The Great Silence cover art

The Great Silence

Britain from the Shadow of the First World War to the Dawn of the Jazz Age

 Preview

Audible Standard 30-day free trial

Try Standard free
Select 1 audiobook a month from our entire collection.
Listen to your selected audiobooks as long as you're a member.
Get unlimited access to bingeable podcasts.
Standard auto renews for £5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Great Silence

By: Juliet Nicolson
Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
Try Standard free

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £15.87

Buy Now for £15.87

About this listen

As the euphoria of Armistice Day in 1918 quickly subsided, there was no denying the carnage that the Great War had left in its wake. Grief and shock overwhelmed the psyche of the British people - but from their despair, new life would slowly emerge.

For veterans with faces demolished in the trenches, surgeon Harold Gillies brings hope with his miraculous skin-grafting procedure. Women win the vote, skirt hems leap, and Brits forget their troubles at packed dance halls. And two years later, the remains of a nameless combatant would be laid to rest in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Westminster Abbey, as "The Great Silence", observed in memory of the countless dead, halted citizens in silent reverence.

This history of two transformative years in the life of a nation features countless characters, from an aging butler to a pair of newlyweds, from the prince of Wales to T. E. Lawrence, the real-life Lawrence of Arabia. The Great Silence depicts a nation fighting the forces that threaten to tear it apart and discovering the common bonds that hold it together.

©2009 Juliet Nicolson (P)2020 Tantor Europe Great Britain United Kingdom War
All stars
Most relevant
Very interesting book with a different angle than lots of others on the First World War. Pronunciation of narrator incorrect and odd at times which is annoying but overall a great listen and very much enjoyed.

Great interesting book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Poor narration spoils an interesting perspective on the period between the 2 World Wars.
I don't understand why this is such a common problem when there are plenty of excellent narrators out there,

interesting approach

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.