In WW2 information leaflets and posters proliferated. Soldiers were
bombarded with Field Regulations, airmen with the latest updates about
airborne early warning, bomb sights and radio navigation and sailors
with material that helped them identify enemy aircraft and submarines
and told them how to operate the new ship board weapons to destroy them.
An abundance of familiar slogans exhorted the population to do the
utmost: 'Go To IT!', 'Come Into The Factories', 'Keep Calm and Carry
On', 'Dig For Victory', 'Lend A Hand on the Land', 'Walk When You Can'.
Other messages warned of the consequences of irresponsible behavior:
'Careless Talk Cost Lives', 'Loose Lips Sink Ships', 'Keep It Under Your
Hat' and 'Be Like Dad, Keep Mum', the latter illustrating just how much
social mores have, thankfully, changed in the last 75 years.
This book is concerned with the plethora of printed ephemera that was
designed to educate, instruct, inform and entertain. Such original
material can still be bought and is easy to store - the posters also
often making attractive items for display - but as with all other
authentic historical material supply is finite and examples of wartime
publications in first class condition command a high price. This is the
first time a single volume has been dedicated entirely to a long
overlooked component of wartime collectables. It is designed to
complement books which focus on traditional militaria such as uniforms,
equipment and regalia and is intended to reveal just how much material
was produced, across the board, by each of the warring nations. It will
advise enthusiasts about what was produced, what is still available and
where to find it and, importantly, how to conserve and store such
vintage printed items.
