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These Wonderful Rumours!: A Young Schoolteacher's Wartime Diaries
Auntie F. came in announcing dramatically that Hitler is coming tomorrow, at which my father remarked that he would, now that he's just finished papering upstairs.
At the outbreak of World War Two, May Smith was 24. She lived in a small village near Derby with her parents, and taught at the local elementary school. The war brought many evacuees arrived in the village; nights were broken by the wail of the siren as bombers flew overhead; the young men of May's circle donned khaki and disappeared to far-flung places to "do their bit." But a great deal remained the May still enjoyed tennis parties, holidays to Llandudno and going shopping for new outfits, coupons and funds permitting. And it was during these difficult times that May fell in love. These Wonderful Rumours! gives a unique and surprising insight into life on the Home Front. Through May Smith's observant, witty and sometimes acerbic diary, we gain a new understanding of how the people of Britain coped with the uncertainty, the heartbreak and the black comedy of life during wartime.
At the outbreak of World War Two, May Smith was 24. She lived in a small village near Derby with her parents, and taught at the local elementary school. The war brought many evacuees arrived in the village; nights were broken by the wail of the siren as bombers flew overhead; the young men of May's circle donned khaki and disappeared to far-flung places to "do their bit." But a great deal remained the May still enjoyed tennis parties, holidays to Llandudno and going shopping for new outfits, coupons and funds permitting. And it was during these difficult times that May fell in love. These Wonderful Rumours! gives a unique and surprising insight into life on the Home Front. Through May Smith's observant, witty and sometimes acerbic diary, we gain a new understanding of how the people of Britain coped with the uncertainty, the heartbreak and the black comedy of life during wartime.
400 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2012
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February 14, 2018
May Smith was a young teacher, living with her parents in Swadlincote, Debeyshire, when WWII started. When war began she was twenty four and she was thirty by VE day. I point this out as May's age, her fluctuating weight and her marital status are all of great importance to her throughout these pages. In other words she was a lovely, normal young woman - preoccupied too much with life to worry too much about world events. Although what happens to her throughout her war years obviously are recorded here, this is very much a story of the Home Front and of the way normal people coped with the abormal during that time.
Edited by her son (for whom I thank profusely for making these wonderfully entertaining, witty and fascinating diaries available) May's story begins in December 1938 and ends in 1945. May was a teacher during a time when her class size grew and grew - although miserably her holidays were shortened. She copes with evacuees and often a class twice the size of our national average. Her sarcastic wit (school is described as a "loathesome place") does not allow for too much sentimentality; but it is fair to say that teaching has its plus points if she is threatened with Fire Watching or Munitions work. May often uses capital letters to emphasise words and this works very well, somehow giving May a voice within the text.
Much of her entries relate to the two current men in her life - plus the clergyman who jilted her in the mid 1930's. The two beau's in question are 'Dougie Dear', who lives a fair distance away (you feel thankfully for May!) but provides fruit, vegetables, meat and eggs at intervals throughout the book. There is also the 'Faithful' (sometimes 'Faithless'!) Fred, who accompanies May to the 'flicks', tennis (where he has a rival in a married man May certainly does not encourage) and dances. As well as work, May's preoccupations lie with friends, tennis, English lectures, her love of the movies, books and theatre. She is lively, fun and delightfully brave. When told that invasion is imminent, she finishes outstanding correspondence, in order to be invaded with "a clear conscience". Staunchly patriotic, she nevertheless jokes about German bombers carrying home ariel photographs of Swadlincotes "impregnable defences" and when told that Hitler is planning to drop thousands of men over England in parachutes, she exclaims, "How awful!" and then finishes, "for them, I mean." In other words, despite being bombed on a daily/nightly basis at one point, hearing the "shattering news" of clothes being rationed and having her life turned upside down, she retains both her humour and her humanity.
This is an absolutely delightful account of Britain in wartime which I cannot praise highly enough. Filled with daily accounts of life carrying on regardless, war rumours (all treated with excellent scepticism - you feel Goebbels would have had a hard time convincing May of absolutely anything she was not sure about herself) and 'making do and mend', this is really entertaining, funny and sometimes moving. May often says she doesn't want to hear about the suffering going on around her, but she obviously feels things deeply and cares for her family, friends and neighbours. If you enjoy this, and I am sure you will, you might also like the fictional war diaries Henrietta's War: News from the Home Front 1939-1942 (The Bloomsbury Group) and Henrietta Sees It Through (The Bloomsbury Group). Lastly, I read the kindle edition of this book and it contained illustrations.
Edited by her son (for whom I thank profusely for making these wonderfully entertaining, witty and fascinating diaries available) May's story begins in December 1938 and ends in 1945. May was a teacher during a time when her class size grew and grew - although miserably her holidays were shortened. She copes with evacuees and often a class twice the size of our national average. Her sarcastic wit (school is described as a "loathesome place") does not allow for too much sentimentality; but it is fair to say that teaching has its plus points if she is threatened with Fire Watching or Munitions work. May often uses capital letters to emphasise words and this works very well, somehow giving May a voice within the text.
Much of her entries relate to the two current men in her life - plus the clergyman who jilted her in the mid 1930's. The two beau's in question are 'Dougie Dear', who lives a fair distance away (you feel thankfully for May!) but provides fruit, vegetables, meat and eggs at intervals throughout the book. There is also the 'Faithful' (sometimes 'Faithless'!) Fred, who accompanies May to the 'flicks', tennis (where he has a rival in a married man May certainly does not encourage) and dances. As well as work, May's preoccupations lie with friends, tennis, English lectures, her love of the movies, books and theatre. She is lively, fun and delightfully brave. When told that invasion is imminent, she finishes outstanding correspondence, in order to be invaded with "a clear conscience". Staunchly patriotic, she nevertheless jokes about German bombers carrying home ariel photographs of Swadlincotes "impregnable defences" and when told that Hitler is planning to drop thousands of men over England in parachutes, she exclaims, "How awful!" and then finishes, "for them, I mean." In other words, despite being bombed on a daily/nightly basis at one point, hearing the "shattering news" of clothes being rationed and having her life turned upside down, she retains both her humour and her humanity.
