A First-Hand Chronicle of World War II at Sea, Documented in 130 Unfiltered Letters.
Between 1942 and 1945, Royal Australian Navy Writer Jim Yeomans maintained a constant correspondence with his mother, Ada, from his post at Flinders Naval Depot and aboard the cruiser HMAS Shropshire during the Pacific War. This collection presents their letters in full, offering an authentic, ground-level account of the war as it happened.
Mother Dear, Dearest Mater, Mum is a detailed social history captured in real time. Through a secret code embedded in his greetings, Jim bypassed the naval censor to reveal his ship's location, sharing details of daily routines, shipboard life, and the anxieties of wartime separation. His letters document the evolution of a young serviceman-from the boredom of shore-based duties to the realities of naval combat in New Guinea and the Philippines, including the pivotal Battle of Surigao Strait.
Compiled and annotated by his grandson, this collection provides a rare window into the world of an ordinary sailor caught in extraordinary events. Unlike memoirs written with the benefit of hindsight, these letters are immediate, candid, and preserved exactly as they were sent and received, creating a valuable historical record of life on the lower deck during WWII.
This historically significant collection includes:
• A Complete Wartime Correspondence: Over 130 authentic letters offering a continuous, four-year chronicle of naval service.
• The Family's Secret Censor Code: Discover the clever system used to communicate locations from New Zealand to the Mid-Pacific.
• Richly Illustrated with Primary Sources: Features dozens of Jim's personal photographs, many published for the first time, alongside archival images.
• Detailed Historical Annotations: Footnotes provide essential context on the people, naval operations, and key events mentioned in the letters.
• Bonus Material: Includes two post-war articles by Jim Yeomans, offering his own historical perspective on HMAS Shropshire and the German warship Scharnhorst.
