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Blitz Kids: The Children's War Against Hitler
From the dangers of London streets during the Blitz to working on the high seas in the Merchant Navy during the Atlantic Convoy, children were on the frontline of battle during the Second World War. In Sean Longden's gripping retelling of the conflict, he explores how the war impacted upon a whole generation who lost their innocence at home and abroad, on the battlefield and the home front.
Through extensive interviews and research, Longden uncovers previously untold stories of heroism and the eleven year old boy who was sunk on the SS Benares and left in frozen water for two days; the teenage Girl Guide awarded the George Medal for bravery; the merchant seaman sunk three times by the age of seventeen; the fourteen year old who signed up for the army three times before finally seeing action in the Normandy campaign; the fourteen year old 'Boy Buglers' of the Royal Marines on active service onboard battleships; as well as the harrowing experiences of the boy who was survived the Bethnal Green Tube Disaster; the horrors of being a child captive in the German PoW camps.
Blitz Kids will change forever the way one sees the relationship between the Second World War and the generation - our grandparents and great grandparents- who bravely faced the challenge of Nazism. Allowing them to tell their stories in their own words, Sean Longden brings both the horrors and the humour of young lives lived in troubled times.
The book includes stories
The seventeen year old boy who signed up 4 times before he made it onto the beaches at Normandy.
The Girl Guide who saved a family during the blitz.
The teenage merchant seaman who was sunk three times.
What it was like to be a teenage POW after the disasters of Dunkirk.
Praise for Sean Longden :
"A rising name in military history ... able to uncover the missing stories of the Second World War." The Guardian
'A tenacious sleuth of Second World War secrets.' Andrew Roberts.
'At times you have to stop and remind yourself that you're reading history and not an 007 thriller." The Soldier.
'First class history from a first class historian' Military Illustrated.
'Fascinating'. Financial Times .
Through extensive interviews and research, Longden uncovers previously untold stories of heroism and the eleven year old boy who was sunk on the SS Benares and left in frozen water for two days; the teenage Girl Guide awarded the George Medal for bravery; the merchant seaman sunk three times by the age of seventeen; the fourteen year old who signed up for the army three times before finally seeing action in the Normandy campaign; the fourteen year old 'Boy Buglers' of the Royal Marines on active service onboard battleships; as well as the harrowing experiences of the boy who was survived the Bethnal Green Tube Disaster; the horrors of being a child captive in the German PoW camps.
Blitz Kids will change forever the way one sees the relationship between the Second World War and the generation - our grandparents and great grandparents- who bravely faced the challenge of Nazism. Allowing them to tell their stories in their own words, Sean Longden brings both the horrors and the humour of young lives lived in troubled times.
The book includes stories
The seventeen year old boy who signed up 4 times before he made it onto the beaches at Normandy.
The Girl Guide who saved a family during the blitz.
The teenage merchant seaman who was sunk three times.
What it was like to be a teenage POW after the disasters of Dunkirk.
Praise for Sean Longden :
"A rising name in military history ... able to uncover the missing stories of the Second World War." The Guardian
'A tenacious sleuth of Second World War secrets.' Andrew Roberts.
'At times you have to stop and remind yourself that you're reading history and not an 007 thriller." The Soldier.
'First class history from a first class historian' Military Illustrated.
'Fascinating'. Financial Times .
541 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2012
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93 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 28, 2015
I was disappointed with this book. Not because it's not an excellent book, well-written, comprehensively researched, sympathetic and engaging. It is indeed all of those things. Sean Longden really succeeds in bringing to life, through his engaging narrative and first-person accounts, what life must have like for the youth of Britain growing up during wartime, suffering through the Blitz, being evacuated, volunteering for service, being bombed, under fire, ships sunk, kill or be killed. For an account of life as a young boy at war, I would imagine this book has few rivals.
But I was disappointed for what it left out - approximately 50% of its supposed subjects. Reading this book you wouldn't know that women (or more appropriately girls, given the topic) were involved in WW2 at all. Where are the teenage girls inflating their ages to join the Women's Royal Naval Service, or the Women’s Voluntary Service, or the Auxiliary Territorial Service, or the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force? Where are the girls training as nurses and being posted to field hospitals in the thick of the fighting? Where are the references to the thousands of young women and girls in the Women's Land Army? Where are the munitions girls? Where are the young girls who stayed at home with their mothers when their fathers and brothers went to war? Where are the girls raising their younger siblings whilst their mothers worked all day? Quite frankly, where are the girls? There is one single chapter that focuses exclusively on girls and young women, and the topic? Prostitution.
