Testament of Youth is the first book in the overall memoir of Vera Brittain, an English nurse, writer, and pacifist. It covers her earlier life from 1900-1925, working as a nurse during the First World War.
In Testament of Youth, Brittain describes her experiences going to school at Oxford and, ultimately, working as a nurse in the Voluntary Aid Detachment units to provide medical services for wounded in England and France. It chronicles the tragedies that litter her early career: the death of her fiancé, her brother, and best friends, portraying them in a realistic, poignant light.
Published in 1933, Brittain's diaries offer a striking account of women's experiences on the home-front and tending the wounded during the First World War. Critics have therefore emphasized its historical importance. Overall, Testament of Youth is an extremely significant first-hand account of WWI and its effects on the lives of women and ordinary civilians alike.
