My Sea Lady : An Epic Memoir of the Arctic Convoys Paperback / softback

During WWII sea convoys were the lifeblood of the Allied war effort. They were integral to the ultimate defeat of Germany on both fronts. My Sea Lady stands out as one of the most remarkable testaments of those dark days of the war at sea and the Atlantic and the Arctic convoys. HMS Lady Madeleine found herself part of both battles, under the command of 38-year-old Lieutenant Graeme Ogden.

His diaries, rediscovered decades later, describe the harrowing experiences of those years, spent on ocean voyages fraught with storms, ice bergs and sub-zero temperatures, let alone the constant threat of a determined and elusive enemy. This evocatively illustrated edition of My Sea Lady confronts the horrors of war as seen through Ogden’s keen eye and is full of bittersweet humour and charming anecdotes.

It wasn’t until 2012 that those who served so courageously aboard the forgotten convoys in the far North during WWII were recognised with the belated, though welcome, introduction of the Arctic Star campaign medal.