by

 

Wladek Wojcik

  BACK IN PRINT 

for the third time

The war-time story they never told you in school

Essential reading if you are of Polish extraction

A good read even if you're not.............

The world, however, knows the bitter irony of that last comment. The Poles, who, fought perhaps more gallantly than any to win the war, went on to lose the peace as their country was handed back to the despised Russians by their erstwhile allies, the iron curtain came down and the long years of the cold war set in. By the way, there was one allied nation not invited to join in the victory parades in London; arguably the nation who had suffered the most, and fought the hardest - the Poles.

Wladek writes movingly of the endless difficulties endured by Poles in the UK after the war, when communist-dominated Trades Unions put every obstacle in the way of them finding work; and when they had to confront the heart-rending dilemma of either abandoning loved ones in Poland, or returning to the Soviet yoke, the weight and oppression of which they already knew too well.

Far from being the usual boring memoir of some senior officer rattling his medals, this is the story of turbulent times seen from the underside by an ordinary serviceman, but an extraordinary man. An intensely personal story, often irreverent, frequently funny, occasionally angry, Polish Spirit tells how it felt to live through all this, determined to survive, determined to succeed, determined to show the world the meaning of the words 'Polish Spirit'.

Wladek died, after a long illness, on 15th November 2000. He is the only true hero I have ever known. 

This book, originally published during his lifetime by his family, is his testimony. If, after reading it, you don't think it's worth the price, I'll not quibble, but will return your money. After six years, no-one's taken us up on this offer yet.

Another no-strings offer we can make; please be our guest for a free sample chapter.

Following numerous requests over the past few years, it is now hoped to bring out a Polish language edition of Polish Spirit in the future. However, this project is proceeding very slowly, and the prolonged holding of breath is usually considered medically inadvisable!