A Guide to War Publications of the First & Second World War, From Training Guides to Propaganda Posters

The two World Wars produced an outpouring of imagery for training 
and propaganda. This fascinating book reviews a broad selection of 
war publication, recommended.

NAME: A Guide to War Publications of the First & Second World War, 
From Training Guides to Propaganda Posters
FILE: R2379
AUTHOR:  Arthur Ward
PUBLISHER: Pen & Sword
BINDING: hard back 
PAGES:  204
PRICE: £25.00
GENRE: Non Fiction
SUBJECT: WWI, WWII, Second World War, First World War, World War 1, 
World War 2, training, propaganda. Images, artwork, guides, 
publication
ISBN: 1-78383-154-5
IMAGE: B2379.jpg
BUYNOW: http://tinyurl.com/heaehns
LINKS: Current Discount Offers http://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/sale 
DESCRIPTION: The two World Wars produced an outpouring of imagery for 
training and propaganda. This fascinating book reviews a broad 
selection of war publication, recommended.

The World Wars coincided with the new media of film and radio, which 
required matching forms of content publication, but print was still 
the major media, available anywhere and everywhere. Never before had 
war been conducted on such a scale. For the first time, conflict 
covered the globe and the division between military and civilian 
virtually disappeared. At the same time, women were mobilized as 
never before.

To meet the demand for training guides, large numbers of documents 
were produced for use in training camps and for issue to those in the 
field. For the first time, publishers had to consider the need to 
train civilians in much the same way as the military. Women engaged on 
war work needed information on the weapons they were producing as 
urgently as the military personnel needed to know how to operate the 
weapons against the enemy.

The author has assembled a cross section of war publications to 
illustrated the scope of war publication. The text is very 
descriptive and engaging, supported by many images in full colour 
that have been reproduced to a very high standard. Readers may be 
surprised by the wealth of information distributed during the two 
wars. Propaganda was becoming a vital tool and this resulted in 
posters that had high impact and often used humour and subtle 
content to convey a point or a concept.

The march of technology introduced new methods of providing 
operators' guides. In previous wars, NCO instructors had barked out 
information while those under training had access to a rifle or 
some other piece of unfamiliar equipment. The increasing complexity 
of new technology required detailed illustrated manuals to be 
produced. These could be used during training, but they could also 
be carried by a user and referred to many times.

As the author provides examples of war publications, these documents 
and posters also provide an illustrated review of the wars themselves.