very nice addition to Testament of Youth, and it adds to that memoir. But the letters do not serve as a substitute for reading Testament of Youth (and as are they not intended as such, this isn't really a criticism). So definitely read Testament of Youth first.
My one criticism is that the letters are organized chronologically, which would under other circumstances make sense. However, in this case, and especially with the correspondence between Roland and Vera, because they wrote to one another almost daily, but there were somewhat large delays between when a letter was written and when it reached its destination, the conversations weren't chronological. In other words, if Roland wrote to Vera on November 18, that letter would appear before her letter on November 19. However, her November 19 letter was actually responding to a letter that he had written on November 13, which is now a half dozen pages back. It made the read somewhat disjointed at times, and it also meant the reader isn't experiencing the letters as Vera and Rolland did. This was especially disconcerting when they had a brief spat - because you read the letter (from Rolland) that caused the argument - then read several random letters that had been written before that particular letter from Rolland arrived - then you read Vera's response - and then a bunch more random letters before Rolland responded to Vera's response and apologized. Although it would have been a very difficult task, I think the letters would have been better organized by conversation, rather than by a strict chronological order.
Overall though, I think this is a must-read for any fan of Testament of Youth who would like more insight into the people's personalities.
July 24, 2016
Ce recueil de lettres complète parfaitement Testament of Youth, de Vera Brittain. Il s'agit d'un témoignage brut, bouleversant, incroyablement puissant.
C'est un précieux témoignage de la guerre au quotidien, que ce soit du point de vue de Vera, d'abord étudiante à Oxford puis volontaire dans les VAD et merveilleuse épistolière, ou de celui de ces quatre jeunes hommes, à la fois très caractéristiques de la société edwardienne (notamment dans les distinctions entre classes sociales) et bouillonnant d'idées nouvelles (le féminisme radical de Roland), passés directement des bancs des publics schools anglaises, avec le formatage idéologique idoine les poussant à s'engager dès 1914, à la guerre.
On suit le parcours de ces jeunes officiers subalternes, on devine dans leurs lettres le contraste entre les doutes, le désabusement, l'amertume, la peur et cet écrasant sens du devoir qui les guide en permanence.
Lire les descriptions à la fois drôles et parfois lyriques de Geoffrey ou celles, merveilleusement poétiques, de Roland, renforce singulièrement cette impression de gâchis tragique, malheureusement caractéristique de la très courte espérance de vie des officiers subalternes britanniques pendant la guerre, "first over the top and last to retreat". Le terme de "lost generation" est on ne peut plus approprié.
Les lettres entre Roland et Vera, plus nombreuses que les extraits compris dans Testament of Youth (et encore, toutes n'ont pas été publiées, de l'aveu même de l'éditeur il y a des centaines de lettres et il était impossible de tout compiler dans un seul livre), nous permettent de mieux percevoir leur relation et son développement et de mieux suivre le parcours de Roland, poète exalté qui découvre rapidement la réalité de la guerre et verse peu à peu dans le cynisme.
On perçoit, peut-être encore mieux que dans le livre de Vera Brittain, la personnalité de chacun de ces jeunes gens, notamment Geoffrey Thurlow et Victor Richardson, un peu "écrasés", dans le livre, par le souvenir du flamboyant Roland Leighton.
De même, les lettres entre Vera et son frère nous permettent de mieux comprendre l'attachement indéfectible qui les unit.
J'ai passionnément aimé lire ce livre. Il m'a fait prendre la mesure, comme dans Testament of Youth, de la réalité de cette guerre et du ressenti d'une partie de ses contemporains. On aimerait presque que ça soit une fiction, à la fin, tellement il semble impossible d'imaginer l'état de dévastation de Vera Brittain à la fin de la guerre. Ca se lit comme un très beau et très triste roman et c'est un des plus bouleversants témoignages de la Grande Guerre que j'ai pu lire.
C'est un précieux témoignage de la guerre au quotidien, que ce soit du point de vue de Vera, d'abord étudiante à Oxford puis volontaire dans les VAD et merveilleuse épistolière, ou de celui de ces quatre jeunes hommes, à la fois très caractéristiques de la société edwardienne (notamment dans les distinctions entre classes sociales) et bouillonnant d'idées nouvelles (le féminisme radical de Roland), passés directement des bancs des publics schools anglaises, avec le formatage idéologique idoine les poussant à s'engager dès 1914, à la guerre.
On suit le parcours de ces jeunes officiers subalternes, on devine dans leurs lettres le contraste entre les doutes, le désabusement, l'amertume, la peur et cet écrasant sens du devoir qui les guide en permanence.
Lire les descriptions à la fois drôles et parfois lyriques de Geoffrey ou celles, merveilleusement poétiques, de Roland, renforce singulièrement cette impression de gâchis tragique, malheureusement caractéristique de la très courte espérance de vie des officiers subalternes britanniques pendant la guerre, "first over the top and last to retreat". Le terme de "lost generation" est on ne peut plus approprié.
