The Times Great War Letters

James Owen and Samantha Wyndham (eds) • £20

This book is a selection of more than 300 letters published by The Times newspaper between 1914 and 1918, as its readers and the nation alike endured the ordeal of the First World War. Much of the correspondence relates to the conflict – the news, or absence of news, from the trenches and the sacrifices being made on the Home Front. Celebrated politicians and the man on the Clapham omnibus both responded to the horrors of gas and the slaughter on the Somme. It was at this time, too, that the newspaper’s famous letters page began to take on its distinctive nature, finding room for offbeat or humorous topics and writers who held up a mirror to Britain’s character and its changing moods.

Lost and Found: A Study of the Pre- War Mindset: 1900-1914

David Conduct • £4.99

Meticulously researched by David Conduct, this is a fascinating, insightful look into why the world responded so enthusiastically to the outbreak of WW1, and how the bygone value system and mindset of that period makes it almost impossible to empathise with today. Ultimately, the volume attempts to uncover and draw parallels between that ‘lost world’ and present times.

Nursing Through the Years: Care and Compassion at the Royal London Hospital

Loretta Bellman, Sue Boase, Sarah Rogers, Barbara Stuchfield • £14.99
Pen & Sword

Marking the 70th anniversary of the NHS, this unique book reveals the fascinating lives of nurses who trained and worked at The Royal London Hospital, serving the community of the East End of London, based on interviews with more than 85 nurses.