A Soldier of the British Empire: a Novel of the First World War 1. udgave

Muslim Indian soldiers find themselves in the trenches of the Western Front during the first two years of World War One. These fierce warriors, whose loyalty to the British Empire would be tested, are fighting a strange and new type of warfare. They were all that was left to stop the Germans advancing to the Channel ports and winning the war! Through his diaries, one such soldier, Ghulam - the Anglophile platoon translator, keeps an account of his experiences. Revealing his feelings and emotions as his fellow soldiers are faced with the horrors of this war of annihilation. The only respite to this carnage is the Christmas truce when fraternization between Indian and German troops was allowed These events are interwoven with a story of love and passion when the diarist is wounded and sent to Brighton, England to recover from his injuries. During his stay there, the nursing sister of the ward and Ghulam fall in love. After his recovery, he is temporarily employed as a hospital orderly and translator on the ward. He continues to keep a diary, writing not only of his love for his English rose, Margaret, but a visit to the very heart of the British Empire. Eventually, Ghulam has to return to the front for the Big Push that will win the war...