Kindle Price: $13.99

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

Buy for others

Give as a gift or purchase for a team or group.
Learn more

Buying and sending eBooks to others

  1. Select quantity
  2. Buy and send eBooks
  3. Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Malcolm Brown
+ Follow
More books from this author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Tommy Goes to War Kindle Edition

by Malcolm Brown (Author), Gary Sheffield (Foreword) Format: Kindle Edition
3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 11 ratings
See all formats and editions
The image of the innocent British soldier (or Tommy) setting off with a spring in his step in 1914 to fight the Great War would not last long.Indeed that initial euphoria would soon give way to a deep-seated bitterness as these young men endured the horror of the First World War.In a new edition of this extraordinary book, the uncensored letters, diaries, documents and many photographs tell the story of the British soldier (nicknamed Tommy) in their own words.While there are flashes of their wit and humour, the overwhelming feeling is that of a generation who felt let down by their superiors and left to perish.There are visceral, terrifying insights into life in the trenches and agonising descriptions of the squalor and privations of war.This haunting account also looks at the aggressive drive to recruit more soldiers through the Pals Battalion or Chums Battalion. Friends from the same town or village; professional bodies, or work colleagues among others were encouraged to enlist en masse. They would fight together alongside their friends or colleagues. Many of them would sadly die together and leave communities wild with grief for a lost generation, robbed of a future having barely had a past.With a concise analysis of the British Army in the First World War, we are reminded of the terror of war, the fury, the fear and the frustration of what has been described by some as a war typified by the devastating assessment: lions led by donkeys.
Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. Print length
    206 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Greenhill Books
  5. Publication date
    October 30, 2018
  6. File size
    11747 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
Next page
Due to its large file size, this book may take longer to download

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Malcolm Brown studied at St John’s College, Oxford. He spent his national service in the Royal Navy. He joined the BBC in 1955 and has been a documentary producer since 1980, specializing mainly in historical and biographical programs. He has worked on many programs including the landmark BBC documentary The Battle of the Somme. He died in December 2017.

Born in 1961, Gary Sheffield studied history at the University of Leeds, before beginning to lecture on war studies at the Royal Military Sandhurst Academy. He then completed his PhD at King’s College, London.

After finishing his studies, Sheffield moved into full-time academia, as Professor of Modern History at King’s College, and then the first Professor of War Studies at the University of Birmingham. He later moved to the University of Wolverhampton.

Sheffield has been published widely on military history subjects, with his second book, The Chief: Douglas Haig and the British Army (2011) widely commended in both academic and popular circles alike.

Sheffield currently serves as Vice President of the Western Front Association and sits on the Advisory Board of the Royal United Services Institute.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07NJCYXGT
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Greenhill Books; Reprint edition (October 30, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 30, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 11747 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 206 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 11 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Malcolm Brown

Malcolm Brown

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5 stars
3.7 out of 5
11 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Kevin Cullen
5.0 out of 5 stars Best book on World War I I've ever read ...
Reviewed in the United States on April 20, 2015
Verified Purchase
The best book on World War I I've ever read. Extremely personal, colorful and intimate. Brown uses the actual words of the veterans to recreate their lost world. Highly recommended.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
M. Schroeder
4.0 out of 5 stars The Tommy's Scrapbook for WW1
Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2008
I recommend this book for the pictures alone. This book is not as good as either Mud, Blood and Poppycock by Gordon Corrigan, or Tommy: The British Soldier on the Western Front 1914-1918 by Richard Holmes. On the other hand, this book used a lot of excerpts from letters, and hundreds of pictures. Quite of bit of the book discusses the "Pals" or "Chums" battalions, this was a British idea of having all of a public schools graduates join the same battalion. This turned out to be a horrible idea, especially when the chums all went over the top together into several machine guns.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Patrick Moran
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 13, 2016
Verified Purchase
excellent
2 people found this helpful
 Report
D. Canavan
5.0 out of 5 stars excellent
Reviewed in Canada on July 22, 2012
Verified Purchase
Tommy goes to war is a factual account of world war one. The photo's include the service men and women who served and sacrificed for us. Fantasic to teach our children and grandchildren history.
Report
jill eley
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 4, 2018
Verified Purchase
Great book
One person found this helpful
 Report
Peter I. Robbins
3.0 out of 5 stars The common man's version of war
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 8, 2013
Verified Purchase
This book is very reable, and reinforces the theory that World War 1 was about "lions being led by donkeys".
One person found this helpful
 Report

Report an issue


Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report