Book description
Roger: A code word for a gas cylinder and a nickname for rum. Sausage:
An observation balloon. Whippet: A small, light type of tank with a top
sped of eight m. p.h. The First World War raged for four years, taking
with it hundreds of thousands of young soldiers who lived and died
together, bonded by the horror of the war. Now, all the way from the
trenches and through the letters of Christopher Moore's Captain
Cartwright, comes an extraordinary lexicon of the phrases and lingo of
life at the front. Whether born from the desperation of gallows humour
('If it keeps on like this, someone's going to get hurt'), borrowed from
Cockney rhyming slang, Latin, French and other languages ('Cushy:
Comfortable, safe, pleasant. From the Hindustani: khush, pleasure') or
even taken from the name of the Huntley and Palmer biscuit company,
Tommy had a new word for almost everything. From Ammo to Zig-Zag, this
is a fascinating glimpse into the world of our First World War heroes.
So fetch the dooly and the other makings, brew up some char, and read on
safe in the knowledge that you won't be going over the top today...
Christopher Moore is a BBC producer, and has presented documentaries
about WW1 on Radio 4, as well as writing TRENCH FEVER the story of his
great-grandfather's experiences in WW1.
