The Second I Saw You: The True Love Story of Rupert Brooke and Phyllis Gardner

In 2000 the British Library uncovered a cache of letters and a memoir documenting the previously unknown love affair between Rupert Brooke and Phyllis Gardner. Their story of love, conflict, and loss—expressed with spirited vibrancy against a backdrop of impending war—makes these writings a fascinating insight into life on the eve of World War I, as well as a powerful love story. This book tells the couple's story for the first time. It gives a revealing insight into the life and personality of Brooke (1887–1915), still revered as a great British war poet, and uncovers the neglected life story of Phyllis Gardner, which has been almost lost from history. The story is told largely in the couple's own words and has been sensitively compiled as part of a major research project by Lorna Beckett, Chair of the Rupert Brooke Society.