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Airborne Forever. The Life Story of an Arnhem Veteran
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
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August 28, 2019
Johnny Peters was a working class lad growing up in a tough neighbourhood of Liverpool when the war broke out. Signing up for the Border regiment, he became part of the Airlanding Brigade. This led him almost to Sicily as his glider crashed in North Africa. The tips to Arnhem and Norway were almost as eventful but at least he made it there.
What struck me is that Peters' life was pretty grim in many respects, which makes the hardships of war stand out less. That tough attitude was carried into the army and Peters doesn't polish away his bust ups and running in with te military hierarchy.
Aimilarly, Peters had an eye for the world around him. From his encounters with North African shoe shiners to the shaving of Norwegian women who had fraternised with German soldiers.
One anecdote that stands out for me is how Johnny's father (veteran of WWI) always refused to wear a poppy because the Veteran's Legion had refused to grant him the money to buy shoes for his son. So although this book may not teach you much about combat operations, it's an occasionally captivating read, showing that our grandparents lives were much more exceptional than we realise.
The question is why they mostly hid it from us.
What struck me is that Peters' life was pretty grim in many respects, which makes the hardships of war stand out less. That tough attitude was carried into the army and Peters doesn't polish away his bust ups and running in with te military hierarchy.
Aimilarly, Peters had an eye for the world around him. From his encounters with North African shoe shiners to the shaving of Norwegian women who had fraternised with German soldiers.
One anecdote that stands out for me is how Johnny's father (veteran of WWI) always refused to wear a poppy because the Veteran's Legion had refused to grant him the money to buy shoes for his son. So although this book may not teach you much about combat operations, it's an occasionally captivating read, showing that our grandparents lives were much more exceptional than we realise.
The question is why they mostly hid it from us.
Displaying 1 of 1 review