A Gentle Reminder contains the life stories of thirty soldiers from the Navy, Air Force and Army with connections to Barking and Dagenham.
There is information on each soldier's military history including how he was connected to Baking and Dagenham and the medals each soldier earned. There are photographs of the medals (most of these are in the author's collection). There are also photographs of postcards and letters soldiers sent home to their families.
This book also covers where each soldier was born, where they lived and in some cases in some circumstances where and when they died. Also, where possible, what occupations some went on to have. Some became train drivers, steam tug drives and everything in between.
There is also a selection of poems, which I appreciate the authors allowed me to use.
The book covers -:
The Boer War
World War 1
World War 2
I haven't written this book solely for Barking and Dagenham readers but for anyone who has an interest in military history or the history behind the medals.
The title of this book (A Gentle Reminder) is to remind us that sometimes we need a gentle reminder so that we don't forget our past.