The Home Front

The Home Front, War Years in Britain 1939–1945 is a collection of the author’s hundreds of ephemera from World War II.  The posters, advertisements, photographs, cartoons, menus, and paintings illustrate the British civilians’ spirit for humor and grit in the face of the threat, and then the reality of war.  It is a thoroughly researched social history, with detailed eyewitness accounts of air raids, evacuees, food rationing, restrictions on travel, entertainment, and clothing. Wartime moods and popular culture are captured in songs as themes for the chapters, and this digital version of the 1975 original book contains links to recordings, from In the Mood to When the Lights Go On Again. Also featured are governmental edicts and propaganda on how to save and recycle, how to make meals out of little, how to keep information,  prevent spreading germs, and how to be prepared for invasion. 


The resilience and preparedness of the ‘Home Front’ was seen as a serious contributor to winning the war. It begins in 1939 when the country stood alone, to when the G.I.s arrived with “a touch of American glamour, even a shade of Hollywood,” and finally to the victory celebrations that were also tinged with sadness for the many lives lost.


It is a fascinating entry into the homes, lives, and humor of the British people when they faced an unprecedented threat.