Set before and during the great war, this work captures the drama of that era on both a national and a personal scale. It is the story of Stephen, a young Englishman, who arrives in Amiens in 1910. His life goes through a series of traumatic experiences, from the clandestine love affair to the unprecedented experiences of the war itself.

In 1914, a room full of German schoolboys, fresh-faced and idealistic, are goaded by their schoolmaster to troop off to the 'glorious war'. With the fire and patriotism of youth, they sign up. What follows is the story of a young 'unknown soldier' experiencing the horror and disillusionment of life in the trenches.

In this study of World War I the author presents the military conflict, the battles on land, sea and in the air, together with interpretations of military events. He also shows how the war also acted as an engine for social change which shapes our world today.

A wonderfully entertaining collection of Alan Bennett's writings, and the companion volume to 'Untold Stories'. Rejacketed to accompany the paperback of 'Untold Stories' and the film of The History Boys.

* A unique record of one woman's experience of twenty-five of the most cataclysmic years in modern history - and a Virago Classic bestseller - with a new introduction by Mark Bostridge