Customer Reviews
Without doubt the best-ever WW1 autobography - By: Monkey T, 08 Sep 2007 
This is a truly amazing biography & one that moved me to tears on a number of occasions.
Mr Coppard was a child of his generation - like thousands of boys he lied about his age to join the army, then when the horror of war started to grind him down & his mother tried to bring him home the government refused, even though he was clearly underage.
Amazingly, he retained his respect for rank, authority & his country throughout his service & his post-war life backin England.
He comes across as a brave, yet very humble man & his vivid descriptions bring to life both the terror & boredom of life on the front like few other auto biographies. The little details - such as having to urinate into his machine gun to cool it down during the heat of battle - are fascinating.
The book also includes a selection of letters that people wrote to him after the book was initially published & many of them are heart-rending.
The best wartime biographraphies are always the ones written by the 'foot soldiers', not the officers - & this is the best of the best.
with a machine gun to cambrai - By: Ivor E. Thomas, 07 Apr 2007 Very gritty, first person account of George Coppardin a machine gun company through the last few years of the First World War. Well worth a read for any amateur military historian like myself - you won't be disappointed.
Wonderful - By: Robjblack, 11 Nov 2005 A Brilliant Read Describing George Coppard`s First World War Experiences.I Have Read Many WW1 Books but truly found this to be
the best one i have read.You almost feel that you are reliving
George`s Life with him.It`s a truly wonderful Diary of Events from a man who saw more than His Fair share of actionin this awful war.It is a tribute to George that he came through this & had a long & interesting life.I Lent my copy to a friend
and can`t remember which one.I want to get it back as it is so good i want read it again.
Simply brilliant - By: , 03 Oct 2002 Having read most of the 'standard' texts on WWI such as those by Sassoon, Graves etc I stumbled upon this book almost by accident & having no knowledge of it wasn't sure what to expect.
I needn't have worried as this book is certainly the best na done of the most emotive I have read on the subject. Mr. Coppard describesin vivid detail what it was like to have foughtin some of the worst localised conflicts on the Western Front. He does it with a rare flair & with humour. It's a story about comradeship & muddling throughin great adversity & although I'd never wish to endure what they went through, I almost envy them the comradeship which comes from those shared experiences; something I can never fully hope to understand.
The 'Epilogue', both fascinating & poignant after the descriptions given earlier, where Mr. Coppard travels back to Flanders & Picardy more than 50 years after fighting there makes this book something more than the average text. The descriptions of his travels visiting cemeteries (including those of his erstwhile German enemies) etc really make you think. His comment that:-
"Politicians would do well to tour all the cemeteries of France & Belgium & resolve never to act rashly, nor deliver ultimatums or threats of any kind, but to hold their hand, striving to their utmost to achieve harmonious relations with all peoples."
is now particularly apt I think coming from someone who experienced the firsthand results of politicians' warmongering.
Mr. Coppard has produced a brilliant, moving book; I wish I could have met him.
Simply brilliant - By: , 24 Sep 2002 Having read most of the 'standard' texts on WWI such as those by Sassoon, Graves etc I stumbled upon this book almost by accident & having no knowledge of it wasn't sure what to expect.
I needn't have worried as this book is certainly the best I have read on the subject. Mr. Coppard describesin vivid detail what it was like to have foughtin some of the worst localised conflicts on the Western Front. He does it with a rare flair & with humour. It's a story about comradeship & muddling throughin great adversity & although I'd never wish to endure what they went through, I almost envy them the comradeship which comes from something I can never fully understand.
One part of the book that is interesting after the descriptions given earlier is the 'Epilogue' where Mr. Coppard travels back to Flanders & Picardy more than 50 years after fighting there. His descriptions of his travels visiting cemeteries (including those of his erstwhile German enemies) etc really make you think. His comment that:-
"Politicians would do well to tour all the cemeteries of France & Belgium & resolve never to act rashly, nor deliver ultimatums or threats of any kind, but to hold their hand, striving to their utmost to achieve harmonious relations with all peoples."
is now particularly apt I think coming from someone who experienced the firsthand results of politicians warmongering.
Mr. Coppard has produced a brilliant book; I wish I could have met him.
