Interviews with people who were actually there at the time make Caroline Taggart's book both hard-hitting and nostalgic in a good way. Interviewees, now aged between 80 and 101, recall their lives as children or young adults with their own children at Christmas time in Britain during World War II. The book is split into chapters dealing with different areas of the topic, such as children being evacuated, using and decorating air-raid shelters, and the quest for turkeys or poultry for Christmas dinner. We learn individual stories about the small things that make Christmas Christmas, such as getting a stocking with an apple, an orange and some nuts, things we take for granted these days, or the lack of alcohol to make Christmas cakes and puddings and the need to revert to mashed carrots and beetroot in order to create something remotely close to the real thing.
The stories included range from heartwarming to chilling with everything in between, and the strength of these people and the admiration we should feel for them does not go unnoticed as you read through this easy to digest volume. It is a true eye-opener full of both historical facts included by Taggart, and a range of stories and diary entries from ordinary people who lived extraordinary lives and, thankfully for us, are still around to share them.
The stories included range from heartwarming to chilling with everything in between, and the strength of these people and the admiration we should feel for them does not go unnoticed as you read through this easy to digest volume. It is a true eye-opener full of both historical facts included by Taggart, and a range of stories and diary entries from ordinary people who lived extraordinary lives and, thankfully for us, are still around to share them.