Wartime Childhood

Growing up as a child in the Second World War could be a frightening or an exciting experience. Depending on the age of the child, the experience of war might be strange and scary, or all he or she had ever known. For many city children the war brought evacuation to the countryside and a way of life very different from the one they enjoyed in the city. For children who remained in areas that suffered from the attention of German bombers, escape to the Morrison or Anderson shelter, and the donning of a 'Mickey Mouse' gas mask, became part of life. War brought new excitement for boys who could now add parts of downed German aircraft, or parts of bombs, to their collections of conkers and string. For many girls the war brought greater responsibility, as their fathers went off to fight. This book recounts the British child's experience of the War with photographs, objects and ephemera. A feast of nostalgia, this book will appeal strongly to anyone who grew up during the war, and it will give younger people a fascinating insight into the childhood of their parents or grandparents.