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Goodbye East End

Goodbye East End

An Evacuee's Story

Summary

As Hitler’s bombs threatened London during World War Two, eight-year-old David Merron was removed from his family and close-knit Jewish community in the East End and evacuated to the safety of the English countryside.

Placed into the car of strangers, life was sometimes unpredictable and lonely. But, with time, the rural world became an exciting adventure playground in which he flourished.

Set against a dramatic wartime backdrop, Goodbye East End is about the conflict between a London boy’s unexpected love of the countryside and his guilt about not missing home as much as he might. It’s the moving story of a childhood experience that changed a young boy’s life forever.

About the author

David Merron

Born in London's East End, David Merron was evacuated as a wartime child to the countryside. After Grammar School he served two years of National Service. On demobilisation, he moved to a kibbutz in Israel, where he stayed for fifteen years, serving periods as general secretary, farm manager and building supervisor. During this time, he began writing short stories and anecdotal accounts of kibbutz life. Returning to England in the 1970s, he continued writing, mainly short stories and articles for magazines, and self published his kibbutz stories as Collectively Yours. Having participated in writing courses and in several writers' groups, he also self published two novels and a short story collection. He holds a Masters' degree from UCL and lives in North London.
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