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Testament of Youth: An Autobiographical Study of the Years 1900-1925 (Virago classic non-fiction) |  | Author: Vera Brittain
Creators: Shirley Williams, Mark Bostridge
Publisher: Virago Press Ltd
Category: Book
List Price: £14.99
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Seller: World of Books Ltd
Rating:  29 reviews
Sales Rank: 5185
Media: Paperback
Edition: New Edition with new cover
Pages: 640
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 4.9 x 1.5
ISBN: 0860680355
EAN: 9780860680352
ASIN: 0860680355
Publication Date: January 1, 1933
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| • | New | | • | Mint Condition | | • | Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noon | | • | Guaranteed packaging | | • | No quibbles returns |
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Product Description
* A unique record of one woman's experience of twenty-five of the most cataclysmic years in modern history - and a Virago Classic bestseller - with a new introduction by Mark Bostridge
Amazon.co.uk Review
In 1914 Vera Brittain was 21 years old, and an undergraduate student at Somerville College, Oxford. When war broke out in August of that year, Brittain "temporarily" disrupted her studies to enrol as a volunteer nurse, nursing casualties both in England and on the Western Front. The next four years were to cause a deep rupture in Brittain's life, as she witnessed not only the horrors of war first hand, but also experienced the quadruple loss of her fiancé, her brother, and two close friends. Testament of Youth is a powerfully written, unsentimental memoir which has continued to move and enthral readers since its first publication in 1933. Brittain, a pacifist since her First World War experiences, prefaces the book with a fairy tale, in which Catherine, the heroine, encounters a fairy godmother and is given the choice of having either a happy youth or a happy old age. She selects the latter and so her fate is determined: "Now this woman," warns the tale, "was the destiny of poor Catherine." And we find as we delve deeper into the book that she was the destiny of poor Vera too.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 29
 A moving account of love and war March 23, 2010
H. Skinner (Newcastle, UK)
Testament of Youth is an important example of feminist literature, as well as a fascinating first-hand account of the effects World War I had on one woman's life and on society as a whole. As I read about all the pain and sorrow Vera Brittain was forced to endure, I became completely absorbed in her story. I found it very inspirational that despite having her entire world torn apart by the war, she was still able to go on to build a successful career for herself as a writer, feminist and pacifist.
Although Testament of Youth was a long, demanding and often heartbreaking book, I'm glad I read it and I feel I learned a lot from it.
 Haunting December 19, 2009
Marand (West Sussex)
I first read `A Testament of Youth' thirty years ago in my first term at Oxford and have returned to it at regular intervals ever since. Each time I read it, it reinforces the sense of how fortunate my generation has been, particularly my generation of women. Getting into Oxford wasn't easy for me but was nothing like the struggle against custom & the limited aspirations for women that prevailed during Vera Brittain's girlhood. Nor have we known anything like the wholesale destruction of a generation of young people, and the desolation of those who survived the loss of husbands, fiances, sons, fathers & brothers. My heart breaks for the loss of so many young men, the fortitude & forbearance of the injured, and trauma of the survivors.
For me, this book stands head and shoulders above fiction such as Sebastian Faulkes' 'Birdsong' which, although it is a brilliantly written and researched book, does not have the sense of immediacy and personal devastation that I find in `Testament of Youth'.
Heartbreaking Memoirs July 26, 2009
Rhiannon (Walsall, England)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I first read this book when studying for my A levels 25 years ago -it totally overpowered me then and now it still does.It is my all time favourite book because it has such humanity and love at its core.
Vera Brittain was an amazing woman and her early years as documented in Testament of Youth shaped her views for the rest of her life.
With the recent passing of Harry Patch the last WW1 Soldier I picked up this seminal work again to remind me of that generation and all they endured.
Vera's Courage whether it be fighting to gain an education at University, or working as a VAD Nurse while all the time one by one those she loves perish shines through .I still cannot read the poem after Roland's Death without tears falling.
This wonderful work will remain a classic - a benchmark for Womens Literature.I will continue to reread it and pass it on to my children as an important message is contained within.
Very moving July 3, 2009
Mavi S (UK)
To be honest, I purchased the 'Testament of Youth' book as a study book for my A level English Literature exam, expecting it to be (well lets put it nicely) not really my type of book. However, as I started reading, I immediately found that this was a book that was worth the read. It is very moving and allows the reader to completely empathise with the character of Vera Brittain. However, the fact that this is completely true and it is the actual autobiography of sufferer Brittain, it makes the book even more amazing. I would totally recommend it to anyone who wants a TRUE story of love, war and terrible loss. It is so good that I have finished my exams and am still reading it!Testament of Youth: An Autobiographical Study of the Years 1900-1925 (Virago classic non-fiction)
this is a "must read" book February 1, 2009
Kathleen Catherall (wales uk)
I would recommend this book to young and old,if everyone read this including politicians we may see the end of wars, as it exposes the tragedy and futility of war
Showing reviews 1-5 of 29
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