This semi-autobiographical historical novel is a true account taken from the memoirs of a rifleman who served in a London Battalion of The Rifle Brigade and covers a six-year period from enlistment to demobilisation. The story, humorous, thought provoking and poignant shows what it was like for those brave young men who answered the call in 1939. Born and bred in Camberwell, south of the River Thames, our hero, Ronald Deakin, relishes the chance to do his bit for King and Country, as his father and uncles did in 1914. This eighteen-year-old Chapel boy dotes on his widowed mother and loves the city of his birth and the Londoner's carefree outlook on life. His attitude to war changes dramatically once he experiences the horrors of Normandy and the bloody battles that follow. Sadly, many of his friends succumb during the bitter struggles and he must draw on hidden reserves to help him survive, mentally as well as physically. Watching his friends fall around him fills him with immense sorrow and gives him much to reflect on. But as time goes on this young man grows in stature, confidence and an unquestionable determination to survive his war.