This is an absolutely delightful account of Britain in wartime which I cannot praise highly enough. Filled with daily accounts of life carrying on regardless, war rumours (all treated with excellent scepticism - you feel Goebbels would have had a hard time convincing May of absolutely anything she was not sure about herself) and 'making do and mend', this is really entertaining, funny and sometimes moving. May often says she doesn't want to hear about the suffering going on around her, but she obviously feels things deeply and cares for her family, friends and neighbours. If you enjoy this, and I am sure you will, you might also like the fictional war diaries Henrietta's War: News from the Home Front 1939-1942 (The Bloomsbury Group) and Henrietta Sees It Through (The Bloomsbury Group). Lastly, I read the kindle edition of this book and it contained illustrations.
August 19, 2016
These Wonderful Rumours! is the wartime diary of May Smith, a young schoolteacher from Swadlincote, Derbyshire. When the Second World War is declared, she is twenty-four years old and living with her parents. The diary has been wonderfully preserved by Smith’s son, Duncan, and has an insightful introduction, written by social historian Juliet Gardiner. Gardiner explains that war, with ‘its rationing, the blackout, shortages, privations, restrictions and regulations – as well as destruction, loss, injury and death – all impacted on the civilian population’. She also outlines the Mass Observation scheme which urged civilians to keep records of their wartime experiences, stating that ‘it is because the Second World War was a “people’s war” in myriad ways that the people’s experience is so valued’. Perhaps the most famous of these Mass Observation diaries is Nella Last’s War, which was serialised as Housewife 49 by the BBC. As a nation, our interest in these diaries has peaked in recent years, and May Smith’s contribution is a welcome addition to the genre.
Smith’s diary begins in 1938, the advent of the Second World War. Each entry is dated at the start and the first section includes an informative introduction to set the scene. This collection of diary entries is vivid from the outset, and each is filled with such warmth and personality. Humour is injected into almost every page, and the book as a whole is rich in detail. Smith jumps from the pages, coming to life once again before our eyes. The reader is both amused and humbled by the war which she describes – the rationing of food and clothes of which she is so fond, her love of going to the ‘flicks’, her various suitors, and the men she knows who have been sent off to war – and the way in which these events affect her.
More trivial aspects of life for a woman at the time have been included alongside the darker details of World War Two. Smith describes horrendous hairstyles which she is stuck with when her perms go wrong, being ‘bankrupt and in debt. Woe is me’, to ‘that most nauseating of all missions, Buying a Hat’, as well as entries such as one she makes in April 1939, which states: ‘There seems to be only one possible end – war and on a horrible and dreadful scale’. A vast array of subjects have been covered, from Smith’s description of her school duties and pupils to deliberating over ‘Christmas reading’ at her local library, and from various shopping trips to the way in which wearing gas masks make her feel ‘like a boiled lobster’.
The scope of her diary is impressive, and the balance between her own life and the events occurring across Europe has been perfectly achieved. She writes about the events around the globe with compassion: ‘the poor Poles are hopelessly outnumbered’, as well as disgust: ‘Old man Hitler,’ she writes, after an attempt is made to murder him, ‘seems to bear a charmed life! It will take more than a puny bomb to remove him from the face of the earth’.
When war is declared, Smith’s lack of compassion towards her job as a schoolteacher becomes clear: ‘Have 48 [children] in my class this year, but have hopes that they’ll be brighter than the last lot, who were dull and dozy’. She also humorously states in one diary entry that ‘… this week the children have been like demons. I’ve snarled like a hyena, roared like a lion and bellowed like a bull, and still have failed to curb their spirits’.
As the diary progresses, we get to know those dear to Smith – her friends and grandmother, as well as her parents. One particularly funny journal entry describes how ‘Aunty F came in announcing dramatically that Hitler is coming tomorrow, at which my father remarked that He would, now that he’s Just Finished Papering Upstairs’. Amusing anecdotes of other people whom Smith knows well have also been included throughout. One of the most humorous characters is a woman named Mrs Tweed, who arrives at the Smith residence at mealtimes, insisting that she hasn’t come round to be fed but would always ‘eat a hearty meal, nevertheless’.
These Wonderful Rumours! is an incredibly well written and absorbing account, which highlights how the Second World War impacted upon an entire town in South Derbyshire. Smith is a gifted writer, and one who surely deserves to have her utmost thoughts and feelings, wit and sarcasm, and love for life printed on such a large scale. Her diary is a wonderful memoir which brilliantly demonstrates the power of the human spirit over the adversity which prevails in wartime.
Smith’s diary begins in 1938, the advent of the Second World War. Each entry is dated at the start and the first section includes an informative introduction to set the scene. This collection of diary entries is vivid from the outset, and each is filled with such warmth and personality. Humour is injected into almost every page, and the book as a whole is rich in detail. Smith jumps from the pages, coming to life once again before our eyes. The reader is both amused and humbled by the war which she describes – the rationing of food and clothes of which she is so fond, her love of going to the ‘flicks’, her various suitors, and the men she knows who have been sent off to war – and the way in which these events affect her.
More trivial aspects of life for a woman at the time have been included alongside the darker details of World War Two. Smith describes horrendous hairstyles which she is stuck with when her perms go wrong, being ‘bankrupt and in debt. Woe is me’, to ‘that most nauseating of all missions, Buying a Hat’, as well as entries such as one she makes in April 1939, which states: ‘There seems to be only one possible end – war and on a horrible and dreadful scale’. A vast array of subjects have been covered, from Smith’s description of her school duties and pupils to deliberating over ‘Christmas reading’ at her local library, and from various shopping trips to the way in which wearing gas masks make her feel ‘like a boiled lobster’.
