Monday 4 January 2016

While You Were Away

I am currently sorting through and selling a lot of books. I am finally parting with the majority of my homeschool books and I am just happy that with Facebook there is a way to sell them and know they are going to another family to help in their homeschool journey.
I also have many of my grandfather's books. My grandfather was a travelling book salesman for Oxford University Press after the war and spent lots of time away from home, travelling the country via train to show his books.

This isn't my grandfather - it is what one of the country train stations would have looked like.
He gradually worked his way up at Oxford until, by his retirement, he was in top management. As such, he had a lot of books at his death and lots came to me, as the resident book lover in the family. When I was a child, I loved nothing better than to visit Pa's library. And since then I have always wished for a dedicated room of my own for a library.
But sadly, I cannot keep all the books (I wish I could!) My most treasured would have to be a signed first edition of Patrick White's The Tree of Man, with letters from Patrick White to my grandfather. But there are so many amazing treasures. My grandfather would always file any letters from an author pertaining to their book inside the front cover of the book itself. So I have found letters from lots of famous people. They are all staying with me, in their original book.

But this is the booklet I wanted to show you today.


My grandfather was a medical officer in WWII, serving in Singapore. As such, he was captured by the Japanese at the fall of Singapore in 1942 and became a POW at Changi for the duration of the war. When he returned home in 1946 (after spending time recuperating in Burma), there were so many general knowledge things that the returned men just did not know about. So they were all issued with this little booklet. It contains sections like politics, general news items, show business, the war itself (as they heard nothing about the progress of the war while prisoners), the home front, etc.

I suppose until I found this little booklet, I hadn't thought about all the information at home they would have missed out on. It would have been like coming back to a strange new world, with people talking about all sorts of unknown topics. My uncle was a baby when Pa left for the war and in school when he returned. I cannot imagine missing all those years of your child's life.



I am so interested in the history of the World Wars and hope that we will never forget the sacrifice made by so many.

14 comments:

  1. Oh for one of those cavernous rooms filled from floor to ceiling with bookcases housing thousands of books, with ladders sliding from one end of the room to the other. Those books of yours with letters from the authors are treasures. What an interesting read they would be. I've never really thought of the fact that those away at war would not be up-to-date with all that was going on in the world. What a great little book. Enjoy sorting through those treasures of yours, Jayne.

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    1. That is like the library my grandfather had - no wonder I loved visiting there! And he had heaps of biographies. I have always loved biographies and still do.

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  2. Fascinating booklet! Ah, you write so bravely but I feel the book rationalisation pain behind the stoic words. As long as you are keeping the ones you love the best....seems you are.

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    1. It is very hard, you are right. But we have to move on. Things change in our lives and we must adapt. I am up to the third go around the shelves - I did one a year ago, one six months ago and now. So by one more round, I should be down to the ones I absolutely cannot part with!

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  3. Wow what an amazing book, and so thoughtful of them to write it. I also like that they included the women of the war, their role was important too.

    I would adore my own library, i may make one eventually in the spare room :) xx

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    1. It is an amazing booklet - I assume other countries produced them as well for their servicemen.

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  4. Your grandpa is an incredible man. You are so lucky to be related. What an amazing story.

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    1. He sure was. Right up until he died, he was mentoring uni students with their research.

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  5. What an amazing find. I too would love to have a whole room dedicated to books, particularly all those great books that your dear Grandpa had, such treasure.

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    1. One day, I will build a library - we've gotta dream!

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  6. What a precious treasure you have, Jayne, such books are priceless, so as the stories that our relatives, parents or grandparents have taken back home from the War !
    Sending blessings on your start of the week
    Daniela

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    1. It is a treasure. I did a thesis on Changi POW camp when I was studying and some of the stories were just harrowing.

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  7. That is such a cool little treasure you have! My great uncle was a waist gunner on a B17 and my brother was so fascinated by all of it. My aunt gave him my uncles wings and anything my uncle had in his boxes, when my brother got his own Navy Wings.

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    1. Your brother must be very proud of those treasures.

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