Somme Mud

Somme Mud by E.F.P. Lynch was originally written by the author when he returned from WWI, in 20 school exercise books, now published in paperback. The first hand experiences of an Australian private on the battlefields of the Western Front in WWI are told well in this excellent book. The tension is high as we see the battles through Ted Lynch's eyes. There are moments of horror, humour and tragedy. The story shows the awful waste of young men's lives, on both sides of this war and the terrible conditions in which they fought. This is not a dry historical account of this conflict, but a personal story in which the reader feels and imagines what it was like to be there. This is a "must read" for anyone interested in WWI or war stories generally. This is one of the "Books Alive 2008" books. The editor, Will Davies, has written a follow up In the Footsteps of Private Lynch, telling of Lynch's life after he returned from the War. 5/5