R.F. Delderfield Books In Order

Publication Order of Diana Books

Publication Order of Horseman Riding By Books

Publication Order of Avenue Books

Publication Order of Swann Family Saga Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Plays

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

R. F. Delderfield is a playwright, former journalist, and an English author of fiction. Born in New, Cross, London on February 12, 1912, he was a popular dramatist and English novelist. His full name is Ronald Frederick Delderfield. Many of his works were read widely at the time and still are. Some of them have even been adapted for television. He married May Evans and died in Sidmouth, Devon, on June 24, 1972.

Many of his novels are set in the historical fiction genre. They mainly focus on young men who are coming back from the war and going back to lead lives in England. The historical setting of the novels and following individuals coming back from the war and their lives over time allowed Delderfield to portray a wide swath of English history as well as dive into the social history of England from the Edwardian era to the early sixties.

He is known for his novel All Over the Town, which was released in 1947. His novel Farewell the Tranquil Mind came out three years later. He released several more standalone novels. He has written an incredible number of plays as well. The first came out in 1948 and was titled ‘Peace Comes to Peckham’.

His novel To Serve Them All My Days was adapted into a series that ran on television from 1980 to 1981. It was nominated for an Emmy and stars John Duttine as returning soldier from the war, David Prowlett-Jones, who gets a job teaching at a boys boarding school in England and proves that he has the heart for the job. Several of his novels were adapted for television and films, including his novel The Bull Boys (Carry On Sergeant) and Stop at a Winner (On the Fiddle).

R. F. Delderfield is the author of the Avenue series. The series kicked off in 1958 with the release of The Dreaming Suburb, also known under the title The Avenue. It was followed twelve years later by the release of the novel The Avenue Goes to War, where the English residents are forced to look within for reserves of strength in one of the most troubling times that England has ever faced.

The Dreaming Suburb is the first novel in R. F. Delderfield’s Avenue series. This fast-paced and richly narrated novel takes an inside look at the people inside it whose lives come together in the years between the two world wars. If you love historical fiction books, you will most likely enjoy this dramatic and historically accurate novel from one of England’s most celebrated writers.

When the lives of ordinary people begin to feel the presence looming of Hitler and his army into their lives, it is a new time. As Nazi bombs begin to drop out of the sky onto the streets of London, all of England finds themselves engulfed in total warfare. They must run into bomb shelters and take cover at the slightest warning of the siren and it is unclear whether England will fall to the Germans.

What will happen? Pick up the exciting book The Dreaming Suburb, the first in the series by R.F. Delderfield, to find out for yourself!

The Avenue Goes to War is the second book in R.F. Delderfield’s Avenue series. When the horrors of World War II become a reality for many families of the Avenue, morale is down. The world is currently back into an all-out war, and the people who live on the Avenue do not know what the future will hold for them.

Jim Carver is a longtime resident of Number Twenty. He once considered fighting and violence to be immoral but has a change of tune quickly when the war arrives. With Luftwaffe bombs falling down on the Avenue that he loves, Jim Carver decides that he will pledge himself to the war effort.

Meanwhile, Archie is his oldest son. He used to be just an errand boy for the local grocer. But he has come a long way in life since then, and now he is doing quite well for himself. Archie owns not just one store but a chain of shops that have done very well. However, he has perhaps let that success get to his head.

One of the neighbors has a husband away fighting the war. It is this neighbor with which Archie chooses to fall into an affair with. Meanwhile, other residents of the Avenue are feeling conflicted about the war. There is no way to live in England at the time and not be affected by it, whether it’s losing a loved one to bombing or feeling too hungry at night or watching the orphans on the street cry because they lost their parents.

Esther Frith lives alone on the Avenue and seems barely aware of the falling bombs that come down now that her family has been affected by the merciless horrors of war. Harold Godbeer lives across the road from Esther and he may be reclusive, but that doesn’t mean that he has no feelings. He hates what the war is doing to England.

The Avenue Goes to War is another masterfully crafted novel from great author R.F. Delderfield. This captivating novel will sweep you up with its dramatic storyline and the accurate portrayal of everyday people living in England trying to survive the war intact and the connections and human spirit that endure even during times of war.

As England desperately tries to fight to defend itself against the German attacks, the people of the Avenue are just like the people of their country. They can give in, or they can stand and fight to defend their country and their people against the invading forces– and maybe even help to turn the tide of the entire war against Hitler.

Can enduring be enough to take Hitler and his army down? Or will Germany push on and be triumphant, conquering England and sending it into submission as it continues on its ruthless quest to take over the world? You will have to check out R.F. Delderfield’s amazing novel about the residents of the Avenue during wartime England in order to find out for sure!

3 Responses to “R.F. Delderfield”

1. andrew ewan stewart: 4 months ago

   RF DELDERFIELD IS WONDERFUL I WENT TO A SCHOOL LIKE BAMFIELD AND WAITED FOR FIVE HOURS TO GET JOHN DUTTINES AUTOGRAPH IN LUDLOW AFTER ITS OUTDOOR PLAY HE SIGNED MY COPY OF TO SERVE THEM ALL MY DAYS

   Reply
2. Mel West: 12 months ago

   Delderfield is a consummate author. He thoroughly knew the England culture and people. To understand 20th century England, read Delderfield.

   Reply
   • Kirstin: 10 months ago

     I am enthralled with TO SERVE THEM ALL OF MY DAYS. I’m delighted to discover he was such a prolific author.

     Reply