A Son of War Author:Melvyn Bragg A Son of War presents Melvyn Bragg's second installment in what the Sunday Telegraph calls "one of the finest literary sagas of post-war Britain. Continuing the story of the Richardson family begun in the award-winning The Soldier's Return, this powerful novel depicts how the terrible upheavals of World Wa... more »r II reverberated in the peace that followed. After returning from the campaign in Burma, Sam Richardson was determined to leave his small hometown of Wigton for the promised land of Australia. Yet now, a few months later, he has settled for a job in Wigton's paper factory, and believes he has put both his aspirations and his memories of the war behind him. His wife, Ellen, knows better, realizing how close their marriage has come to disaster. Caught between them, their young son Joe strives to fulfill their conflicitng expectations for him, as he faces the challenges of childhood and adolescense and confronts his own demons.
Crafted with admirable understatement and acute insight into the twists and turns of the heart, this is a worthy successor to the highly praised The Soldier's Return. The Richardsons, emblematic of a whole generation, are depicted with the same attention to detail, the same affection and compassion, the same lack of sentimentality. A Son of War portrays a family forever altered by an experinece subsequent generations can scarcely imagine, yet whose individual hopes, compromises, and quiet triumphs form the fabric of everday, universal life.« less