Introduction

Have you ever wondered if there are any stories in your family history that should be written down for prosperity? This book will have you wondering….

The following is taken from the Pen and Sword Website:
Very few British soldiers could lay claim to such a full war as Leslie Young. Having survived the retreat to and evacuation from Dunkirk, he volunteered for the newly formed Commandos and took part in their first major operation, the raid on the Lofoten Islands. He fought and was captured in Tunisia. He escaped in Italy before his PoW camp at Fontanellato was taken over by the Nazis after the September 1943 Italian armistice. He then spent six months on the run in the Apennine Mountains aided by many brave and selfless Italians, who were risking their lives in so doing. He eventually reached Allied lines but not before two of his helpers were tragically killed by German and American fire respectively. On returning to England he immediately signed up for the invasion of North West Europe and, despite being wounded, fought his way through to Germany. He was twice mentioned in Dispatches. Thanks to his son’s research, Major Young’s inspiring and thrilling story can now be told.

Review

This hard back book with a paper dust cover from Pen and Sword Military is written by Nicholas Young about his father’s wartime adventures. This book is priced at £25 but is also available from the Pen and Sword website. The book contains 245 pages of good quality paper, with a glossy paper section which contains black and white photographs, documents and maps.

The contents of this publication are as follows:

Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Maps
Prologue

Chapter 1 The War - with the British Expeditionary Force in France
Chapter 2 Retreat
Chapter 3 Dunkirk
Chapter 4 Operation Dynamo
Chapter 5 A Day at the Beach
Chapter 6 With the Commandos - Weymouth
Chapter 7 With the Commandos - Scotland
Chapter 8 The Lofoten Island Raid
Chapter 9 Return to the Bedfords
Chapter 10 The War in North Africa
Chapter 11 Tunisia 1943
Chapter 12 Into Captivity
Chapter 13 Fontanellato
Chapter 14 Armistice - and Freedom
Chapter 15 On the Run
Chapter 16 Christmas in Corvaro
Chapter 17 News of a Landing
Chapter 18 Triumph and Tragedy
Chapter 19 Going Home
Chapter 20 Preparing to Invade
Chapter 21 Operation Overlord
Chapter 22 The Breakout
Chapter 23 The Great Swan
Chapter 24 Operation Market Garden
Chapter 25 Holding the Line
Chapter 26 Farewell

Bibliography
Index

Leslie Young hardly ever spoke about his wartime experiences, his friends who died during this time or the fact that he had been mentioned is despatches. It was only after his passing that his son Nicholas Young found a tattered note book and rest as they say is history. After uncovering his father’s story Nicholas Young and one of his sons plan on following in the footsteps of Leslie in the hope of finding more information

Conclusion

This book is a labour of love from a son to his father, keeping his story alive for future generations of not just his family, but others. A unique story telling the reader of courage, fear and determination to serve his country no matter the cost. The passage I found the most poignant was that when Leslie’s son and grandson went to visit Fontanellato which is now a clinic, they ended up in the attic which still contained soil from the prisoners escape tunnel - amazing considering that this visit was in 2003.