Books on the Second World War

Buying our books on the Second World War

You can buy copies:

  • from your local bookshop, anywhere in the UK. We can supply, on standard bookshop sales terms, any UK bookshop that wishes to order from us. Our books are currently stocked by Sheen Bookshop in East Sheen, Kew Bookshop (near Kew Gardens station), The Open Book at King Street Richmond, and Parade’s End Books on Richmond Road, Ham Parade, in Ham.
  • by post from Robert Smith, 3 Chelwood Gardens, Richmond TW9 4JG. Cheques should be made payable to the Richmond Local History Society. Our prices are listed below. (Reduced prices for members are shown in brackets.) For orders by post we also charge for postage and packing. For orders to UK addresses this is £2.00 for the first item; we may need to charge additional postage for orders of more than one item.
  • online, paying with a credit or debit card via PayPal. Our online prices include postage and packing.

Richmond at War 1939-1945

RWW2 front coverRichmond at War 1939-1945 by Simon Fowler tells the story of life in the town during the Second World War. A series of raids saw the deaths of 98 civilians and damage to ten thousand buildings. The book also looks at some of the hush-hush activities in Richmond Park. There are stories of heroism, tragedy and good humour based on the memories of the men, women and children who were there.

 102 pages. Published 2015.  ISBN 978-0-9550717-8-2

£6.00 (£5.00 for members) Our prices for buying online via PayPal include postage and packing.


Richmond at War 1939-1945


Shop Boy Books RLHS 22 feb 2015 023Richmond Shop Boy’s War

by John Leach

18 pages. Published 1995. ISBN 0-9522099-1-8

£2.00. Our prices for buying online via PayPal include postage and packing.


John Leach: Richmond Shop Boy’s War



Ham and Petersham in Wartime

Ham and Petersham in Wartime by Len Chave and J M Lee is now out of print. We plan to reissue it in 2025.

Kew at War 1939-1945

Kew at War 1939-1945 by David Blomfield and Christopher May seeks to capture the flavour of life in Kew during the war, using wherever possible the recollections of those who lived here at the time.

This book is now out of print. Copies are still available at local bookshops, including The National Archives’ shop. We plan to publish a new edition in 2024.

Petersham: radar and operational research 1940-1946 by J M Lee

Petersham was transformed during the Battle of Britain in September 1940, when Anti-Aircraft Commad requisitioned the village hall and institute, the vicarage, All Saints Church and Elm Lodge, and then set up radar transmitters on the golf course. Some of the most important experiments that led to discoveries that made British radar such an effective instrumet of war were carried out in Petersham vicarage. Michael Lee, an emeritus professor of the University of Bristol and a former editor of our journal, Richmond History, tells the story.

** This book is currently out of print. A new edition is in preparation and we hope publish it in late 2023 or early 2024.