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CODE: A004
UK £12
The entire text and illustrations from 3 great books either written or illustrated by the most famous cartoonist of the Great War, Captain Bruce Bairnsfather; 'THE BAIRNSFATHER CASE', 'FRAGMENTS FROM HIS LIFE' and 'SOMME BATTLE STORIES'.
Cover Blurb:
Bruce Bairnsfather was, for more than two decades, a major international celebrity after rocketing to fame during the early days of the Great War with his ‘Fragments from France’ series of cartoons. The original magazines, featuring Bairnsfather’s comic slant on the war, sold more than 2 million copies world-wide, a staggering number even by today’s standards. His first book ‘Bullets & Billets’, produced in 1916, sold more than 50,000 copies in its first three weeks and was reprinted no less than eight times during the war! The magazines and books sold world-wide and ensured Bairnsfather became a household name on practically every continent (certainly those with countries engaged in the conflict). By any standard he was a success, that strange phenomenon - a man catapulted to ‘stardom’ by a world shattering sequence of events well outside his control. Bairnsfather just happened to be the right man, in the right place, at the right time, and that place was the Western Front. Bairnsfather (an original Old Contemptible) served with the Warwickshire Regiment until he was wounded at Ypres in 1915. However, neither wily magazine editors, nor the Army were slow to recognise this young Lieutenant’s unique ability to capture for the common man the feel and life of the trenches. Promoted to Captain and attached to the Intelligence Department, he continued throughout the war to make people laugh, not only soldiers at the Front (who loved him beyond measure) but entire nations, as he was requested by Britain’s allies, the French, Italians and Americans, to do for their beleaguered troops what he had done so startlingly well for the British, in raising their morale through his humour. His most famous comic creation, the ever grumbling Old Bill, became synonymous with the Old Contemptibles, those soldiers ‘out since Mons’ and for the rest of his life, no matter where he was or what he did, Bairnsfather was never without his trusty sidekick.
Following publication of the first Omnibus we received a great many letters from people who, if not able to remember Bairnsfather from the Great War directly, could recall their parents reading aloud to them from his books and showing them his cartoons; many expressed regret that what had once been prized possessions were now no more, having been lost along the way. The letters were suffused with a genuine warmth and fondness for this unassuming man, the hero of his day, who was so sadly overlooked in the latter part of his life. In this second edition, we feature three more works either written or illustrated by Bairnsfather. The books in this edition span the period from 1916 to 1920, and again feature works which have been ‘out of print’ since the original editions were produced. Endeavouring to ‘keep faith’ with the originals the full texts and all the illustrations have been included. We have greatly enjoyed working on the books in this edition and hope readers will enjoy and treasure them as much as we do.
Title: THE 2ND BAIRNSFATHER OMNIBUS
ISBN: 0-9535204-5-5
Author: Bruce Bairnsfather
Genre: History/The Great War
Length: 256 pages - black and white
Size: 234mm x 156mm (portrait)
Cover: paperback - full colour
from 'The Bairnsfather Case'
from 'The Bairnsfather Case'
from 'Fragments From His Life'
