Testament of youth: An autobiographical study of the years 1900-1925. By Vera Brittain^

摘要

In writing this 'Big Ideas' 1 have in front of me a book which is described on its cover leaf as the 'Cheap War Edition on thin paper of Testament of Youth, One the most famous Autobiographies of Our Time' priced at six shillings. It is a reprint version published in 1944 and is interesting for two reasons. Firstly it tells us that even at the height of World War Two people wanted to read about the First World War and secondly, that they were able to purchase a book written by one of the leading pacifists of her day. All of which tells us that even at this terrible time Great Britain was still an open and free society where books were valued and read rather than burned.