Testament of youth by vera brittain 2015, paperback ebay. The testament of youth was written 15 years after the first world war, therefore it is not perhaps as reliable because shes had time to forget the memories and also be given different peoples views which would mean that she didnt put something in or changed it because it didnt fit with her new views. In 2016, the guardian journalist, robert mccrum listed vera brittains testament of youth as the 42nd best nonfiction book of all times. What follows are extracts from his article and a passage from the testament of youth s.
However, more than eighty years after it was written, there are no doubt younger people who have never heard of it and older people who have it gathering dust on one their shelves. The vera brittain selection is, of course, from testament of youth. Testament of youth by vera brittain, first edition abebooks. In a sense, testament of experience is a selfcontained memoir of a quartercenturys private and public events, but the book is best read in connection with its predecessor, testament of youth. His parents, robert leighton and marie connor, were both writers. Francis mackay was very supportive when i suggested how i wanted to chop up his text and combine widely scattered sections. Testament of youth, vera brittains memoir of life, love, and loss during wwi first came to my attention because of masterpiece theater which serialized it at least 20 years ago. Vera brittain 18931970 served as a nurse in the british armed forces in world war i and afterward devoted herself to the causes of peace and feminism. In 1914 vera brittain was 20, and as war was declared she was preparing to study at oxford. Testament of youth is the best book ive ever read with the exception of the scriptures. Read testament of youth pdf free video dailymotion. It is no accident that vera brittain began writing testament of youth, her peerless memoir of a. Testament of youth by vera brittain is a book whose deep significance can hardly be overestimated.
Testament of youth is a 2014 british drama film based on the first world war memoir of the same name written by vera brittain. Iris cranes tranquil life is shattered when a letter summons memories from her bittersweet past. This is an exlibrary book and may have the usual libraryused book markings inside. With the outbreak of the second world war, brittains. Much of what we know and feel about the first world war we owe to vera brittains elegiac yet unsparing book, which set a standard for memoirists from martha gellhorn to lillian hellman. Brittains memoir continues with testament of experience, published in 1957, and encompassing the years 19251950. Vera brittain biography short bio vera brittain 18931970 vera brittain was an english writer, feminist and pacifist, who wrote the best selling testament of youth an account of her traumatic experiences during the first world war. Please note the image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item,450grams, isbn. In 2010, i read her memoir again and i may reread it a third time as i also experience. Testament of youth by vera brittain simon potter the coming weeks, thinking faith will contribute to the favourite piece of world war i literature, and well be recommending to you a mixture of popular and lesserknown texts. She died on march 29, 1970 in wimbledon, surrey, england.
Testament of youth is brittains account of how she survived those agonising. The first part of a trilogy, it covers the years 19001925, from brittains early schoolage childhood through her late thirties, in the context of great britain and the anticipation and wake of world war i. Testament of youth excerpts vancouver island university. There were also letters from both men and women describing how testament of youth had hardened their own condemnation of. On vera brittains testament of youth, and extract from. An autobiographical study of the years 1925 50 paperback 16 aug. It is acclaimed as a canonical description of the impact of world. A modern classic, testament of youth is both an elegy and a memoir, a book for all seasons that would have a remarkable literary afterlife in the 1970s and 1980s. By wars end she had lost virtually everyone she loved. Testament of youth by vera brittain thinking faith. The publisher calls this a classic memoir of the first world war. Testament of youth ebook by vera brittain 9780297859147. Marie was the more commercially successful and wrote adventure books the best known being convict 99. Abandoning her studies at oxford in 1915 to enlist as a nurse in the armed services, brittain served in london, in malta, and on the western front.
Testament of youth is a 1933 autobiographical memoir by vera brittain. Vera brittain was born on december 29, 1893 in newcastleunderlyme, staffordshire, england as vera mary brittain. Between these two books comes testament of friendship published in 1940, which is essentially a memoir of brittains close colleague and. Over the next six years, testament of youth sold 120,000 copies. Four years later her life had changed in a way that would have been unimaginable in the tranquil prewar era. In a prologue set in 1918 on the day of the armistice, the palette is a chill blue and vera wanders dazed through the jubilant crowds. An autobiographical story of the war generation of england moving, beautiful, and tragic. Letter from vera to roland, 1915, p127 testament of youth is a momentous historical text preserving for us the lucky generations what war really meant. Simon potter begins with his own testament to vera brittains memoir, testament of youth. Testament of youth is a necessary reminder of the impact. Read testament of youth an autobiographical study of the years 19001925 by vera brittain available from rakuten kobo. The beginning of testament of youth prepares you for the end.
She wrote twentynine books, of which testament of youth is the bestknown. Testament of youth is a marvellous book and very famous too, so it hardly needs boosting from me. Quotes from books, letters and other sources about he first world war i wish those people who write so glibly about this being a holy war and the orators who talk so much about going on, no matter how long the war lasts and what it may mean, could see a case of musterd gas the poor things burnt and blistered all over with great musterd. The most important thing that the reader learns about world. Vera brittains blazing wartime memoir, testament of youth, is coming to the big screen. For fans of vera brittains testament of youth, a bestselling writers american debut and a heartwrenching novel of wwia tale of love, regret, and the powerful draw of the road not taken. Testament of youth has been acclaimed as a classic for its description of the impact of world war i on the lives of women and the middleclass civilian population of great britain.
She was a writer, known for testament of youth 2014, testament of youth 1979 and the first world war 2003. Testament of youth is a memoir written by vera brittain, first published in 1933, and deals with the authors life during world war i. Even war must end some time, and perhaps if we are alive in three or four years time, we may recover the hidden childhood again and find that after all the dust and ashes which covered it havent spoilt it much. Sarah crompton joins shirley williams, brittains daughter, and the films stars on set. Based on the memoir by vera brittain, a british woman recalls coming of age during world war i. Testament of youth by juliette towhidi based on the autobiography of vera brittain white shooting script 03. Testament of youth is the first instalment, covering 19001925, in the memoir of vera brittain 18931970.
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