Les lettres entre Roland et Vera, plus nombreuses que les extraits compris dans Testament of Youth (et encore, toutes n'ont pas été publiées, de l'aveu même de l'éditeur il y a des centaines de lettres et il était impossible de tout compiler dans un seul livre), nous permettent de mieux percevoir leur relation et son développement et de mieux suivre le parcours de Roland, poète exalté qui découvre rapidement la réalité de la guerre et verse peu à peu dans le cynisme.
On perçoit, peut-être encore mieux que dans le livre de Vera Brittain, la personnalité de chacun de ces jeunes gens, notamment Geoffrey Thurlow et Victor Richardson, un peu "écrasés", dans le livre, par le souvenir du flamboyant Roland Leighton.
De même, les lettres entre Vera et son frère nous permettent de mieux comprendre l'attachement indéfectible qui les unit.
J'ai passionnément aimé lire ce livre. Il m'a fait prendre la mesure, comme dans Testament of Youth, de la réalité de cette guerre et du ressenti d'une partie de ses contemporains. On aimerait presque que ça soit une fiction, à la fin, tellement il semble impossible d'imaginer l'état de dévastation de Vera Brittain à la fin de la guerre. Ca se lit comme un très beau et très triste roman et c'est un des plus bouleversants témoignages de la Grande Guerre que j'ai pu lire.
March 30, 2015
I really miss writing and receiving letters. We used to share so much. I can remember exchanging intense letters with my fiance and being a little awkward when we were face-to-face because we had shared so much and it was difficult to discuss the same things in person. I also shared so much with my friends and discovered things about myself I couldn't have any other way.
So this book is precious to me for that reason. I doubt future biographers or historians will find the same wealth of material in all the emails we send.
Vera Brittain wrote letters to her fiance, her brother, and two friends during WWI. She lost all of them to the war. The book is thereby more poignant than other volumes of war letters.
It's fascinating to see her grow up during this time. Starting as a war "believer," so upset with young men who would not enlist, she becomes aware of what war really is through these letters and begins to modify her positions. She also becomes a volunteer nurse and sees firsthand the type of injuries war inflicts: physical and mental.
My heart tugged and I smiled wistfully as she wrote to her fiance, just as I did mine at that age. The things they shared, other than that they were at war, were so many of the same things we shared. And we suffered the same awkwardness when we were together.
Some of the letters are a little disquieting - she believes her class is above the general run-of-the-mill people and bemoans that the "brightest and the best" are the first to volunteer for the "glory" of war and are lost to the world by their deaths. However, it's the same type of feelings we often have when we are young. Our group is the best. We're the only intelligent ones and shouldn't be wasted on mundane matters.
So all I could do was enjoy. Letters are SO personal and yet so indicative of the nature of the human being.
I'm so sorry that we won't be priviledged to this means of communication much longer.
So this book is precious to me for that reason. I doubt future biographers or historians will find the same wealth of material in all the emails we send.
Vera Brittain wrote letters to her fiance, her brother, and two friends during WWI. She lost all of them to the war. The book is thereby more poignant than other volumes of war letters.
It's fascinating to see her grow up during this time. Starting as a war "believer," so upset with young men who would not enlist, she becomes aware of what war really is through these letters and begins to modify her positions. She also becomes a volunteer nurse and sees firsthand the type of injuries war inflicts: physical and mental.
My heart tugged and I smiled wistfully as she wrote to her fiance, just as I did mine at that age. The things they shared, other than that they were at war, were so many of the same things we shared. And we suffered the same awkwardness when we were together.
Some of the letters are a little disquieting - she believes her class is above the general run-of-the-mill people and bemoans that the "brightest and the best" are the first to volunteer for the "glory" of war and are lost to the world by their deaths. However, it's the same type of feelings we often have when we are young. Our group is the best. We're the only intelligent ones and shouldn't be wasted on mundane matters.
So all I could do was enjoy. Letters are SO personal and yet so indicative of the nature of the human being.
I'm so sorry that we won't be priviledged to this means of communication much longer.
January 22, 2016
This is a fascinating book and, because the letters in it are edited and abridged, it can be read in small chunks or large sections which makes it very accessible.
And then he died. But that is not a spoiler as the book chronicles the letters between Vera Brittain, her brother and their 3 friends through the first world war. Where other books make an effort to try to describe the horrors of trench war and the dreadful conditions the soldiers had to endure this book looks at the 1st war through the eyes of privilege. These young people were about to go to university - Oxford of course - and their families were able to own country houses and apartments in "town" with staff so the view of war both on England and in the trenches in France (and Italy) is rather different but one equally valid to record. These boys describe being billeted in farm houses and, when in a trench, being inside a timber hut. You would get the feeling that war was a 9 to 5 process with everyone going for dinner and to sleep at civilised times- they even kept servants with them.
What makes this book so special though is the writing. Letter writing is a lost art and presently being buried by email, text, twitter, snapchat and other "social media" so it is wonderful to see how people communicated when they had pen and paper. Letter allow much more to be said and expressed and allow exploration of ideas and thoughts but they do take time and effort to write. Even when sitting in the trenches waiting for the call. There is a love story acted out through letters but never brought to a conclusion and pain and anguish as battles rage and the fate of the boys is not know, and then even more when it is.
