Remarkable Journeys of the Second World War

Inspired by conversations with many veterans following the publication of her grandfather's wartime memoir, Victoria Panton-Bacon has gathered a moving collection of stories. These are stories of bravery, sadness, horror, doubt and longing, from ordinary people who lived under the long shadows cast by World War II and whose young lives were changed irrevocably. These were the young of a different age when work for most began at fourteen, and the world conspired to thrust them into the jaws of conflict. For them, war, the ultimate leveller, threw them into remarkable times, whether they were a merchant seaman, army officer, pilot, young Jewish girl, code breaker or Home Guard recruit. From one extraordinary story to the next, this is an important and immersive book. AUTHOR: Victoria Panton Bacon lives in Suffolk, with her two young boys, Rollo and Ranulph. She worked for Rt Hon Sir John Major both when he was Prime Minister and at Conservative Central Office and the House of Commons when he was writing his memoirs. This was followed by a career in broadcast journalism with the BBC, where she began as a producer on Breakfast with Frost and ended up in radio with the BBC World Service. Victoria founded Elizabeth's Legacy of Hope in 2011 with her twin sister, Sarah, to raise money for children in developing countries who need prosthetic legs, and in 2014, she edited her grandfather's World War II story, published by Penguin.

“"Fascinating and touching." --Joanna Lumley "This collection of World War Two memories is a gem!" --Jonathan Dimbleby "Victoria has performed a valuable service." --Terry Waite CBE "Victoria Panton Bacon captures the vulnerability of the human spirit." --Simon Pearson”

These remarkable military journeys stand to inspire the next generation.

-- LT GEN (RETD) JAMES BASHALL CB CBE

. . this fascinating and touching book . . .

-- JOANNA LUMLEY OBE

. . . a unique insight . . .

-- TERRY WAITE CBE

This collection of World War Two memories is a gem

-- JONATHAN DIMBLEBY

In Remarkable Journeys of the Second World War, Victoria Panton Bacon captures the vulnerability of the human spirit – at sea, on land and in the air. Her book is full of remarkable testimony, a series of remarkable journeys.

-- SIMON PEARSON

As the Second World War passes from living memory, Victoria Panton Bacon presents an extraordinary cast of characters who reveal what it was like to take part in the fight for freedom. Their stories are exciting, heart-breaking and vitally important.

-- JOSHUA LEVINE

Remarkable Journeys of the Second World War is an outstanding book which deserves to become a classic of the period. Victoria Panton Bacon’s narrative gets up close and personal to her truly remarkable interviewees. Her sympathy for and interaction with these individuals creates honest and gripping revelations.

-- EDWARD WILSON

VICTORIA PANTON BACON is a Second World War historian who uses her writing to portray the human cost of war. Her writing career began when she discovered her grandfather’s war memoir in his garage; this would later be published as Six Weeks of Blenheim Summer (Penguin, 2018). Her second book, Remarkable Journeys of the Second World War (The History Press, 2020), was described as ‘fascinating and touching’ by Joanna Lumley. In 2011 Victoria co-founded Elizabeth’s Legacy of Hope, a charity that provides amputee children in Africa and India with prosthetic limbs and education. She lives in Suffolk with her family.

Those who lived through the Second World War have many stories of bravery, sadness, horror, doubt and longing. Inspired by conversations with a wide range of veterans following the publication of her grandfather's wartime memoir, Victoria Panton Bacon has gathered a moving collection of their experiences. Their recollections tell of a different time and reveal the courage, actions and sentiments of those whose wartime experiences changed the course of history; stories of ordinary people who lived under the long shadows cast by the war and whose young lives were changed irrevocably. Though many tales are sad, describing being sent into war and the loss of friends and family, there are also stories of joy and love found in the darkest of times.For them, war, the ultimate leveller, threw them into remarkable times, whether they were a merchant seaman, army officer, pilot, young Jewish girl, code breaker or Home Guard recruit. From one extraordinary story to the next, Remarkable Journeys of the Second World War immerses the reader in the lives of real people who lived through conflict.

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