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Lyn Macdonald
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Roses Of No Mans Land Paperback – International Edition, September 7, 1993

by Lyn MacDonald (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars 205 ratings
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'On the face of it,' writes Lyn Macdonald, 'no one could have been less equipped for the job than these gently nurtured girls who walked straight out of Edwardian drawing rooms into the manifest horrors of the First World War...' Yet the volunteer nurses rose magnificently to the occasion; in this book they get a chance to tell their own stories. In leaking tents and draughty huts they fought another war, a war against agony and death, as men lay suffering from the pain of unimaginable wounds or diseases we can now cure almost instantly.It was here that young doctors frantically forged new medical techniques - of blood transfusion, dentistry, psychiatry and plastic surgery - in the attempt to save soldiers shattered in body or spirit. And it was here that women achieved a quiet but permanent revolution, by proving beyond question they could do anything. All this is superbly captured in "The Roses of No Man's Land", a panorama of hardship, disillusion and despair, yet also of endurance and supreme courage.
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  1. Print length
    320 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Penguin UK
  4. Publication date
    September 7, 1993
  5. Dimensions
    5.08 x 0.71 x 7.8 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    014017866X
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0140178661
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin UK; 1st Edition Thus (September 7, 1993)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 014017866X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0140178661
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.08 x 0.71 x 7.8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 out of 5 stars 205 ratings

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Lyn Macdonald

Lyn Macdonald

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Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
205 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers appreciate the book's historical accuracy, with one review highlighting its well-researched details and another noting its actual account of World War I. The pacing receives positive feedback, with one customer mentioning it's hard to put down.

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4 customers mention "Historical accuracy"4 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the historical accuracy of the book, with one customer noting its well-researched details and another highlighting its actual account of World War I.

"...by Ms. MacDonald and bracketed with her usual crisp and well-researched historical details, THE ROSES OF NO MAN'S LAND is essentially tragic but is..." Read more

"This is an actual account of World War I from the British perspective...." Read more

"...So much interesting detail... In one passage she hears from a nurse in her later years who had served...." Read more

"Like all her books, this is a triumph. And, like the best historians, she lets the people speak for themselves." Read more

3 customers mention "Pacing"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the pacing of the book engaging, with one mentioning it's hard to put down.

"...In all it is a phenominal effort...." Read more

"...This woman knows how to present a good story which means a book hard to put down. I have read all of her other works and this is one of the best." Read more

"Tedious...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Tetsu
    5.0 out of 5 stars War from the Medical point of view.
    Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Lyn MacDonald produced an exceptional accout of medicine as practiced in the wilderness and swamps of France and Flanders during World war I. She has incorporated the experiences of all elements of the medical field, from surgeons to nurses of long experience to surgeons fresh from medical school and nurses fresh from the recent social round. In all it is a phenominal effort. She has included not just British accounts but also the stories of Canadians and Americans (before and after the official entry of the country into the war in 1917). The reader finds surgeons performing complicated surgery by lamp and candle light and later digging graves for patients who did not survive their wounds. We read of the effects of early chemical attacks in 1915 and the effects on the men who received the bombardment for the first time.

    What I found of interest was the tin mask shop. If you go back to Chariots of Fire, in one of the opening scenes, you see two war veterans and as I recall one of them was wearing a representation of one of the masks devloped in World War I.

    Some of the medical developements from World War I continued at least into the 1980s. Dakin's Solution was developed to treat wound infectinos. I was working in a VA hospital in the mid 1980s and we were using the same solution for treating open ulcers on patinet's legs. I remember one man, a World War I pilot receiving treatment with Dakin's - developed during his time in the military and now being used to treat his leg 70 years later. Ironic that a WWI vet would receive treatment developed in WWI but also a testamony of it's effectiveness. Great stuff!

    The stories from the nurses are what I found to be most interesting. These women, and a few men, were with the patients around the clock and got to know them. The stories they tell are at times amusing (patients teasing a new nurse) and then sad (a young soldier putting his thermometer in a hot water bottle to avoid a return to the front lines) and how the nurses handled these situations and more.

    In all, I think this is a must read - if nothing else as a balance to the stories of the battles of World War I and the statistics of how many killed, wounded and missing. This book makes real people out of the numbers.

    I highly recommend this book!
    10 people found this helpful
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  • SusyQ
    5.0 out of 5 stars Deserves all its praise:
    Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2010
    Verified Purchase
    THE ROSES OF NO MAN'S LAND provides a history of the casualties and medical services of the First World War, through the oral history of the survivors: the medical personnel and the wounded soldiers.

    It's not exclusively the VAD's experience that is covered - it's the nursing sisters; the doctors, the ambulance drivers, that Ms. MacDonald spoke to, who give us their experience. It's not exclusively the British experience either - the American medical personnel who volunteered before the U.S. entry into the war provide their stories.

