Customer Reviews
Villaret - Vive le France ... - By: Mrs Pickers, 11 Feb 2007 
This book seems to have received mixed reviews & I would agree that it fares betterin parts than others. However, the unmistakable quality of the writing & the research, merits more than a casual glance at this book.
It is true that it is primarily a love story, a story of great injustice & one of overwhelming sadness for the remaining victim - the daughter. It is also a wonderful depiction of the times & breaks your heart to read the realities of the mind-numbing atrocity that is war, of so many lost sons. We can never "make it better" but perhaps we can always remember. By reading this book, I believe we can try.
I would recommend this book to a variety of readers, not least family historians, to aidin their journey of discovery.
A gripping 'whodunnit?' laced with wit - By: , 05 May 2004 
I must admit that I much prefer first world war 'fiction' (asin 'Birdsong' or the 'Regeneration Trilogy') to factual events & when I bought this book I made the mistakein thinking that's what I was getting.However,I was very pleasantly surprised.
The story of the 'four Englishmen of Villeret' & their untimely betrayal(by whom?) makes gripping reading.I found myself concerned for the soldiers & villagers & the circumstancesin which they found themselves & although I was aware of the fate that befell them, the ending was not ruined. This due to Ben MacIntyre's painstaking research & interviews with the descendents of all involvedin 1916. He puts forward theories of the locals as well as his own, but ultimately the reader is left to make their own assumptions as to 'whodunnit?'
moving and timely - By: , 13 Jun 2003 some people dismiss this as a glib, poorly written romance. they are mistaken. agreed the writing is shoddy & clumsy, at times childishly pretentious. agreed the plot is pure ealing. but that is to miss the point, namely that war makes ordinary people behavein an extraordinary fashion. to take as mr macintye does a simple story about a soldier & a woman is the easy bit. what is hard is to make it more than a simple romance. gamely mr macintyre searches for meaning so that we can relate what happens to his characters to what happens to the same sort of peoplein kosovo, afghanistan or iraq. mr macintyre lacks the requisite skills to quite accomplish his task. a better writer would have done better. he deserves acclaim for trying.
Real life love story - By: , 23 Oct 2002 This is not only a fascinating account of a real life love story with a tragic ending, but also an interesting insight into the lives of the inhabitants of Villeret & surrounding villagesin northern France during the first world war. Well worth reading.
Fact, mixed with fiction makes for a great read - By: , 07 Aug 2002 This is a truly accomplished book. Taking real-life events that took place during the confusion at the beginning of the first world warin 1914, the author tells the true story of a group of allied soldiers caught behind German lines when the allies retreated.
Centred around the town of Villeretin Picardy, characters (exceptionally well-researched) are brought to life as villains or heros. Sympathetically & at times humerously written, it portrays the confusion of war, & the fact that it will often bring out both the best & the worstin people.
This book will particularly appeal to those with an amateur interestin the history of the First World War, due to the painstaking research that went into the book. eg Reading about the last (brave & desparate) cavalry charge of any major war, with the proud French cavalry, charging German machine gun lines was heart-rending & evocative. It also is a great chance to understand & sharein the hopes & fears of young British soldiers lostin a foreign field.
Fact mixed with fiction: a great mix when written so well.
