Blood, Sweat, and Toil
Remaking the British Working Class, 1939-1945
Geoffrey G. Field
Reviews and Awards
Winner of the Morris D. Forkosch Prize of the American Historical 2012
"Field...brings forth a fresh eye and a highly impressive volume of primary research; his analysis is always thoughtful and stimulating...He has refocused our minds on class, has proposed some credible hypotheses, and has done much to illuminate them. His book will repay rereading, and is likely to become a key point of reference in the literature."--War in History
"This is a splendid, well-written, and deeply researched study of the British working class during the Second World War. This is an essential text about Britain during the war."--Journal of British Studies
"For anyone seriously engaged in the study of wartime Britain, Field's work will likely be read for years to come."--H-Net Reviews
"Field's readable, persuasive, and informed account should hold a prominent place in the literature for some years to come...[He] has provided a superbly documented account of the centrality of class to the history of wartime Britain."--International Review of Social History
"[Field] increases our understanding of an important, still imperfectly understood time, helping to clarify how a substantial, unprecedented shift towards a more equal society was achieved."--Times Literary Supplement
"A solid contribution to understanding the influence of WWII on British society...This carefully written, solidly researched and clearly argued book must be a part of all historical studies of the last century...Essential."--CHOICE
"A fascinating, kaleidoscopic history of the British working class during World War II, which upends many familiar stereotypes about the war and British society. It also demonstrates that there is still plenty of life in the field of labor history, whose death has been prematurely announced many times."--The Nation
"[Field's] book will repay rereading, and is likely to become a key point of reference in the literature. He and the publishers are to be congratulated upon it."--War in History