Tommy’s Peace: A Family Diary 1919-33

Thomas Cairns Livingstone began to note his day-to-day experiences in 1913 and continued faithfully for 20 years. With each witty and well-observed entry, he recorded events at home and abroad through times of war and peace, joy and sadness. In this follow-up to the acclaimed “Tommy’s War”, the focus is on the post-war years. His engaging, warm-hearted recollections of everyday life document everything from the lingering effects of the war and post-war politics to cultural and social aspects of the era, including the rise of cinema and radio, the standard of dentists and opticians before the NHS, the partition of Ireland, the General Strike, Clyde coastal holidays and the expansion of Glasgow. Above all, Thomas affectionately chronicles life with his hard-working wife, Agnes, and writes with pride of his clever young son, Tommy. Illustrated throughout with black-and-white sketches from Thomas’ original diaries, “Tommy’s Peace” is a tremendous document of a bygone era that vividly evokes family life in Glasgow between the wars.