Absent was his famous turnaround and stance against WWI, but perhaps that comes in the next instalment given this is the first in a trilogy.

His solitary life does not seem to be broken up by much companionship of his own age until he meets Stephen Colwood, the son of a rector and fellow enthusiast in both the hunt and the related point-to-point races they spawn. This novel is a fictionalised account of Sassoon's experiences during and immediately following the First World War; it was an instant success, eclipsing his earlier work, Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man, and remains a literary classic of the period. The two soon grow quite close, aiding each other in their attempts to ensure they come up to the requirements of a model huntsman (which really in their case means horseman since their primary concern is having a good piece of horseflesh with which to jump over fences and race across the countryside) and take part in the best outings of the season. The signed limited editions of Infantry Officer and Sherston's Progress were published simultaneously with the first trade editions; Fox-Hunting Man was issued one month after the trade edition and "was an afterthought, made when the success of the ordinary edition was assured and the identity of the author known" (Keynes). The happy-go-lucky cricketer and huntsman is beginning to appreciate some of the darker realities of the wider world outside of his limited and parochial experience.Included is a 4 1/2 x 7 inch loose page of hand-laid paper with ink sketches of WWI officers, which was in this book when we bought it. The only other significant character in these memoirs (aside from genial old Aunt Evelyn who remains mostly a passive and amiable figure in the background) is the enigmatic Denis Milden, a young fox hunter hero-worshipped by Sherston in his younger days who eventually reappears as a Master of the Hunt whose friendship and approval George prizes above almost all else.

I also choose that passage because it might be seen as characteristic of Sassoon's longing for the past, his unwillingness to progress into the modern age. But rather than covering all aspects of his character's life, Sassoon concentrates on sporting episodes - mostly fox-hunting (although, I'm glad to say, without any graphic descriptions of kills) and other riding exploits, but also a bit of cricket and golf.All of the tragedies he witnesses are treated in this way, matter of fact; they are something to be regretted, but not something that one has any real power to change. Memoirs Of A Fox-Hunting Man Siegfried Sassoon Early Days - The Flower Show Match - A Fresh Start - A Day With the Potford - At the Rectory - The Colonel's Cup - Denis Milden as Master -Migration of the Midlands - In the Army - At the front Originally published in 1928. Faber,originally published j1928) Larger, sturdy softcover, glossy wrappers with illustration of hounds at fence, a mounted hunters on spine and back wrapper, 313 pages.

One of the most feeling, though still poignantly understated, episodes is when Sherston loses a friend he had only met after enlisting and with whom he had managed to get posted to the same battalion: Once the chaplain’s words were obliterated by a prolonged burst of machine-gun fire; when he had finished a trench-mortar ‘cannister’ fell a few hundred yards away, spouting the earth up with a crash. There are beautiful passages on the English countryside and the reader surfs pleasantly throughout though each turn of the page harbors the dark anticipation of what is about to happen. Of course, when war breaks out, George Sherston does his duty, as do most young men of English descent.

He allows you to share his appreciation of the English country, horses, and the camaraderie of the fox hunt. Light bumping, rubbing, and sunning, slight browning to endpapers, various leaves unopened: a very good, internally fresh set. There is a sudden change of mood with the last two chapters of the book, which cover the beginning of WWI and the destruction of Sherston's pleasant if directionless lifestyle. Unsurprisingly, no overt mention is made of Sassoon's homosexuality (which at the time would have meant a prison sentence) but the book does feature 3 "friendships" with other young men. Not a feeling we are likely to find surprising, or all that blameworthy given his circumstances, but even then Sherston is conflicted and we are left with a final sight of the young officer standing watch across no-man’s land as a bird sings to the sunrise on Easter morning: “Standing in that dismal ditch, I could find no consolation in the thought that Christ was risen.

It is in this context that, while on leave in England, Sherston ponders what has become of his life stating simply: “…I began to realize that my past was wearing a bit thin.It also would have allowed the intense male friendships (or more) in the novel to go unremarked by most people at the time, because Sherston is in such a male-dominated environment. What gives this novel power is you know this to be autobiographical; this book is talking about a period that is going to be shattered and completely replaced with something new. I can hear the creak of the saddle and the clop and clink of hoofs as we cross the bridge over the brook by Dundell Farm; there is a light burning in the farmhouse window, and the evening star glitters above a broken drift of half-luminous cloud… It is with a sigh that I remember simple moments such as those, when I understood so little of the deepening sadness of life, and only the strangeness of the spring was knocking at my heart. This is an interesting novel, not the simple evocation of a lost past that I was expecting; there is much more nuance and Sassoon was clearly expressing a good deal of ambivalence (sitting on the fence if I am being cynical). The Sherston trilogy: Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man; Memoirs of an Infantry Officer; Sherston's Progress.