The Other Side of Paradise
Page 25
I loved it passionately and it’s gone. And the tuans and the memsahibs are gone, too. So is their way of life, crumbled to dust along with the mighty British Empire.
The British deserved to lose Singapore to the Japanese – there’s not much dispute about that – and they paid a terrible price in suffering and lives. Where exactly the blame lies for the defeat isn’t so clear. There may be some truth in the theory that the Battle of Malaya was lost in the ballrooms and bars of Raffles and Tanglin. But the stories of arrogance, complacency and incompetence are more than matched by the tales of immense courage, heroism and self-sacrifice.
Whatever her faults, there’ll always be an England. And she’s free.
THE END
About the Author
Margaret Mayhew was born in London and her earliest childhood memories were of the London Blitz. She began writing in her mid-thirties and had her first novel published in 1976. She is married to American aviation author, Philip Kaplan, and lives in Gloucestershire. Her previous novels, Bluebirds, The Crew, The Little Ship, Our Yanks, The Pathfinder, Those in Peril, I’ll Be Seeing You and The Boat Girls are also published by Corgi.
Also by Margaret Mayhew
BLUEBIRDS
THE CREW
THE LITTLE SHIP
OUR YANKS
THE PATHFINDER
THOSE IN PERIL
I’LL BE SEEING YOU
THE BOAT GIRLS
and published by Corgi Books
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THE OTHER SIDE OF PARADISE
A CORGI BOOK: 9780552154925
Version 1.0 Epub ISBN 9781407041087
First publication in Great Britain
Corgi edition published 2009
Copyright © Margaret Mayhew 2009
Margaret Mayhew has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.
‘There’ll Always be an England’ Words and Music by Ross Parker and Hugh Charles © Copyright 1939 Dash Music Company Limited. All Rights Reserved. International Copyright secured. Reprinted by Permission.
This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
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