From the autumn of 1914 to the autumn of 1918 Flanders was, in effect, a gigantic corpse factory. Hundreds of thousands died there for ground where gains were measured in mere yards.

Soldiers who had just gone through the ordeal of Battle of the Somme cursed the prospect of being sent to the Ypres Salient.

The battles around Ypres in the First World War became the greatest struggle of attrition in history. Tantalising hopes of breakthrough were raised from time to time, only to flounder in mud and fire.

Vietnam veteran Winston Groom’s brilliant account of the campaign switches seamlessly between the generals’ headquarters, the politicians’ councils and — above all — the hell of the trenches. We see the campaign through their eyes and the experience of both the British and the Germans, generals, officers and ordinary soldiers.

‘A Storm in Flanders’ is a powerful history that combines the drama of high politics and strategy with unsparing accounts of front-line combat.

‘Fascinating … an engaging narrative of the terrible fighting around Ypres.’ - GERARD DE GROOT, BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE

Winston Groom served in Vietnam with the 4th Infantry Division. He is the author of twelve books, including the prize-winning history of the US Civil War ‘Shrouds of Glory’. His Vietnam book ‘Conversations with the Enemy’ was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. His bestselling novels include ‘The Crimson Tide’.

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