Voices Of Silence: The Alternative Book Of First World War Poetry

The poetry gathered together in this volume has been drawn from old newspapers and journals, trench and hospital magazines, gift books, postcards, and an illicit manuscript magazine put together by conscientious objectors. For the first time the huge body of rich, exciting and often deeply moving work that complements the established literary canon has been revived. It adds a new dimension to our perception of the immediate response to war - not least in the soldiers' recurring and important use of humour. Written by the men for the men, these verses reflect an aspect of the national character which contributes to our understanding of how they were able to endure.