The scope of her diary is impressive, and the balance between her own life and the events occurring across Europe has been perfectly achieved. She writes about the events around the globe with compassion: ‘the poor Poles are hopelessly outnumbered’, as well as disgust: ‘Old man Hitler,’ she writes, after an attempt is made to murder him, ‘seems to bear a charmed life! It will take more than a puny bomb to remove him from the face of the earth’.
When war is declared, Smith’s lack of compassion towards her job as a schoolteacher becomes clear: ‘Have 48 [children] in my class this year, but have hopes that they’ll be brighter than the last lot, who were dull and dozy’. She also humorously states in one diary entry that ‘… this week the children have been like demons. I’ve snarled like a hyena, roared like a lion and bellowed like a bull, and still have failed to curb their spirits’.
As the diary progresses, we get to know those dear to Smith – her friends and grandmother, as well as her parents. One particularly funny journal entry describes how ‘Aunty F came in announcing dramatically that Hitler is coming tomorrow, at which my father remarked that He would, now that he’s Just Finished Papering Upstairs’. Amusing anecdotes of other people whom Smith knows well have also been included throughout. One of the most humorous characters is a woman named Mrs Tweed, who arrives at the Smith residence at mealtimes, insisting that she hasn’t come round to be fed but would always ‘eat a hearty meal, nevertheless’.
These Wonderful Rumours! is an incredibly well written and absorbing account, which highlights how the Second World War impacted upon an entire town in South Derbyshire. Smith is a gifted writer, and one who surely deserves to have her utmost thoughts and feelings, wit and sarcasm, and love for life printed on such a large scale. Her diary is a wonderful memoir which brilliantly demonstrates the power of the human spirit over the adversity which prevails in wartime.
December 13, 2025
Delightful war-time diary, my third this year! I didn't plan that but it ended up working perfectly with the 80-year anniversary of the end of WWII. I learned about May's diary from my friend Jen, and I just adored it. Mollie Panter-Downes' 'London War Notes' is far more sophisticated, but for sheer human interest, I prefer May's. She's a primary school teacher near Derby and has lots of friends and a bustling family life with her parents and extended family. We get tidbits of various suitors until one, very slowly, rises to the top. May plays tennis and worries over the clothes she buys. She bemoans the rationing of clothing and records the movies and books she's seen and read. She attends lectures and helps with the waves of evacuated children. She cheers for her school holidays and bemoans going back to school when they end. All the kinds of things I might do myself. The war is very much present with air raid sirens, bombs, etc. but it's not quite as intense as other journals and memoirs I've read. Normal life did go right along. I would definitely read this again in the future. It's very charming!
October 24, 2015
3.5
"Sunday January 1st - Hello 1939! I wonder what variety of events you have awaiting us?"
I've read a lot of WW2 diaries - the ones edited by Simon Garfield are particularly good. Whilst this diary isn't in the Garfield league I still thoroughly enjoyed spending a few years with May Smith.
May was a school teacher in her mid twenties when the war began. She lived at home with her parents in the Derbyshire town of Swadlincote. Her somewhat ordinary, humdrum life was changed forever when war was declared.
I've read criticism that May played tennis, moaned about the weather, fussed about what colour her winter coat should be etc etc whilst the world went mad around her. I do think such criticism is harsh - to me there is something very grounding about life still going on.
Of course she should still worry about bad hair days or her uncertain love life or whether she could afford the pretty dress she's been admiring in the local store.
What always strikes me with these diaries is that we read them with the benefit of hindsight. I've yet to read one where the diarist doesn't think that Britain will be invaded at some point. This always gives them an added poignancy.
"Sunday January 1st - Hello 1939! I wonder what variety of events you have awaiting us?"
I've read a lot of WW2 diaries - the ones edited by Simon Garfield are particularly good. Whilst this diary isn't in the Garfield league I still thoroughly enjoyed spending a few years with May Smith.
May was a school teacher in her mid twenties when the war began. She lived at home with her parents in the Derbyshire town of Swadlincote. Her somewhat ordinary, humdrum life was changed forever when war was declared.
I've read criticism that May played tennis, moaned about the weather, fussed about what colour her winter coat should be etc etc whilst the world went mad around her. I do think such criticism is harsh - to me there is something very grounding about life still going on.
Of course she should still worry about bad hair days or her uncertain love life or whether she could afford the pretty dress she's been admiring in the local store.
What always strikes me with these diaries is that we read them with the benefit of hindsight. I've yet to read one where the diarist doesn't think that Britain will be invaded at some point. This always gives them an added poignancy.
March 14, 2013
May Smith was 25 when the Second World War began, living with her parents in a small town near Derby and teaching in the local school. Her diaries, as presented in this book, cover the period from December 1938 to January 1946, and record not only air-raids, the hazards of the black-out, the tiresomeness of rationing, friends being called up, and so on, but also her perennial preoccupations with clothes, boys, dances, tennis, and always being broke.
May was a fan of The Provincial Lady, and it shows in her own diaries - as a fellow fan, I found that added to the appeal. But despite that slight touch of "literariness", May's personality comes strongly across, and her worries about her weight, and finding nice clothes, and keeping two boys on a string...
I really enjoyed reading these diaries, and was greatly relieved when May finally picked one of her boys and married him!
The book is edited by May's son, and he provides a short "what happened to them afterwards" section at the end, which is nice.
All in all, an excellent read, and one I highly recommend to anyone who likes diaries or letters, or who has an interest in WW2's "Home Front".