    And what stories they are. Expertly set forth by Ms. MacDonald and bracketed with her usual crisp and well-researched historical details, THE ROSES OF NO MAN'S LAND is essentially tragic but is also a testament to the strength and honor of these women and men, who "first did no harm".
    12 people found this helpful
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  • Mrs. Monk
    4.0 out of 5 stars Small print
    Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2021
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    The small print makes it hard to read. Otherwise very interesting book.
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  • Joe T.
    5.0 out of 5 stars an intimate look at an often overlooked aspect of WW1, war time medicine and treatment
    Reviewed in the United States on September 1, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    This is another excellent read by a famous English author regarding the roles of doctors and nurses, ambulance drivers, first aid staff, stretcher bearers, nurses and nursing assistants . This woman knows how to present a good story which means a book hard to put down. I have read all of her other works and this is one of the best.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Jennie
    5.0 out of 5 stars World War I
    Reviewed in the United States on July 31, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    This is an actual account of World War I from the British perspective. The story tells about the injuries and nursing that occurred during the battles. The stories of the nurses, patients, doctors, and ambulance drivers were based upon actual accounts. The horrible effects of the war on the human's subjected to horrific battle conditions was so good that I now truly understand the effects of this war. My grandfather fought in this War and I lost an uncle to the flu epidemic described in the book. It is a must read to anyone wanting a true picture of the effects of war.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Carl D. Todd
    5.0 out of 5 stars Another MacDonald gem
    Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Lynn captures the essence of the experience of though who fought to heal the bodies of the host of men who were wounded. So much interesting detail... In one passage she hears from a nurse in her later years who had served. The nurses hands - like pretty much all of the nurses from the front - were scared and crippled. Lyn explain why - it was from dealing with all the septic wounds. The nurses invariably got infections in tiny cuts on their own hands and this went on for some of them for four years.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Heroism of WW I nurses
    Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    The activities of the nurses in WWI has been long overlooked. Their exposure to the contaant bombing and continual parade of wounded soldiers required fortitude many of us would shy from. Some nurses did have a breakdown and that is understandable, but the majority served with as much dignity and courage as did the men on the front lines.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Frank
    2.0 out of 5 stars Tedious.
    Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    I found reading this book to be a bit tedious. The author makes very frequent use of letters and diaries that occupy nearly every page and sometimes continues for pages on end. I found this really annoying and to me this makes the narrative seem disjointed in a way. Although this may be a good source for what it was like on the medical end of WWI there are other books that are at least just as good if not better. I really wanted to like this book but I just couldn't. I practically had to force myself to finish it. I'm afraid that this is a book I cannot recommend.
    One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Marguerite
    5.0 out of 5 stars Tragic, heartbreaking and heart-warming
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 21, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    This was not an easy read. There were times when I was in floods of tears, and most of the time I was just totally awed by the heroism of the women described. That they themselves were so very matter-of-fact, that they took the long hours (as in 20, 22 hour shifts), the horrors they dealt with, the appalling conditions (many of them lived in bell tents) and the strain, the heavy responsibilities hey were given, for granted, made me feel rather small.

    Told through letters and diaries, this book gives you a very immediate sense of what it was like working in the various casualty clearing stations, field hospitals and general hospitals, not just on the Western front but on the Eastern front and back home in Blighty. The logistics are both amazing and appalling. The sheer volume of casualties is unimaginable. And yet what comes shining through here (and I warn you now, I'm going to use a cliché) is the triumph of the human spirit. Truly.

    I've read lots and lots of books on the subject of the Great War. This is one of the best. Not just because of the mass of detail, personal anecdotes that make the detail memorable, and the volume of fascinating medical facts which show the real progress medicine made because of the war, but because of the people themselves. They blew me away. I would really, really like to know how they coped with peace. That would make a fascinating follow-up.
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Molto avvincente
    Reviewed in Italy on May 22, 2015
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    Mi è piaciuto moltissimo, spesso non riuscivo a metterlo giù. E' scritto sottoforma di saggio con citazioni da ex VAD / soldati. Anche molto istruttivo. Consigliatissimo!
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  • Anne
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book of the Great War
    Reviewed in Canada on January 12, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Lyn Macdonald has the ability to take you into the hearts and heads of these soldiers and the nurses caring for them. I liked how she describes real situations. I am reading this as I research a book I'm writing and have found it fascinating as well as historically accurate.
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  • Lindsay Gowlett
    5.0 out of 5 stars Everyone should read this book!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 19, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    This is a must read for anyone interested in WW1. I purchased it for my Kindle as it was recommended as the inspiration for "The Crimson Field" on BBC which I have been watching and enjoyed. The book begins with the note that it is not "just a woman's book" - how true. It is a record of the reminiscences and diaries of those who actually were doctors, nurses, VADs, ambulance drivers and patients in the clearing stations and field hospitals in Belgium, France and back home in "Blighty". These people, mainly volunteers, went to serve "our boys" and their experiences changed their lives for ever. They were part of a war that involved literally millions of men of many nationalities; from Britain (England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland), Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, Africa and Americans who joined the Canadian army before America actually joined the war. They saw horrific injuries from day one but their resilience and determination to help the injured and dying kept them going through long days and nights without a break. Through necessity, breakthroughs in medicine and surgery were made which changed the lives of those undergoing the treatment and are still being used and improved today. All this is documented. Don't get me wrong, this is not a dried up depressing medical story, it is full of life, joy, happiness, laughter and love. Until I reached the end, I didn't realise that the book was written some time ago - 1993 - but it is very pertinent to the conflicts in which our armed forces are, or have been, involved such as Iraq and Afghanistan and the casualties and deaths that families have had to endure today. This book is a tribute to true "unsung" heroes and heroines and I cannot recommend it highly enough.
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  • Yomiryam -- Practising Catholic, Proud Jew
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very good!
    Reviewed in Canada on January 18, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    A lot of nursing/medical history, and very well written.
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