I was hoping it wouldn't be totally consumed by balls and gowns.

I was hoping this would be a social history of the pivotal year of 1939 in England. This is a very good book for history buffs. That Britain hadn't known in WWI, where France and other continental countries bore the brunt of four years of fighting. And their 'at home' families now knew that raids from the skies could bring destruction The nation's young men, whose fathers had gaily marched off in 1914 to The War To End All Wars, enlisted in THEIR war with more resignation and trepidation, knowing already the evils of war. (As a side note, the 'appeasement' did give the British another year in which to prepare for war.)ĭe Courcy, an excellent writer, looks at all levels of society, while focusing on the royal family and the upper-classes, who went through the 'Season' of horse races, debutante balls, cricket matches, rowing-at-Henley, etc.Īt the 'Season's' end, September 1st, Hitler's troops invaded Poland at Danzig, bringing on war, which was formally declared on September 3rd. Conflict had been staved off a year earlier with Chamberlain's 'Appeasement' at Munich, which basically 'gave' Czechoslovakia to Hitler. There was a strong sense among all layers of society that war with Germany was inevitable. Based on Anne’s book, a Channel 4 documentary “Snowdon and Margaret: Inside a Royal Marriage”, was broadcast.Īnne was a judge for the recent Biography section of the Costa Award in 2013, and is also one of the judges on the final selection panel judging the best of all the genres.Īn excellent look at the 'last 'Season', the spring and summer of 1939. Her recent biographies, all of which have been serialised, include THE VICEROY’S DAUGHTERS, DIANA MOSLEY and DEBS AT WAR and SNOWDON THE BIOGRAPHY, written with the agreement and co-operation of the Earl of Snowdon. In 1982 she joined the Daily Mail as a feature writer, with a special interest in historical subjects, leaving in 2003 to concentrate on books, on which she has talked widely both here and in the United States.Ī critically-acclaimed and best-selling author, she believes that as well as telling the story of its subject’s life, a biography should depict the social history of the period, since so much of action and behaviour is governed not simply by obvious financial, social and physical conditions but also by underlying, often unspoken, contemporary attitudes, assumptions, standards and moral codes.Īnne is on the committee of the Biographers’ Club and a past judge of their annual Prize. In the 1970s she was Woman’s Editor on the London Evening News until its demise in 1980, when she joined the Evening Standard as a columnist and feature-writer. Born in 1927, Anne de Courcy is a well-known writer, journalist and book reviewer.

1939 by Anne de Courcy