Giving a resume of the Girl Guide movement, the book concentrates on the period of 1939-1945 looking at how the Girl Guides were involved in the war effort. And how involved they were; running messages for MI5, working for the Polish underground or helping with the wounded and the homeless. Girl Guide training made for excellent recruits into the services and, as we follow the women reporting their history, an excellent training for success in life. There’s a lovely flavour of Joyce Grenfell in this cheering book of ordinary heroism, girls in uniforms, jolly girls and awkward girls, girls showing the most tremendous pluck. That and the excitement of discovering so much little known history made me cheer aloud for Janie Hampton’s mother, a guide and a Brown Owl who inspired Jane to write this book.

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Synopsis

A completely original history of one of the most extraordinary movements in the world -- the Girl Guides -- and how they helped win the war. Mention Girl Guides to any woman and the reaction will be strong. They either loved them or hated them; they were either proud to wear their uniform or refused to join. Whatever their feelings, most former Guides retain strong memories of their experiences. All too often regarded merely in terms of biscuit sales and sing-songs, hardly anybody is aware of the massive impact that the Guides had on gender equality and, more fundamentally, the outcome of the Second World War. In this eye-opening history, Janie Hampton explores how the Guides' work was crucial to Britain's victory. When the Blitz broke out, the Guides knew what to do. They kept up morale in bomb shelters, demonstrating 'blitz cooking' with emergency ovens made from the bricks of bombed houses at the request of the Ministry of Food. They grew food on their company allotments and knitted for the entire country. The embodiment of the Home Front spirit, they dug shelters, provided crucial First Aid, and also assisted the millions of children who were forced to flee their city homes to safer places in the country. It is difficult to imagine what the war effort would have looked like without the Guides. Full of fond and funny anecdotes and rich social history, 'How the Guides Won the War' takes us on the journey of one of the twentieth century's most extraordinary movements.

Reviews

'More wholesome fun tha ideological earnestness ! an enjoyably inspiring account of what was to be -- for so many thousands of girls -- an exciting and fulfilling time.'
Scotsman

'A stirring, surprising story'
Saga

'[Hampton] has caught the authentic tone of unwavering, not to say relentless, optimism characteristic of the Guiding movement.'
Evening Standard

'Absorbing and unexpected! a sobering and inspirational book.'
Mail on Sunday

About the Author

Janie Hampton is the author of fifteen books including biography, fiction and text books. She has been a journalist in Africa, a producer at the BBC World Service and has written articles for the Sunday Times, The Times, the Independent, the Guardian, the Daily Telegraph and the New Statesman. She has worked in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Zaire, Rwanda and Uganda, living in rural communities, travelling by canoe, bus, river-boat and train. More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation