Song, dance and laughter under fire by those who performed for 'the boys' This special Leonaur edition, released to mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, includes three interesting accounts of the activities of the brave performers in the concert parties who entertained 'the boys over there.' Their job was to keep spirits and morale high. Morale by its very nature is hard to instil and easy to lose, that's why the role of the concert parties-dauntless entertainers who travelled close the front line and doggedly and cheerfully performed for the troops, often as shells exploded around them-was recognised as vital for the allied war effort during the First World War. Actress Lena Ashwell, who is acknowledged as responsible for the creation of the entertainment for troops movement, gives us Modern Troubadours an indispensible history and recollection of the formation and activities of British entertainers at the front in all the theatres of the Great War. In 1917 when the United States of America joined the allied cause the morale of the 'doughboys' was as important as that of their British or French comrades and they brought their own entertainment with them. The stories of the front-line entertainers from the USA during the perilous and uncertain months that led to an Allied victory are told in the remainder of this essential book. Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket; our hardbacks are cloth bound and feature gold foil lettering on their spines and fabric head and tail bands.