I appreciate that the story of the young girls of Britain is not as exciting as that of the boys - probably both for the writer as much as the reader. The girls were not being sunk at sea aged fourteen; were not teenage cadets being trained with rifle and bayonet; were not running away to join the Navy or the Commandos or the infantry; were not seeing the horrors of war before they'd even reached eighteen. But to neglect their story so entirely can only be a deliberate decision on the part of either the writer or the publishers, and that is shameful. The story is only half-told in this book, and as such, for all its other excellent qualities, I was disappointed. It really ought to be entitled 'Blitz Boys'.
But I was disappointed for what it left out - approximately 50% of its supposed subjects. Reading this book you wouldn't know that women (or more appropriately girls, given the topic) were involved in WW2 at all. Where are the teenage girls inflating their ages to join the Women's Royal Naval Service, or the Women’s Voluntary Service, or the Auxiliary Territorial Service, or the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force? Where are the girls training as nurses and being posted to field hospitals in the thick of the fighting? Where are the references to the thousands of young women and girls in the Women's Land Army? Where are the munitions girls? Where are the young girls who stayed at home with their mothers when their fathers and brothers went to war? Where are the girls raising their younger siblings whilst their mothers worked all day? Quite frankly, where are the girls? There is one single chapter that focuses exclusively on girls and young women, and the topic? Prostitution.
I appreciate that the story of the young girls of Britain is not as exciting as that of the boys - probably both for the writer as much as the reader. The girls were not being sunk at sea aged fourteen; were not teenage cadets being trained with rifle and bayonet; were not running away to join the Navy or the Commandos or the infantry; were not seeing the horrors of war before they'd even reached eighteen. But to neglect their story so entirely can only be a deliberate decision on the part of either the writer or the publishers, and that is shameful. The story is only half-told in this book, and as such, for all its other excellent qualities, I was disappointed. It really ought to be entitled 'Blitz Boys'.
May 19, 2018
Most of the time when you read about British teens during WW2 they are plane spotting and collecting scrap metal, going through evacuations and generally observers of the conflict. The teens in this book are totally involved in the war. The youngest were in the Royal Navy or the Merchant Navy, they could sign up at age 14 and become sailors with very little training, much less than the Army or Air Force training. Some 15 year olds lied about their age to get into the Army. By D-Day some were three to four year veterans of North Africa and Italy and sharing their knowledge of how to stay alive with much older fresh recruits. One fellow had been a prisoner of war from age 14 to 18. Incredible stories of very young men and women growing up in ways they never could have envisioned. I will certainly look for more books by Longden.
April 25, 2023
Wow..what a read!! This collection of real life World War II experiences shared by so many young British people is stunningly presented openly and frankly. It doesn’t ‘pull any punches’ but honestly presents the experiences of a group of people hugely affected by the events of World War II, not just during those six years, but for the rest of their lives.
We often hear that adults who survived the War are reluctant to speak about their experiences, and understandably so, but these some of these young people survived the War and then went back to school to finish an education devastatingly interrupted. These youngsters were not just a year or two underage, but in some cases went to war at the age of eleven or twelve!
What some of these youngsters experienced and did for their families, colleagues and country is nothing short of heroic. The phrase ‘must read’ is used often, sometimes rightly but sometimes frivolously. However, Blitz Kids absolutely deserves The accolade. You need to read their story with a box of tissues though (a big one) as it will tug at your heartstrings in a way no other book can. Massive congratulations to Sean Longden for presenting this humbling story in such an emotional yet entertaining way.
We often hear that adults who survived the War are reluctant to speak about their experiences, and understandably so, but these some of these young people survived the War and then went back to school to finish an education devastatingly interrupted. These youngsters were not just a year or two underage, but in some cases went to war at the age of eleven or twelve!
