I felt, reading this book that we might well have lost the war without the Women’s Institute, if society had a glue then they provided it, not just the jam, but with canteens, medicines, evacuee children, anywhere help was needed. Julie Summers uses some wonderful memoirs and diaries to help write the book - sadly few are available to read in their entirety so their words are confined to Jambusters, a lovely piece of social history.
The compelling true story that inspired the forthcoming major ITV drama series Home Fires. The Second World War was the WI's finest hour. The whole of its previous history - two decades of educating, entertaining and supporting women and campaigning on women's issues - culminated in the enormous collective responsibility felt by the members to 'do their bit' for Britain. With all the vigour, energy and enthusiasm at their disposal, a third of a million country women set out to make their lives and the lives of those around them more bearable in what they described as 'a period of insanity'.
'Striking, often heart-warming, but sometimes tragic ... They are stories that touch us all, even today.' Daily Mail
Author
About Julie Summers
Julie Summers is a writer, researcher and historian. Her books include Fearless on Everest: The Quest for Sandy Irvine, and a biography of her grandfather, the man who built the 'real' bridge over the River Kwai, The Colonel of Tamarkan. She lives in Oxford.
