David Filsell Posted 16 August , 2014 Share Posted 16 August , 2014 Chris 'Nuff" said. Thanks for the courtesy of your reply. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Dunlop Posted 17 August , 2014 Share Posted 17 August , 2014 Congratulations to Alexandra on getting the book published. I have a personal interest, having provided Sunday afternoon talks on palliative care every year for many years. The other interest, however, stems from references to the Old Etonians in many primary sources. They represented one of the many examples of informal networks within the British army that promoted learning. Old Etonians were quick to share experiences, particularly across the divides of the command structure. Fraser-Tytler provides several examples in his book. During the build-up to the Battle of the Somme, his artillery unit was located next to the French. Fraser-Tytler was able to talk with the French about their artillery and other tactics. He was then able to share these insights with Rawlinson directly through their OE connections. To date I have not seen examples of this type of networking in French or German accounts. Robert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Filsell Posted 17 August , 2014 Share Posted 17 August , 2014 Just goes to show how vital the old boys network was in our glorious victory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moonraker Posted 17 August , 2014 Share Posted 17 August , 2014 David's comment prompts me to mention Old Etonian reunions in France (and perhaps in other theatres of war), not that I know much about them. Moonraker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Filsell Posted 17 August , 2014 Share Posted 17 August , 2014 What about those stout chaps at Harrow. I think we should be told. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger H Posted 17 August , 2014 Share Posted 17 August , 2014 Err, I thought this thread was about book reviews? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Filsell Posted 17 August , 2014 Share Posted 17 August , 2014 It seems to have veered toward greater but still relevant glories. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaroleHope Posted 17 August , 2014 Share Posted 17 August , 2014 Well I suppose if someone wants to write a book of this nature it helps matters enormously if there is a wealth of primary source material at your disposal, which I assume was the case with Alexandra Churchill's book. I don't suppose there would be an awful lot of personal papers available for - er - fishmongers for example. Or at least it would not be so easy to track down. I have not read the book and probably won't for a variety of reasons so I make no comment on the content. However, I'd just like to address the issue of proof/copy reading. I don't know what kind of service The History Press offer in this regard but I do know that if an author has to finance it her/his self it is very expensive service. My book, published by Reveille Press, cost me far more than I am ever going to recoup from sales and that's without even factoring in the cost of trips to Ireland to consult the Doyle family archive, trips to France and Belgium to walk the ground and trips to National Archives to consult battalion war diaries etc. My book is large and cost (including paying for a professional indexer) over £2,000 to bring to publication and the extra cost for proof-reading was out of my reach. However, I was lucky to have a friend with the necessary "know how" to read the manuscript for me, but nevertheless a number of typos slipped through. I have to say that I am surprised The History Press do not address this issue themselves rather than leave it to the author. Finally, Alexandra Churchill is lucky to have provoked such a lively debate on this forum and her background as a paid researcher and historian being featured on TV programmes will no doubt help sales along. Miaow! I look forward to reading reviews in due course! Carole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Michelle Young Posted 30 August , 2014 Admin Share Posted 30 August , 2014 I'm a few chapters in, I would say that Ms Churchill is a good story teller, I'm enjoying the book. Its a bit like reading Lynn McDonald books; a good read but don't read for the history of the war. Michelle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moonraker Posted 1 September , 2014 Share Posted 1 September , 2014 What about those stout chaps at Harrow. I think we should be told. In terms of numbers of fatalities, Marlborough College's loss is said to be second only to that of Eton, whose student body was the far greater of the two. Some 749 members of the Marlborough community who enlisted in the Army were killed, including seven members of the teaching staff and seven of the non-teaching staff. Whatever one's feelings about public schools, the losses they suffered must have been deeply felt by their communities. Moonraker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coldstreamer Posted 1 September , 2014 Share Posted 1 September , 2014 does old boy Hugh Clement Sutton get a mention ? (pardon the military pun) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrissparrow Posted 1 September , 2014 Share Posted 1 September , 2014 Sorry Coldstreamer but no he does not, but only about 10% of OEs killed do. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 27 August , 2016 Share Posted 27 August , 2016 Out of interest, two years on has anyone actually read enough of this book for a proper review? The book has been referenced in another thread here and referred to as one of the worst books ever (which compares wildly with an earlier assertion that it was the best ever). Is there a middle route? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 27 August , 2016 Share Posted 27 August , 2016 (edited) 2 hours ago, Steven Broomfield said: Out of interest, two years on has anyone actually read enough of this book for a proper review? The book has been referenced in another thread here and referred to as one of the worst books ever (which compares wildly with an earlier assertion that it was the best ever). Is there a middle route? Steven if you would like a copy I will send you mine for free. It is truly a terrible piece of research. Blues and Royals. Really. The early enthusiasts of the book on this Forum were largely people who had contributed in a small way but had not realised the rather low standards of the end product. I sympathise with them. I am informed that Churchill was rather upset by the criticism. It is not a book about all Etonians in the Great War. Not a single Etonian rogue is mentioned. Of the thousands of Etonians who served, surely some must have come unstuck. That unfortunately would not fit the bill, as it is really a cheerleading eulogy of Etonians. MG Edited 27 August , 2016 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coldstreamer Posted 27 August , 2016 Share Posted 27 August , 2016 Not read my copy, just flicked through bits that took my interest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tharkin56 Posted 27 August , 2016 Share Posted 27 August , 2016 Hi am i reading that no-one has researche dthe men mentioned in this book or all those who fell from Eton. Some of them appeared in my book on Polo and the Great War https://archive.org/details/listofetonianswh00eton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Filsell Posted 27 August , 2016 Share Posted 27 August , 2016 I had completely forgotten how steamed up I got about this book! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now