May was a fan of The Provincial Lady, and it shows in her own diaries - as a fellow fan, I found that added to the appeal. But despite that slight touch of "literariness", May's personality comes strongly across, and her worries about her weight, and finding nice clothes, and keeping two boys on a string...
I really enjoyed reading these diaries, and was greatly relieved when May finally picked one of her boys and married him!
The book is edited by May's son, and he provides a short "what happened to them afterwards" section at the end, which is nice.
All in all, an excellent read, and one I highly recommend to anyone who likes diaries or letters, or who has an interest in WW2's "Home Front".
August 11, 2014
Reading the diary of a real person is a different experience from reading fiction. This one is a gem. May Smith was in her mid-20s when World War II broke out in Europe, and for several years she faithfully journalized events big and small, personal and national. I've read many books set in Britain during the years right around this war, and I have a high respect for the people living under these conditions. It's the era that produced "Keep Calm and Carry On" (the slogan was on posters that would have been used if the Germans had actually invaded Britain).
For much of the war there were nightly sirens alerting the people of Britain to the presence of German aircraft dropping bombs in neighborhoods: they regularly woke up to news of which towns and structures had been demolished. Months or years of interrupted sleep became the norm. They were put on strict rationing for food and even clothing. They were instructed to carry their gas masks when they traveled for fear of attack. They had to "black out" all windows and openings in their homes so that no lights could be seen by aircraft at night.
All of this makes it sound like life must have been a matter of grim survival. But here's the great thing about May's diary: it's not! Life goes on. Danger gets absorbed into the routine. It has to. But in the meantime, May does a lot of things. She keeps up correspondence with her men friends that will eventually lead to a courtship. She goes to tennis. She goes to the movies A LOT (love hearing her opinion of the Laurence Olivier Pride and Prejudice, Fantasia, Gaslight, etc.). She teaches school. She reads books. She has endless struggles to buy the right hat and coat. She circulates letters with old schoolmates in far flung corners of the world. And she wrote about all of it in a way that is often hilarious and always intelligent. Excellent reading.
For much of the war there were nightly sirens alerting the people of Britain to the presence of German aircraft dropping bombs in neighborhoods: they regularly woke up to news of which towns and structures had been demolished. Months or years of interrupted sleep became the norm. They were put on strict rationing for food and even clothing. They were instructed to carry their gas masks when they traveled for fear of attack. They had to "black out" all windows and openings in their homes so that no lights could be seen by aircraft at night.
All of this makes it sound like life must have been a matter of grim survival. But here's the great thing about May's diary: it's not! Life goes on. Danger gets absorbed into the routine. It has to. But in the meantime, May does a lot of things. She keeps up correspondence with her men friends that will eventually lead to a courtship. She goes to tennis. She goes to the movies A LOT (love hearing her opinion of the Laurence Olivier Pride and Prejudice, Fantasia, Gaslight, etc.). She teaches school. She reads books. She has endless struggles to buy the right hat and coat. She circulates letters with old schoolmates in far flung corners of the world. And she wrote about all of it in a way that is often hilarious and always intelligent. Excellent reading.
September 9, 2014
The real WWII diaries of a schoolteacher in a Derbyshire village, beginning December, 1938 and ending January, 1946.
May Smith was not writing for an audience, so it's fascinating to see how and when personal events trump war news in her diary. Bombings and rationing become the new normal, so what choice is there but to (and I can't believe I'm going to write this) carry on?
May's teacher salary doesn't stretch far, but she manages to play tennis and go to the flicks. Her movie reviews were some of my favorite parts. She's a huge Disney fan (Pinocchio, Fantasia, and Dumbo) but not so fond of His Girl Friday. And on one special trip to the theatre she sees Dodie Smith's Dear Octopus.
Bad perms plague May and she worries about weight gain. (As the editor points out, bread and potatoes were not rationed.) In short, she's a real woman dealing with the mundane while taking cover from bombs in her grandparents' cellar.
The Blitz section interested me in particular because of course they didn't have a name for it when it started. It was just a seemingly interminable stretch of bombings and little sleep.
Bought at Shakespeare and Company in Paris - August 2014
May Smith was not writing for an audience, so it's fascinating to see how and when personal events trump war news in her diary. Bombings and rationing become the new normal, so what choice is there but to (and I can't believe I'm going to write this) carry on?
May's teacher salary doesn't stretch far, but she manages to play tennis and go to the flicks. Her movie reviews were some of my favorite parts. She's a huge Disney fan (Pinocchio, Fantasia, and Dumbo) but not so fond of His Girl Friday. And on one special trip to the theatre she sees Dodie Smith's Dear Octopus.
Bad perms plague May and she worries about weight gain. (As the editor points out, bread and potatoes were not rationed.) In short, she's a real woman dealing with the mundane while taking cover from bombs in her grandparents' cellar.
The Blitz section interested me in particular because of course they didn't have a name for it when it started. It was just a seemingly interminable stretch of bombings and little sleep.
Bought at Shakespeare and Company in Paris - August 2014
February 18, 2020
“I wish I had the power of Deep Thought. I don’t find myself ever thinking intensively about anything. When I read books, I don’t ponder over them or criticise them - I merely read them for the story with the passive, unthinking part of my mind. I’m sure my mind used to be more alert than it is now.”
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.
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I often wish I had the power of Deep Thought too, but reading These Wonderful Rumours! was a pure and absolute pleasure. May Smith was a 27 year old schoolteacher living in the small Derbyshire village of Swadlincote at the outbreak of the Second World War. She lived with her parents and their lodger Miss Sanders. Her grandparents, aunt and another lodger Mr. Skerritt lived just along the road at number 46. May’s published diaries span the length of the war from 1939-1945 and give us a bird’s eye view of life on the Home Front. Interspersed with the arrival of evacuees in May’s school, air-raid shelters being built and rationing starting, May struggles to rein in her spending on clothes and books, meets friends at the cinema, makes trip to Llandudno and juggles admirers Fred and Doug. Her entries are often humorous, acerbic and self-deprecating and she has a knack for capturing the essence of something in a few strokes of her pen, for example at a dance she went to with Fred:
“Had a dreadful experience. I was just stepping delicately across the floor when my feet shot from under me and I fell prostrate, wildly clawing the air. Felt most humiliated. If it had been anyone else, I would have been most tickled.”
