Dear Jelly: Family Letters from the First World War

What was it like to be a soldier, fighting in World War One? A hundred years later, Sarah Ridley takes a selection of letters from two young officer brothers to their schoolgirl sisters, Mabel and Jelly, to bring those terrible days to life. The brothers' letters were full of comical drawings, jokey poems and reassuring stories of light-hearted adventures. But the constant rain, mud, exhaustion, fear and boredom, as well as the squalor of life in the trenches, is evident. As is the ever-present threat of death.

Accompanied by historical notes on the progress of the war, this book is an accessible resource and an appealing read. It is also a moving story, as neither of the brothers returned home alive.