Ruth Sillers talks about, and performs extracts, from her audio book compilation, War Girls. The study is a commemoration of the remarkable and largely unsung experiences of women in the First World War told in their own words. Some are writings of well-known poets and novelists, but many more are the stories of ordinary women living in extraordinary times. These are stories not just of hardship and suffering but joy and excitement at the new opportunities opening up for women.
Pieces featured include:
Millicent Garrett Fawcett (d 1933) and Chrystal Macmillan (d 1937) – International Manifesto of Woman
Katherine Tynan (d 1931) – Joining the colours
Jessie Pope (d 1941) – War girls
Muriel Dayrell-Browning (d 1933) – A Zeppelin shot down
Virginia Woolf (d 1943) – Diary, 1918, London
Sara Teasdale (d 1933) – There will come soft rains
Ruth Sillers has performed in theatre and on television and radio. She has recorded numerous audio books for BBC Audiobooks and many other publishers. Recent recordings include classic short stories by Jane Austen, Katherine Mansfield and Virginia Woolf and Rosie Alison’s The Very Thought of You, nominated for the Orange Prize.