What makes these diaries even more charming are the occasional photos of May, her friends and her family in between the diary entries. These Wonderful Rumours! has earned its spot on my “keeping forever” shelf.
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.
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I often wish I had the power of Deep Thought too, but reading These Wonderful Rumours! was a pure and absolute pleasure. May Smith was a 27 year old schoolteacher living in the small Derbyshire village of Swadlincote at the outbreak of the Second World War. She lived with her parents and their lodger Miss Sanders. Her grandparents, aunt and another lodger Mr. Skerritt lived just along the road at number 46. May’s published diaries span the length of the war from 1939-1945 and give us a bird’s eye view of life on the Home Front. Interspersed with the arrival of evacuees in May’s school, air-raid shelters being built and rationing starting, May struggles to rein in her spending on clothes and books, meets friends at the cinema, makes trip to Llandudno and juggles admirers Fred and Doug. Her entries are often humorous, acerbic and self-deprecating and she has a knack for capturing the essence of something in a few strokes of her pen, for example at a dance she went to with Fred:
“Had a dreadful experience. I was just stepping delicately across the floor when my feet shot from under me and I fell prostrate, wildly clawing the air. Felt most humiliated. If it had been anyone else, I would have been most tickled.”
What makes these diaries even more charming are the occasional photos of May, her friends and her family in between the diary entries. These Wonderful Rumours! has earned its spot on my “keeping forever” shelf.
October 15, 2022
Fascinating look into the everyday life of a young woman in England during WWII.
I really appreciated the obvious care the editor put into publishing May Smith’s diaries. The footnotes, endnotes, and occasional photos really helped create a meaningful reading experience.
I really appreciated the obvious care the editor put into publishing May Smith’s diaries. The footnotes, endnotes, and occasional photos really helped create a meaningful reading experience.
April 14, 2020
Entertaining wartime diary by a young derbyshire schoolteacher. May Smith taught in a school where she seldom had fewer than forty pupils in her class, and obviously found it a hard job. her life was complicated by the fact that she had two boyfriends - Freddie and Doug, and couldn't make up her mind which she preferred. She managed to keep both of them dangling after her for several years before making up her mind - quite an achievement. In September 1942, May's mother voiced her most pressing concerns: "What should we do if Hitler suddenly walked through the front door? Suppose Freddie asked you to meet him in Derby when Doug was here?" One surprising aspect of the book is the copioud amounts of food consumed by May throughout the war years, and frequently expressed worries about putting on weight. Despite rationing, it was apparently possible to have "lashings of roast pork, apple sauce, onion sauce, sage and onion stuffing, and vegetables, for dinner. Oh luscious! Roll about feeling like a barage balloon come down to earth" (November 29th 1942). The mixture of war news, food, family life, friends, boyfriends, shopping, cinema going and teaching is very enjoyable to read. And yes, you do finally get to know whether she picked Doug or Freddie.
July 4, 2018
I found this book fascinating as it comprises the memoirs of the young May Smith from the age of around 24 to 30, plus an interesting epilogue which details what happened to her in later life. Because this book was obviously a 'true story' it was impossible to judge the 'plot' in anyway negatively as it's May's real life. Her conflicting emotions towards her two suitors were described in such a humorous way and the decision that May reached was obviously the right one - however, her description of the courtship is so different to 'dating' today that i couldn't imagine how she was going to end up with either of the gentlemen when she seemed so indifferent towards both!
In addition to May's personal life, it was enlightening to learn about the impact of the war on the lives of normal people and how everyone seemed to adopt a 'typical British' keep calm and carry on approach. I can't imagine people today coping so well with such adversity.
May was such a real, relatable character - I feel like I really got to know her through her memoirs and I'm glad that her son preserved them for others to enjoy.
In addition to May's personal life, it was enlightening to learn about the impact of the war on the lives of normal people and how everyone seemed to adopt a 'typical British' keep calm and carry on approach. I can't imagine people today coping so well with such adversity.
May was such a real, relatable character - I feel like I really got to know her through her memoirs and I'm glad that her son preserved them for others to enjoy.
October 15, 2023
May Smith is 24 years old when she begins writing a diary, shortly before the outbreak of World War Two. Recounting tales from her career as a school teacher, gossip amongst her friends etc, this war diary differs from the usual ones we see published. It is lighthearted, honest, and easy to read.
I was confused as to why she complained so often about the two men she was socialising so frequently with. She apparently didn't like the attention, yet kept on encouraging their advances! It came as no surprise that she ended up marrying one of them in the end.. What a shame though that it seemed to be a marriage of compromise. I think she would have preferred to have married Doug!
It was amusing to read how she thought she was old (in her 20s) and fat (at 8st-something), too!
I was confused as to why she complained so often about the two men she was socialising so frequently with. She apparently didn't like the attention, yet kept on encouraging their advances! It came as no surprise that she ended up marrying one of them in the end.. What a shame though that it seemed to be a marriage of compromise. I think she would have preferred to have married Doug!
It was amusing to read how she thought she was old (in her 20s) and fat (at 8st-something), too!
October 24, 2018
Always interesting to see how the Big Events of the Day were felt by the people who lived their ordinary lives right through them - especially so when it is seen through the eyes of someone who could express themselves quite well with a pen, even if it was just written for private reasons back in the day. And I have to admit, I grew quite fond of May throughout this reading - she's fun, intelligent, and very human!
