Eggs or Anarchy: The remarkable story of the man tasked with the impossible: to feed a nation at war

Should have been written years ago. Never realized what it took to Win WWII. And the unsung heroes that did it.

Informative read on the ration during WW2

A really important and largely untold history. Extremely well researched and written.

A fascinating book. Loved it !

I'm a big fan of history, but I've had my fill of war stories, particularly from World War II. Recently finding myself in London and looking to pick up some reading that's hard to get in the states, I came across Mr. Sitwell's "Eggs or Anarchy".I was gripped first hand from the cover, with it's entertaining egg plate emblazoned with pre-war England's dining fussery. Turning the tome tail up revealed the summary - the Land of Albion is in peril, and only a Grocer can save it! Somehow the well mowed field of English stiff upper lipness in the Battle Against Herr Hitler had not covered the mechanics of wartime civilian sustenance!Alas, I find that while the book does indeed follow through on the topic, it's told in a bland and dry way. Perhaps the problem lies in the dearth of details from a less documented yet vital story. The author had access to the personal diaries of Lord and Lady Woolton, but somehow lacks the ability to make this a compelling read. Despite wanting to know more about the subject (which directly affected my family, who grew up in London during the depression and the war, literally under the Luftwaffe's bombings in Southwark), I found this a book easy to put down.Nevertheless, I still recommend Mr. Sitwell's book. Though plodding, he covers a major and vital part of fair Albion's war story that has not been suitably documented previously. My hat is off is off to this gentleman for his contributions.

Really enjoyed this book and found it informative about feeding the nation during the war. I was born near the end of rationing so too young to remember it but it is interesting to learn how this would have effected my parents and older siblings. Apparently one side effect is that the nation became much healthier because of it and probably contributed to the reason there are so many wartime children around today.By all accounts the success of feeding the nation despite all the odds being against it, was in the main down to the fact that the man in charge was recruited from business rather than coming from the civil service. Perhaps a lesson to be learnt here with regards Brexit! Many of our so-called 'friends' and allies saw the war as an opportunity to profit from our need for importing food, and that is where the business expertise came in useful in allaying much of this.Before the war Britain was only producing about 40% of its food requirements, but by the end of the war and thanks mostly to the Dig for Victory campaign this was closer to 70%. Today we are still importing around 40% and rising, and our susceptibility to shortages and price hikes has very recently been highlighted by the dearth of fresh produce from the Continent due to unseasonable weather. Of course it doesn't help that under the EU that landowners are paid not to grow edible crops, which of course attracts the already wealthy to buy up even more arable land. This is an absolute scandal.Not a criticism as such but the photos and illustrations which help conjure up the ambiance of the period, are delegated to the back of the book and take some finding, at least in the Kindle edition I read. In this regard I have found the BBC series 'Wartime Farm' of 2012 and associated book of interest.  Wartime FarmWartime Farm

In 1939, when war was declared, the United Kingdom imported much of the food it consumed. With ships being needed to transport troops, trade routes dangerous and most of the adult population engaged in war work, it was imperative that someone was in charge of the seemingly impossible task of feeding a nation at war. With forty one million people in Britain, and Northern Ireland, and five hundred and thirty two million in the British Empire, someone had to oversee the purchase, and importation of food, the fair distribution of what was available, increase home grown produce and oversee rationing. On the 3rd April, 1940, seven months into WWII, Fred Marquis, Lord Woolton, was made Minister of Food – his job to feed Britain and her colonies.Even in the first day, it became clear that Woolton had a hard task on his hand. A man who came from business, he was expected to be a figurehead by his second in command, Sir Henry French, at the Ministry of Foods. With virtually no knowledge of his task, he was duly told he had to give a speech the next day – then handed the speech he had to give. Throwing himself into his job, he refused to parrot the speech written for him. Not for him, the Civil Service ideology, that the officials decided the policies and he just presented and explained them. He wrote, and made, his own speech - ruffling feathers immediately - and then set about his task.Lord Woolton was a stickler for detail and accuracy, a hard worker, who came from a working class background, with an adoring mother and a happy marriage. He was straight talking; in the early years of the war he offended American visitors, and ministers, alike – as well as having a difficult relationship with Churchill, who fought hard against his attempts to reduce rations. In a way, though, Churchill put checks and balances on Woolton. Woolton was a man who disliked over-eating, who thought people should eat frugally and healthily (indeed the war improved most working class diets and he was passionate about helping improve the nutrition of pregnant women and children in particular), while Churchill moaned and groaned over any attempt to limit foodstuffs.This is an interesting account of the Ministry of Foods in wartime and of Woolton’s attempts to create a fair system of feeding not only the country, but everyone he was responsible for. He was a man who fought the system to argue that the Home Front was as important as the war overseas and, although there were issues with the Black Market, and distribution, nobody in the country starved – even though rationing continued for many years after the war. Indeed, at one point, Woolton is even suggested as a man who should replace Churchill, when the war was going badly and the Prime Minister not in favour. The book is a little unstructured, but it is a fascinating account of how the war was fought at home, as well as overseas.

A wonderful slice of social history about a person who deserves an important place in our wartime history.William Sitwell paints an evocative picture of the man and the time, which I lived through when I was at boarding school, and when I well remember the awful dehydrated potato (pom) and the one egg a week. The actual rations, of marge, sugar and marmalade, which every boy kept in his study in jam jars, seemed to go further than the book suggests. The prudent boy acquired a tin of plums in town (which lasted a week), to add to his cereal!A splendid read, with research and humour to the fore.

I bought the book after hearing about it from a radio interview with the author.I was amazed. Lord Woolton in my view was a hero and this book showcases the experience and skills he used to feed the nation during a time when the outcome of World War II could have been so different if he had failed to keep food on tables throughout the land. I also think it shows that for specific jobs in government getting experienced people in from industry is vital: career politicians have no idea about making things happen - Brexit planners please note!!!Lord Woolton and his wife were an amazing couple and this book has shared him with us at last. The most interesting bit? Knowing that the Ministry re-located to Colwyn Bay and specifically to Penrhos School which was my daughters school!

I bought a great value second hand edition. This seems appropriate as food and energy prices rise and shortages threaten. It's not just recipes ( how meagre rations were!) but how the distribution was managed. Could we manage to share out nutrition now,or would we insist on the most well off scoffing the lot? Well worth reading.