Patricia Clifton

In War & In Peace Patricia Clifton

This story is about the wartime experiences
that touched the lives of just one Australian family.
Firstly, we meet the extended family who played many
roles in the wartime experiences of the Clifton family.
With the likelihood of war coming to Australia there was
a growing feeling of apprehension. The Japanese were moving fast and
unrestrained throughout Asia and were close to invasion.
Three chapters reveal how this affected the family: Dad's War recreates
Jack Clifton's encounters with the war in the tropics as a RAAF electrician,
Mum's War introduces Joan Clifton, at home, looking after her two children
and grappling with wartime shortages, Kid's War recounts childhood
memories of the war and its effect on the children.
Finally, the Homecoming, that should have been jubilant but was marred
by ill-health, intolerance and discomfort. In the last chapter, Peacetime,
some accord was reached.