Retreat from Death: A Soldier on the Somme [Paperback]

George Herbert Hill (Author), Richard Holmes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 25, 2005 | ISBN-10: 1850437548 | ISBN-13: 978-1850437543 | Edition: 2nd

"I was alone in a world gone mad. Death was all around...Useless, filthy death." So wrote George Herbert Hill on the Battle of St. Quentin, which began on March 21, 1918 and consisted of trench mortars, mustard gas, chlorine gas, tear gas and a heavy artillery bombardment--said to be one of the most fierce and devastating of the Great War. Over the course of six days, thousands of British troops lost their lives and yet this would prove to be the turning point of the war--the end was in sight. Hill was just sixteen when he enlisted into the army. After only a few weeks in France, he was in the midst of St. Quentin and the full horrors of trench warfare. Incredibly, he survived--one of the few members of his battalion to do so. After several months at the front, he was gassed and spent the last days of the war in a field hospital. Hill turned nineteen on the day of the armistice. Retreat from Death is the harrowing story based on his experiences.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Retreat from Death is a must for anyone with an interest in the Great War."--Belfast Telegraph

Book Description

"I was alone in a world gone mad. Death was all around...Useless, filthy death." So wrote George Herbert Hill on the Battle of St. Quentin, which began on March 21, 1918 and consisted of trench mortars, mustard gas, chlorine gas, tear gas and a heavy artillery bombardment--said to be one of the most fierce and devastating of the Great War. Over the course of six days, thousands of British troops lost their lives and yet this would prove to be the turning point of the war--the end was in sight. Hill was just sixteen when he enlisted into the army. After only a few weeks in France, he was in the midst of St. Quentin and the full horrors of trench warfare. Incredibly, he survived--one of the few members of his battalion to do so. After several months at the front, he was gassed and spent the last days of the war in a field hospital. Hill turned nineteen on the day of the armistice. Retreat from Death is the harrowing story based on his experiences.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Tauris Parke Paperbacks; 2nd edition (August 25, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1850437548
• ISBN-13: 978-1850437543
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,887,188 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gnarly, November 18, 2009

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This review is from: Retreat from Death: A Soldier on the Somme (Paperback)

This is an incredible personal account of WW1, of which there are so few. The author describes vividly the way he felt about his horrific surroundings. His introduction to the war was being lost and alone among the Germans' all or nothing 1918 attack, and did not sound like fun.