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Letters To Doberitz by Derek R Payne

No Winners, Only Losers In War

Letters To Doberitz by Derek R Payne is a powerful tale about the experiences of the author’s grandparents and great grandparents during World War I.

The author has captured life at home, on the battlefields and in Doberitz, a prisoner of war camp. He vividly paints the scenes using his words. Horror does not come close to describing it. The trenches and the POW camp were places of sheer horror and terror. Writing letters home, the author’s relatives tried to shield their loved ones from the worst.

I found the description of the train journey to Doberitz particularly harrowing.

Derek R Payne’s grandfather suffered from an unknown neurological condition we would now call PTSD. He was experimented on in the POW camp with the hope of not only curing him, but developing a treatment for German soldiers. It did not work. He returned home with nightmares that would continue to plague him down the years.

War leaves many battle scars, some go deep down. “Will never talked about it [his wartime experiences] for many years.”

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