With a few exceptions these poems are reprinted from Punch. They are spirited and humorous pictures of life at the front. Besides the title poem some of the pieces are: Ballade of incipient lunacy; The rest-rumour; At the dump; The atrocity; The ballad of Jones’s Blighty; The trench code; The mischief-makers; The deserters; Free meals; The cookers: a song of the transport; A song of plenty.
+ Booklist 17:61 N ’20
“Because he has a sense of humor, a great deal of common sense and the good sense to make what is merely good verse and in no way pretends to be serious poetry, Mr Herbert has given us a very likable book about the Tommy.” Marguerite Williams
+ N Y Times p24 Ag 22 ’20 100w + Springf’d Republican p11a Ag 22 ’20 160w
HERBERT, ALAN PATRICK. Secret battle. *$2 (4c) Knopf
20–628
He was a sensitive, romantic and imaginative lad, lacking confidence in himself but pathetically eager and conscientious about doing the right thing, not to make a mess of it, to measure up and more than measure up to what was required of him. He always exacted a bit more of himself than could reasonably be expected. He distinguished himself at Gallipoli in the most trying part of the war until he was carried down to the ship in a high fever. Later in France, his record was the same, always doing the over and above his power of endurance that was bound in the end to undermine his power of existence. When the strain had become too great and petty jealousies of fellow officers and the bullying arrogance of the commander had done their deadly work, the fatal move was made and one of the bravest men the war knew was shot for cowardice.
“Mr Herbert’s is one of the most interesting and moving English war books.”