September 15, 2013
I first recall reading about this book in a magazine – a son had discovered his mother’s wartime diaries and had edited them into a book. I thought this sounded fascinating (as I quite enjoy reading about real life experiences during World War II) so I bought it and promptly forgot about it.
That was quite stupid of me – this diary is wonderfully entertaining and the coolest thing about it is that it’s someone’s real life. No plotlines, no structure, just everything real. The interesting thing about it is the diaries do have a plot – this is of a lady falling in love and doing her best to stay alive and happy as bombs rain down and stockings become rare sightings.
May is a schoolteacher in an English village – she doesn’t appear to enjoy teaching a great deal at first (given the huge size of her classes and the way they cancel school holidays during the war, it’s of little wonder!). Her diary is filled with the day to day life of a young girl – there’s lots of shopping (May goes into great detail about her clothes buying, which I loved), tennis playing (with an unwanted suitor hanging around) and boys. May cunningly has two men on the go – Freddie and Dougie. Freddie, now a forecaster, turns up sporadically to take May to dances and then more often. Dougie is rarely seen with May, living far away but with a lot of fruit, vegetables and poultry to share with her family. (This appears to be the war equivalent of sending designer clothes and accessories). One of the ‘plots’ I really enjoyed was trying to figure out which man May would marry, as her family and friends all seemed to have definite but conflicting ideas.
Another part of the war that May describes in great detail are the bombing raids. Night after night, the air raid sirens would sound and they would all tramp off to Grandma’s cellar. Perhaps May would get one or two hours sleep before returning to school and then it would begin all over again that night. It’s interesting to read as time progresses, May becomes more blasé about the whole thing, sometimes not even bothering to go downstairs.
May writes with a wonderfully acerbic wit that had me giggling. She appears to be a true modern woman, not marrying until after 30 and continuing to work after her marriage. It’s wonderful that this diary was preserved and allowed to be read by modern readers – it just goes to show how things change and how they stay the same!
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
That was quite stupid of me – this diary is wonderfully entertaining and the coolest thing about it is that it’s someone’s real life. No plotlines, no structure, just everything real. The interesting thing about it is the diaries do have a plot – this is of a lady falling in love and doing her best to stay alive and happy as bombs rain down and stockings become rare sightings.
May is a schoolteacher in an English village – she doesn’t appear to enjoy teaching a great deal at first (given the huge size of her classes and the way they cancel school holidays during the war, it’s of little wonder!). Her diary is filled with the day to day life of a young girl – there’s lots of shopping (May goes into great detail about her clothes buying, which I loved), tennis playing (with an unwanted suitor hanging around) and boys. May cunningly has two men on the go – Freddie and Dougie. Freddie, now a forecaster, turns up sporadically to take May to dances and then more often. Dougie is rarely seen with May, living far away but with a lot of fruit, vegetables and poultry to share with her family. (This appears to be the war equivalent of sending designer clothes and accessories). One of the ‘plots’ I really enjoyed was trying to figure out which man May would marry, as her family and friends all seemed to have definite but conflicting ideas.
Another part of the war that May describes in great detail are the bombing raids. Night after night, the air raid sirens would sound and they would all tramp off to Grandma’s cellar. Perhaps May would get one or two hours sleep before returning to school and then it would begin all over again that night. It’s interesting to read as time progresses, May becomes more blasé about the whole thing, sometimes not even bothering to go downstairs.
May writes with a wonderfully acerbic wit that had me giggling. She appears to be a true modern woman, not marrying until after 30 and continuing to work after her marriage. It’s wonderful that this diary was preserved and allowed to be read by modern readers – it just goes to show how things change and how they stay the same!
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
September 15, 2014
This book is an absolute gem.
Other reviewers have described the subject matter, and written from various viewpoints, mostly, it seems, from that of those born long after the war and who view and judge from a modern stance. One of them even employed an inaccurate and execrable modern term to describe the author's outings with a gentleman friend, seemingly having missed the point completely.
These Wonderful Rumours! is accurate, it is engaging, and wonderfully absorbing. The more you read, especially if you have a fair knowledge of the era and of the events in the background of May's life, the greater becomes your interest.
Some reviewers have decried May's interest in clothes, films and misinterpreted her social life instead of realising the gold these details contain.
Life went on.
Duncan Marlor, May's son, has provided a brief resume of his mother's subsequent life, but there is scope for more, even if her later diaries were few. I hope for a new edition which includes more biographical detail, and more explanation of where all those who figure in the narrative fit in, and what happened to them.
While we are told how some of the many people mentioned in These Wonderful Rumours! fitted into May's life, and some footnotes offer extra information, many are not explained: were they relatives, friends etc? How did she meet the two men who feature so prominently in her diary for several years?
The diary as published is fascinating, but tantalising.
February 1, 2013
Never have the realities of wartime life for civilians during WWII ever come to life so vividly and charismatically for me as with the collected diaries of May Smith. Along with dilemmas over food rationing (who would have thought onions could be a luxury), housing of displaced youths and the midnight sirens, young May is consistently burdened with a perm that never sits right, a dressmaker who never makes the deadlines she promises, and two beaus she can't decide between.
There is a gentle charm to her writing that pulls you in and illustrates the world around her vividly. By a quarter of the way through, I wanted to be May's friend, and had my own opinions over which man was right for her. But more than a story about May, these entries tell the story of a people living through a terrible war. They kept calm and carried on, and sometimes didn't even get out of bed for the warning siren. There really are just so many nights you can go without sleep.
These diaries are transcribed from their originals, and are truly a treasure. The book starts from the start of the war and runs through to its end, and a satisfying conclusion to some of May's dilemmas. Highly recommended for the casual reader as well as those with a keen interest in history.
