Dover Beach

by Leslie Thomas

In May 1940, 338,000 soldiers were evacuated from Dunkirk and the majority passed through Dover, saturating the town with soldiers, sailors and airmen. This is a humorous look at the impact of this influx of young men on the small town.

Genres: Historical Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Born in Newport, Monmouthshire, 1931, Leslie Thomas is the son of a sailor who was lost at sea in 1943. His boyhood in an orphanage is evoked in This Time Next Week, published in 1964. At sixteen, he became a reporter, before going on to do his national service. He won worldwide acclaim with his bestselling novel The Virgin Soldiers, which has achieved international sales of over four million copies.

Reviews

[09/01 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great storyline

Thomas weaves another brilliant yarn,about lives and loves in Dover, during the early days of the second world war. Onto the next novel

[John Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

What it was really like

Like all Leslie Thomas books, a great yarn. Down to earth cast of characters with loads of wry humour. Thoroughly recommended.

[edward graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable

Leslie thomas writes with his usual quirky humour, a totally believable tale which moves along nicely and is never boring

[Lynn Hutchinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a lot of substance to this book, there wasn’t enough detail about the characters for me to engage with them.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

9/10

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leslie Thomas creates a novel where he drops the reader into a moment in time and pulls them out as suddenly as he thrusts them into it. It tells of the inhabitants of the town of Dover during WWII and while he does not delve into a back story or give glimpses of the future, he presents to the reader the present, nothing more, nothing less. You feel almost like an intruder, peering into the lives of everyday men, women, and children while they deal and react to the war on their very doorstep. Definately recomend it!

[Ron Hardwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leslie Thomas captures perfectly the chaos and confusion of wartime Britain. He is a consummate story-teller, and his mix of character development, plot progression, pathos and humour is as good as any other author's, ancient or modern. I've read every book in his canon, this being the last, and his war stories are every bit as good as his 'running away to find romance' stories, such as 'The Tropic of Ruislip' and 'Goodnight and Loving.'

[Ro Hart · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do like Leslie Thomas books.
This is a great glimpse of life in Dover during WW2. Sad of course, and funny and very readable.
The Tropic Of Ruislip and Arrivals and Departures I can seriously recommend as must reads!

[Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not like this book....