What some of these youngsters experienced and did for their families, colleagues and country is nothing short of heroic. The phrase ‘must read’ is used often, sometimes rightly but sometimes frivolously. However, Blitz Kids absolutely deserves The accolade. You need to read their story with a box of tissues though (a big one) as it will tug at your heartstrings in a way no other book can. Massive congratulations to Sean Longden for presenting this humbling story in such an emotional yet entertaining way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 11, 2024
a great educational text on the children who fought in WWII- i was expecting more tales of children sheltering during the blitz, which would have been awesome for my research but HEY HO! these children were definitely boy- & girl-bosses so that was fun! also i did really enjoy the passages that were copied from children's writing
September 10, 2014
In the introduction to this book, Longden explains that he is not offering another anthology of tales from the evacuation. This is not a real life Goodnight Mister Tom. Instead, what Blitz Kids offers is a searing and at times painful account of the lives and struggles of the young people caught up in World War II. While much has been written about the under-age volunteers during World War I, those in World War II have had far less coverage and indeed as Longden points out, they often still face suspicious looks at veteran events as if they cannot truly have been involved. From the Blitz-struck streets of London to the cold seas of the Atlantic, to those marching across central Europe, Longden is finally singing their song.
Blitz Kids is largely organised chronologically, beginning with 'The Coming of War' and ending with 'The New Order: Post-War Britain'. The book does give a lot of focus to the experiences of the young men of the Merchant Navy which is not surprising given that particular service took boys as young as fourteen. While many young men were able to lie about their age and serve in the army, very few were able to defraud their way into the RAF, meaning that its chapter is comparatively short. Equally, the book does concentrate on the stories of boys rather than girls, again because it was the boys who served overseas. Longden's book has a far-reaching scope and a deep sympathy for the lives of its subjects, it is highly readable and filled with the anecdotes and reminiscences of a generation caught in this catastrophic conflict.
Longden details the enthusiasm which initially drew these young people to serve while under-age. Some were anxious to leave unhappy homes, others felt a patriotic desire to 'do one's bit' and as the war progressed, still others signed up to avenge the deaths of loved-ones. One young boy volunteered after his brother was seriously injured. Upon confessing to his brother, he was frog-marched back to the recruiting office where his true age was declared. Unfortunately, the sergeant decided it was too late, the boy had signed on. Still, the passionate protective instinct of his sibling was truly affecting. Many parents did try to prevent their offspring from enlisting and on certain occasions they were successful - Stan Scott was turfed out of the army twice for being under-age. Still other families decided that it was their child's decision and ought to be respected and the responses of the regiment seemed to vary according to the district. Some turned a blind eye but others were more vigilant. The young John Chinnery was prevented by his captain from disembarking the ship when they visited Holland since his captain was aware that the rest of the crew planned to meet girls and others reported similar anecdotes of protective commanders yet still, this was total war. Everybody had to look after themselves.
For my full review, see here: http://girlwithherheadinabook.blogspo...
Blitz Kids is largely organised chronologically, beginning with 'The Coming of War' and ending with 'The New Order: Post-War Britain'. The book does give a lot of focus to the experiences of the young men of the Merchant Navy which is not surprising given that particular service took boys as young as fourteen. While many young men were able to lie about their age and serve in the army, very few were able to defraud their way into the RAF, meaning that its chapter is comparatively short. Equally, the book does concentrate on the stories of boys rather than girls, again because it was the boys who served overseas. Longden's book has a far-reaching scope and a deep sympathy for the lives of its subjects, it is highly readable and filled with the anecdotes and reminiscences of a generation caught in this catastrophic conflict.
Longden details the enthusiasm which initially drew these young people to serve while under-age. Some were anxious to leave unhappy homes, others felt a patriotic desire to 'do one's bit' and as the war progressed, still others signed up to avenge the deaths of loved-ones. One young boy volunteered after his brother was seriously injured. Upon confessing to his brother, he was frog-marched back to the recruiting office where his true age was declared. Unfortunately, the sergeant decided it was too late, the boy had signed on. Still, the passionate protective instinct of his sibling was truly affecting. Many parents did try to prevent their offspring from enlisting and on certain occasions they were successful - Stan Scott was turfed out of the army twice for being under-age. Still other families decided that it was their child's decision and ought to be respected and the responses of the regiment seemed to vary according to the district. Some turned a blind eye but others were more vigilant. The young John Chinnery was prevented by his captain from disembarking the ship when they visited Holland since his captain was aware that the rest of the crew planned to meet girls and others reported similar anecdotes of protective commanders yet still, this was total war. Everybody had to look after themselves.
For my full review, see here: http://girlwithherheadinabook.blogspo...
June 2, 2015
Interesting snippets but thrown together without an underlying narrative.
October 22, 2015
Very well documented. Recommended.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews