Paul Mason (McClure 1997-2002) has just published his first book: Memorial Tablet: Marlborough House School and the First World War.  It marks the centenary of the unveiling of the Marlborough House School (Reading) war memorial. Amazingly, the story of the whole war is able to be told through the experiences of the men who attended this small, now defunct, school in Reading.

Of particular interest to Old Millhillians may be the First World War experiences of eminent Old Millhillian, Russell Brain, who attended Marlborough House before Mill Hill.

Of appeal to anyone interested in the First World War, education history, school history, social history, and the history of Reading.

Some of the comments received about the book so far:

'It is a work of great scholarship and painstaking research, and yet it is accessible to the general reader.'

'I like the way you have found an occasional place for a bit of humour in spite of the generally sober subject.'

'This is absolutely super. I really like the way you have linked it to the historical background of the conflicts.'

‘The reader is taken through the many battles, great and small, with a general commentary on the war, which is vividly illustrated with the contemporary accounts of those former teachers and boys of the school.’

You can purchase Paul's book here and follow him @memorialtablet