Growing up in the shadow of the Second World War: European perspectives

In this Special Issue, the authors explore the various ways in which the Second WorldWar shaped children’s experiences in the post-war period. They map the multifacetedinterest or non-interest of states all over Europe for children in the years after the war,filter out groups of children who recall that the consequences of the Second World Warsignificantly influenced their childhood, and investigate the childhood policies directedtowards them, as well as their childhood experiences and the memories they fosterabout their childhood. In addition, they have included case studies from Western,Central and Eastern Europe with the aim of sparking a debate as to whether it was onlya similar lifecycle that war children in early post-war Europe shared, or if they also hadsome life experiences in common.