E d u c a t i o n M a t t e r s
Tail-End Charlie A Book for Children
As a boy, Mick Manning listened to his father's tales about life as a RAF Air Gunner during WWII. Now he has carefully recreated those stories; for Charlie's grandchildren – and for everyone.
Mick Manning talks to Ann Dewar about his new book
What’s your new book about? Tail-End Charlie is about my dad’s war as an RAF air gunner in 1944. He told me about his adventures when I was a boy of 8, 9, 10, 11. His stories came out in dribs and drabs: bath times, car journeys or when making one of the dozens of Airfix models that adorned my bedroom ceiling.
He trained with Wellington Bombers before his crew passed out top of the class and were soon selected for ‘special ops’. This turned out to be 180 Squadron of the Second Tactical Air Force, flying Mitchell B25’s from a RAF airbase in war-torn Belgium. They carried out daylight bombing operations against well-defended targets – supply depots, marshalling yards and bridges in support of the allied invasion. He was wounded two days before Christmas 1944 during the ‘Battle of the Bulge’; the Nazi offensive epitomised in the series Band of Brothers.
What made you write this book? My dad survived flak and German night- fighters only to tragically collapse at the age
of 52 from a heart attack at work in 1977. He was a teacher and I know he would have loved to have told his grandchildren his stories. So I have written them down for him, as if he was speaking the words that I remember so well: explaining, describing, remembering his war with both sadness and humour. I’ve illustrated it, too, together with Brita – she has created the people, I’ve done the planes and landscapes, often collaborating on the same artwork; but not at the same time … too many elbows.
Did you get your facts right? I’m pretty sure I did – I’ve got 280 veterans as consultants to prove it! It was very important for me that both words and images were accurate, I’m an associate member of the 2nd TAF Medium Bomber Association and that opened many doors for me. The veterans couldn’t have been more helpful. Eventually I traced two of my dad’s crew and both men wrote me long letters from their native New Zealand, full of information about those far away days. I was suddenly in touch with characters from my boyhood adventure stories! And what a relief to see their accounts mirrored my dad’s – his tales were all true! I was also contacted by an Australian pilot who had flown with my dad in 1944. In addition to the veterans I pestered experts at Duxford and the RAF Museum – they had to put up with me asking them all sorts of questions . . . the exact colour of Luftwaffe tracer for example. And yes, they had the answer!
Mick Manning with wife and child Courtesy of Tweeddale Press, Berwick-upon-Tweed
www.raf-families-federation.org.uk
A children’s book about war? Most children are inquisitive about World War II because many of their grandparents or great grandparents were involved on some level. They want to try and understand what their ancestor went through. And we need to make sure they know about that terrible war and why it happened. Without
Front cover Tail End Charlie
that generation’s sacrifice we can’t begin to imagine what life might have been like today. Two of our boys have already studied World War II at school and this helped me realise, as the book evolved, that the factual information needed to work for children at KS2 level.
Love and war? Tail-End Charlie is my dad’s own unique war story but of course it shares common elements with millions of people’s wartime experience; Adventure, death, survival and love. Love because when Charlie Manning was recuperating in 1945 he was promoted to Warrant Officer and given an RAF desk job back in England first at RAF Innsworth then at RAF Wilmslow and that’s where he met my mum, a WAAF wireless operator. Millions of people never came home from that terrible war but my mum and dad survived to tell their stories. As I say in my book, ‘How can we forget stories like that?’
Tail-End Charlie by Mick Manning & Brita Granström
Is published by Frances Lincoln at £11.99 (hardback) but see the Offers Page for a 30% discount offered to readers of Envoy.
About the author
Mick Manning was born in 1959 and grew up in West Yorkshire. Together with Brita Granström he has written and illustrated over 65 books for children. Their numerous awards include the TES Non Fiction Award and the Smarties Silver Prize. They are married with 4 young sons.
www.mickandbrita.com
Winter 2008 27
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