The Empty Greatcoat

By: Rebecca F. John

Narrated by: Mark Milligan

When Francis House enlists in the British Army in 1907, at the tender age of 15 years and three months, he is not thinking about war. He imagines he simply wants to earn his stripes - to ease his traumatized father’s Boer War memories, or perhaps to please his favorite sister, Lily, with whom he has always dreamed of adventure.

But he soon discovers that simply becoming a soldier is not enough and, against the advice of his sergeant, he determines to seek out a real fight. Wading ashore at Gallipoli seven years later, Francis thinks he might just have found the site of his greatest opportunity. Here, he thinks, he might finally prove himself a man.

First, though, he must find his missing friend Berto. He needs to say he's sorry. He cannot yet imagine the ghosts that might stand in his way.

©2022 Rebecca F. John (P)2022 Rebecca F. John