An anthology of Great War short stories by British writers, both famous and lesser-known authors, men and women, during the war and after its end

These stories are able to illustrate the impact of the Great War on British society and culture and the many modes in which short fiction contributed to the war's literature. The selection covers different periods: the war years themselves, the famous boom years of the late 1920s to the more recent past in which the First World War has received new cultural interest.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Daniel Hahn is an award-winning translator, writer and editor. His 2026 books include If This Be Magic: the unlikely art of Shakespeare in translation, and translated novels from Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Peru and Guatemala.

Padma Viswanathan is author of three novels and a memoir, published in eight countries and shortlisted for the Pen Center USA Fiction Prize, the Scotiabank Giller Prize and others, and has translated four books from Brazilian Portuguese. View titles by Various
The Penguin Book of First World War StoriesIntroduction
Further Reading
A Note on the Texts

1. Front

Arthur Machen, 'The Bowmen'
'Sapper' (Herman Cyril McNeile), 'Private Meyrick—Company Idiot'
C. E. Montague, 'A Trade Report Only'
Richard Aldington, 'Victory'
Anne Perry, 'Heroes'
Mary Borden, 'Blind'
Katherine Mansfield, 'An Indiscreet Journey'
Joseph Conrad, 'The Tale'
A. W. Wells, 'Chanson Triste'

2. Spies and Intelligence

Arthur Conan Doyle, 'His Last Bow'
W. Somerset Maugham, 'Giulia Lazzari'
John Buchan, 'The Loathly Opposite'

3. At Home

Rudyard Kipling, 'Mary Postgate'
Stacy Aumonier, 'Them Others'
John Galsworthy, 'Told by the Schoolmaster'
D. H. Lawrence, 'Tickets, Please'
Radclyffe Hall, 'Miss Ogilvy Finds Herself'
Hugh Walpole, 'Nobody'

4. In Retrospect

Harold Brighouse, 'Once a Hero'
Katherine Mansfield, 'The Fly'
Winifred Holtby, 'The Casualty List'
Robert Graves, 'Christmas Truce'
Muriel Spark, 'The First Year of My Life'
Robert Grossmith, 'Company'
Julian Barnes, 'Evermore'

Maps
Places of the Western Front
Glossary
Military Abbreviations
Notes
Biographies
Acknowledgements

About

An anthology of Great War short stories by British writers, both famous and lesser-known authors, men and women, during the war and after its end

These stories are able to illustrate the impact of the Great War on British society and culture and the many modes in which short fiction contributed to the war's literature. The selection covers different periods: the war years themselves, the famous boom years of the late 1920s to the more recent past in which the First World War has received new cultural interest.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Author

Daniel Hahn is an award-winning translator, writer and editor. His 2026 books include If This Be Magic: the unlikely art of Shakespeare in translation, and translated novels from Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Peru and Guatemala.

Padma Viswanathan is author of three novels and a memoir, published in eight countries and shortlisted for the Pen Center USA Fiction Prize, the Scotiabank Giller Prize and others, and has translated four books from Brazilian Portuguese. View titles by Various

Table of Contents

The Penguin Book of First World War StoriesIntroduction
Further Reading
A Note on the Texts

1. Front

Arthur Machen, 'The Bowmen'
'Sapper' (Herman Cyril McNeile), 'Private Meyrick—Company Idiot'
C. E. Montague, 'A Trade Report Only'
Richard Aldington, 'Victory'
Anne Perry, 'Heroes'
Mary Borden, 'Blind'
Katherine Mansfield, 'An Indiscreet Journey'
Joseph Conrad, 'The Tale'
A. W. Wells, 'Chanson Triste'

2. Spies and Intelligence

Arthur Conan Doyle, 'His Last Bow'
W. Somerset Maugham, 'Giulia Lazzari'
John Buchan, 'The Loathly Opposite'

3. At Home

Rudyard Kipling, 'Mary Postgate'
Stacy Aumonier, 'Them Others'
John Galsworthy, 'Told by the Schoolmaster'
D. H. Lawrence, 'Tickets, Please'
Radclyffe Hall, 'Miss Ogilvy Finds Herself'
Hugh Walpole, 'Nobody'

4. In Retrospect

Harold Brighouse, 'Once a Hero'
Katherine Mansfield, 'The Fly'
Winifred Holtby, 'The Casualty List'
Robert Graves, 'Christmas Truce'
Muriel Spark, 'The First Year of My Life'
Robert Grossmith, 'Company'
Julian Barnes, 'Evermore'

Maps
Places of the Western Front
Glossary
Military Abbreviations
Notes
Biographies
Acknowledgements

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