Write Soon and Often

Book excerpt: Travelling through Europe in the summer of 1939, 17-year-old Donald Plaunt witnessed preparations for war in every country he visited. After he completed high school in 1941, Donald became part of that war when he enlisted in the RCAF and became a Lancaster pilot. After training for 20 months, he flew in operations for five weeks before his death on his 11th mission in 1943. There are many compelling stories written by veterans about Bomber Command. What makes this pilot's story unique is that it is told in his youthful voice selected from 150 letters he wrote home. Peppered with his amusing sense of humour, his letters convey a very personal and colourful narrative ranging from tales of his Air Force training, the events of the war, the people he cared about, and the issues that bothered him. It is a story about youth and hope as we follow his journey from a carefree and somewhat entitled rookie pilot to the generous and proud captain of a Lancaster crew. It is also a story of sorrow that explores the heartbreaking impact of his death on his family when he, like so many other young men, did not return home.