There is a gentle charm to her writing that pulls you in and illustrates the world around her vividly. By a quarter of the way through, I wanted to be May's friend, and had my own opinions over which man was right for her. But more than a story about May, these entries tell the story of a people living through a terrible war. They kept calm and carried on, and sometimes didn't even get out of bed for the warning siren. There really are just so many nights you can go without sleep.
These diaries are transcribed from their originals, and are truly a treasure. The book starts from the start of the war and runs through to its end, and a satisfying conclusion to some of May's dilemmas. Highly recommended for the casual reader as well as those with a keen interest in history.
September 17, 2020
What an hilarious read. I looked up the diarist in the 1939 census to check out the validity of the story because if it had been crafted as a novel it could not have gone much better.
May Smith is 25 at the start of War (not 24 as the back cover asserts - poor show editors and proof readers!...no 5 stars as a result!). She is completely self-absorbed, shallow and a school teacher who doesn't treat her pupils well and we know this because it is her first hand account bravely published by her son.
She spends more than she earns, is concerned very much with her appearance, the attentions of men and games of tennis - but meanwhile war is rife in Europe!
I found the costs of items fascinating. May hops on and off buses and trains regularly - they must have been very cheap at the time. She buys several coats and dresses, has her hair done regularly and goes to the cinema several times a week.
There are a few nicely placed photos along the way and the story romps along wonderfully. I found myself cringing at some of May's views and actually wondering at the damage caused to a few little lives at school by her high-handed dismisal of some of their efforts.
May was flawed but her diary is candid. I did wonder which man was going to win out in the end and when there is a bereavement after her marriage I was moved as I felt I knew this south Derbyshire family quite well by then.
I appreciated the explanations at the back of the book which explains some of why May's life seems rich and snug despite war time privations.
May Smith is 25 at the start of War (not 24 as the back cover asserts - poor show editors and proof readers!...no 5 stars as a result!). She is completely self-absorbed, shallow and a school teacher who doesn't treat her pupils well and we know this because it is her first hand account bravely published by her son.
She spends more than she earns, is concerned very much with her appearance, the attentions of men and games of tennis - but meanwhile war is rife in Europe!
I found the costs of items fascinating. May hops on and off buses and trains regularly - they must have been very cheap at the time. She buys several coats and dresses, has her hair done regularly and goes to the cinema several times a week.
There are a few nicely placed photos along the way and the story romps along wonderfully. I found myself cringing at some of May's views and actually wondering at the damage caused to a few little lives at school by her high-handed dismisal of some of their efforts.
May was flawed but her diary is candid. I did wonder which man was going to win out in the end and when there is a bereavement after her marriage I was moved as I felt I knew this south Derbyshire family quite well by then.
I appreciated the explanations at the back of the book which explains some of why May's life seems rich and snug despite war time privations.
September 30, 2023
May Smith was 24 years old when World War Two broke out in September, 1939. Living at home with her parents in Derbyshire, May was a schoolteacher who enjoyed keeping a diary, which she kept throughout the wartime years.
One of the things I liked about the book was the candid frankness of the author. May wrote down and said things exactly as she saw them. This was even the case with the children she taught at school, whereby if she didn’t like one of the children in her class, she wrote her feelings down in her diary to that effect.
I also like the fact that whilst others were worrying about the threat of war and being called up, May was more concerned about what colour the trimming should be on her new dress.
It was also interesting in that May’s diary was the first one I have read whereby the diarist was worried that she was putting on weight during the war. Though remembering it was the variety of food available during the war that caused such deprivation, rather than the amount of food available.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. It was refreshing to read a wartime diary that had a slightly different take on the effects of war on the Home Front.
One of the things I liked about the book was the candid frankness of the author. May wrote down and said things exactly as she saw them. This was even the case with the children she taught at school, whereby if she didn’t like one of the children in her class, she wrote her feelings down in her diary to that effect.
I also like the fact that whilst others were worrying about the threat of war and being called up, May was more concerned about what colour the trimming should be on her new dress.
It was also interesting in that May’s diary was the first one I have read whereby the diarist was worried that she was putting on weight during the war. Though remembering it was the variety of food available during the war that caused such deprivation, rather than the amount of food available.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. It was refreshing to read a wartime diary that had a slightly different take on the effects of war on the Home Front.
February 11, 2023
May Smith is like a wartime Bridget Jones, and I say that with the utmost respect. The commentary on life on the home front - rationing, air raids, gas masks, and listening to Churchill on the wireless - is fascinating, but what I found just as compelling was the everyday, quote-unquote ‘relatable’ experiences. May struggles to rise and get to work on time (“I lie and battle fiercely with the urge to have Just Five More Minutes in bed, so that when I crawl downstairs I am exhausted with the struggle”), faces superior shop assistants, juggles suitors, and experiences the joy of payday and the disappointment of an unsatisfactory hairstyle. It’s also fun to read her thoughts on popular culture (she loved the Greer Garson adaptation of Pride & Prejudice and was extremely impressed by Disney’s Fantasia). Her unique writing style holds it all together, specifically the idiosyncratic Use of Capitalisation and amusing choice of verbs - she’s always trotting, hoofing and sallying forth. Very enjoyable read.
February 18, 2024
I'm counting this as one of my favorite books I've ever read. I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of May's diary, the introduction (I always read these after the book), her son's afterword, the end notes, and even the bibliography as it had interesting tidbits about different aspects of the war.
This was a true slice of life for a young schoolteacher "keeping calm and carrying on" in the midst of a devastating world war. I enjoyed her wit and humor and accounts of her everyday concerns (what to do about the two beaus after her heart and wanting a new dress despite being in debt once again and taming the children in her class to name a few). Her use of capitalizing the first letter of words in phrases for emphasis reminded me of E M Delafield's Provincial Lady diaries (May enjoyed her writing too) and other writers of that time period. I think it adds to the humor. More recently A J Pearce does the same in her WWII historical Emmy Lake Chronicles.
