06/10/2026
On any day between 1942 and 1945 you could find as many as 50,000 American service personnel stationed within 30 miles of the City of Norwich. While here they lived full lives, visiting pubs and local landmarks, going to the cinema and the theatre, playing sports, getting to know the locals, even falling in love, in addition to giving their all for the war effort. Most of these stories don't appear in a Google search, but they remain interesting and vital to our understanding of what life in wartime was like.
Our new World War II Lives book club will dive head-first into the American Library's holdings and archives to learn about some of these men and women in depth. We will encounter stories full of camaraderie, bravery, grit, humanity, joy, and great sadness told through contemporary accounts, memoirs, letters, and biographies. At the end of the year, we will have created a compendium of information cards to share, making the individual stories we hold more accessible to the world than before.
Join us for a welcome session in the American Library meeting room from 11am-12.30pm this Saturday, 10 October, to learn about the book club and begin your exploration of the countless stories that evoke a sense of awe and gratitude to this great generation who came before us.
💍Wedding of Violet Burrell and Cpl. Cecil Bund, MC 376/455 053
