The title story opens with Sergeant David Wilkes of the Royal Regiment hauling a 24-pounder into battery above the bay at the siege of San Sebastian, under the howl of shells. The tales that follow range more widely, from soldiering under Wellington to comic and tender episodes of English and Cornish life, including a reluctant Father Christmas pushed onto a music-hall stage.
A good sampler of ‘Q’ as a storyteller, warm, wry and fond of plain people caught in history. Download the free EPUB.