And then he died. But that is not a spoiler as the book chronicles the letters between Vera Brittain, her brother and their 3 friends through the first world war. Where other books make an effort to try to describe the horrors of trench war and the dreadful conditions the soldiers had to endure this book looks at the 1st war through the eyes of privilege. These young people were about to go to university - Oxford of course - and their families were able to own country houses and apartments in "town" with staff so the view of war both on England and in the trenches in France (and Italy) is rather different but one equally valid to record. These boys describe being billeted in farm houses and, when in a trench, being inside a timber hut. You would get the feeling that war was a 9 to 5 process with everyone going for dinner and to sleep at civilised times- they even kept servants with them.
What makes this book so special though is the writing. Letter writing is a lost art and presently being buried by email, text, twitter, snapchat and other "social media" so it is wonderful to see how people communicated when they had pen and paper. Letter allow much more to be said and expressed and allow exploration of ideas and thoughts but they do take time and effort to write. Even when sitting in the trenches waiting for the call. There is a love story acted out through letters but never brought to a conclusion and pain and anguish as battles rage and the fate of the boys is not know, and then even more when it is.
September 2, 2017
I feel wrung out after finishing this extraordinary collection of letters. I've read both Testament of Youth and Chronicle of Youth, but I wanted to explore more of this story. There's nothing like reading actual, first-person accounts of the men and women who served in the Great War. To imagine the conditions of the trenches and dugouts that these men wrote from is simply astounding. And there is nothing more chilling than a sudden stop to the letters. Vera writes often about the agonizing delay in letters, the horror of writing a letter to someone who has already, unbeknownst to you, passed from this life. This collection does an admirable job of bringing the reader immediately into the lives of those involved in WWI, but particularly does a fantastic job of filling in the lives of Geoffrey Thurlow and Victor Richardson, and contextualizing just how important their relationships were to Vera and Edward Brittain. It's touching to see their correspondence with Vera grow with their first written exchanges to each other - and all the more heartbreaking when those letters stop.
January 31, 2010
WHat a read! I learnt so much about WW1 both from the point of view of the men who fought and those left behind. I couldn't get over how much the men wanted to be posted to the Front. The letters give a fantastic insight into the daily rountine of war, the billeting and catering as well as the fighting.
I didn't like Vera's brother, finance or friends though! They were very stuck up and wrote about what a great loss to the country the death of men of their kind were compared to the insignificance of the rank and file - disgusting.
WHat did impress was the letter writing itself - we've clearly lost the knack. I was amazed that letters could be delivered to and from the Front, to men in the trenches, what a postal service they had back then.
Glad I read it, it was enlightening.
I didn't like Vera's brother, finance or friends though! They were very stuck up and wrote about what a great loss to the country the death of men of their kind were compared to the insignificance of the rank and file - disgusting.
WHat did impress was the letter writing itself - we've clearly lost the knack. I was amazed that letters could be delivered to and from the Front, to men in the trenches, what a postal service they had back then.
Glad I read it, it was enlightening.
February 1, 2016
This book gave me a terrible feeling in the belly in some places, because these letters, albeit edited, are the real words and thoughts of four young men who died so terribly young in World War One. Their letters range from whimsical to describing the boredom of trench warfare and their very young ideas on fighting for glory--and poetry, particularly from Roland Leighton, whose "Villanelle" is incredibly powerful. Of course, without Vera Brittain, these letters and these men would simply be four more young lives lost in that terrible war a hundred years ago. There is something so moving about the written word--it can survive us and become our legacy.
February 9, 2021
I definitely think it took me way too wrong to read this though I know why.... it's because I had set it aside to read other things and until recently was only reading it when I was deciding what to read next.
I feel like at the end the letters got one sided though I suspect this may be due to Vera's brother Edward possibly losing her letters and they were never found after his death. I feel a great sympathy for Vera having lost her brother fiancé and friends to the war. I feel horrible that these were people living through the first war of the world. I imagine once it was over they never imagined in their worst fears or nightmares that there would ever be a second of the same magnitude.
I feel like at the end the letters got one sided though I suspect this may be due to Vera's brother Edward possibly losing her letters and they were never found after his death. I feel a great sympathy for Vera having lost her brother fiancé and friends to the war. I feel horrible that these were people living through the first war of the world. I imagine once it was over they never imagined in their worst fears or nightmares that there would ever be a second of the same magnitude.
October 10, 2015
This was a hard collection to get started with, but pretty soon I was hooked on the narrative of Vera and her friends. Of course I knew what would happen from the beginning -- this is history, after all -- but reading about how each soldier faced his death in his own words and how Vera handled the news was fascinating as well as heartbreaking. Perhaps it's our natural human curiosity about death, but I kept imagining what I would do in her shoes, and part of me still can't fathom the personal costs of WWI.
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