I also learned some details about the war that I didn't know. Another reason publishing diaries like this is so important.
This was a true slice of life for a young schoolteacher "keeping calm and carrying on" in the midst of a devastating world war. I enjoyed her wit and humor and accounts of her everyday concerns (what to do about the two beaus after her heart and wanting a new dress despite being in debt once again and taming the children in her class to name a few). Her use of capitalizing the first letter of words in phrases for emphasis reminded me of E M Delafield's Provincial Lady diaries (May enjoyed her writing too) and other writers of that time period. I think it adds to the humor. More recently A J Pearce does the same in her WWII historical Emmy Lake Chronicles.
I also learned some details about the war that I didn't know. Another reason publishing diaries like this is so important.
June 16, 2021
I have read a lot of wartime diaries and this one is really dull. May is self obsessed. It is a long list of the clothes she buys, has altered and made. I don't understand how she needs a new coat every year. I don't have that! Also mean how she keeps 2 boyfriends dancing to her tune whilst not really caring for either. Their purpose appears to be to supply her with food, clothing coupons and trips to the cinema. She also loathes teaching.
Much better off reading Housewife 49 in my opinion or EM Delafield's A Provinicial Lady in Wartime which is much funnier.
The War is definitely in the background in this diary.
Much better off reading Housewife 49 in my opinion or EM Delafield's A Provinicial Lady in Wartime which is much funnier.
The War is definitely in the background in this diary.
November 26, 2022
Highly entertaining account of a young school teacher in WWII. I Ioved May's wit and stoicism, her never-ending search for the perfect outfit or a sumptuous meal and - as a schoolteacher myself - all the best bits of school life: snow days, break time, ridiculous things children say and staffroom gossip. And all with added gas masks, air raid sirens, blackouts, rationing and nightly raids by the Luftwaffe.
The last few years were increasingly dominated by May's choice between Doug and Freddie but it seems that she made a great choice and had a long and happy life full of interest. I highly recommend this diary especially the early years.
The last few years were increasingly dominated by May's choice between Doug and Freddie but it seems that she made a great choice and had a long and happy life full of interest. I highly recommend this diary especially the early years.
July 1, 2025
Reading the diary of a real person going through World War II was just simply amazing. May was in her 20s a school teacher and lived through the bombings and the sirens almost on a daily life. She made the most of it! She kept calm, kept her diary and faithfully recorded her romances, her cinema trips at seaside holidays through the hardship of wartime.
June 28, 2020
Wartime diary of a young woman teacher in Swadlincote, Derbyshire. She speaks of the war and also of her courtship and friendship with two men, one of whom she finally chooses. She likes to shop for clothes, but this was curtailed as the war went on. I liked her tongue in cheek entries!
January 31, 2021
I loved reading witty May Smith's diary. I especially enjoyed that she includes the names of books she's reading and movies she watches in the theatre. Highly recommended WWII diary written by a British school teacher.
October 7, 2018
really enjoyed this book. Memoirs of a very ordinary young lady during WWII. The author made these very ordinary daily occurrences extremely readable right to the end.
July 3, 2021
3.5 stars
June 14, 2016
I adored this book! It probably doesn't deserve 5 stars, but if my level of enjoyment counts for anything it does. The diary was a very charming account of a young school teacher's experiences during the war. In addition to interesting details of air raids, rationing, and gas masks, the dairy also contained adorable accounts of dancing, tennis dates, new dresses and going to "the flicks." May was such a witty diarist! The way she described school as a "prison cell" and her job as a "lion tamer," made me giggle. As a former teacher, I can definitely relate to her joy at every school holiday and pay day. I loved all of her family and friends too and how they gossiped and banded together over every detail of the war. Since this was a real life account of May's war years, the diary is filled with pathos, humor, joy and sadness. Throughout the diary there is a dilemma over which of her two suitors she will eventually marry, "Dear Dougie" who is determined to enter the army and fight for his country or "Faithful Fred" the shy and studious teacher. The ending is especially sweet and I loved the afterward by her son describing what happened to May and her family. A true gem and one that I wish more people knew about.
March 18, 2013
A thoroughly enjoyable book. Engaged me fully from beginning to end, only wished it didn't have to end! A prefect marriage of seriousness and humour! Well written and completely captivating! Brilliant!!
She may have focused on things that weren't exactly "important" but that's what is enjoyable. A true young woman, who is concerned about the things that all young women are, how to look beautiful without the means and how to enjoy food, but not get fat. The only difference in tis scenario is that it is made 10 times more difficult because of the war.
Not every diary account of the war should be doom and gloom and serious, it was enjoyable because it is light hearted and are the simple concerns of May.
She may have focused on things that weren't exactly "important" but that's what is enjoyable. A true young woman, who is concerned about the things that all young women are, how to look beautiful without the means and how to enjoy food, but not get fat. The only difference in tis scenario is that it is made 10 times more difficult because of the war.
Not every diary account of the war should be doom and gloom and serious, it was enjoyable because it is light hearted and are the simple concerns of May.
February 14, 2013
May Smith's war time diaries are an interesting read, she seems younger than she is to me and is rather too focused on her meals and her newest dress/coat/hat/... She also didn't write about the important things that happened to her, perhaps feeling that she wouldn't forget how she felt about them. I found the regional information catching my attention as my parents were born not far from Derby and would have been young children at the time May was teaching.
A good book, and I would have liked to add a score of three and a half stars but we don't have halves so had to leave it as three. I rarely read non fiction, particularly biographies and this has increased my desire to read more.
A good book, and I would have liked to add a score of three and a half stars but we don't have halves so had to leave it as three. I rarely read non fiction, particularly biographies and this has increased my desire to read more.
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