The first thing you notice about Roy Wood’s Letters to Margaret is the striking, elegant woman on the cover. This is Margaret, the subject of the book and the love of Roy’s life.

Tragically, she died in 2024, but these letters paint a vivid portrait of both Margaret herself and the relationship between her and Roy, from Petersfield, one which was kindled when she was 15 and he 16 and led to a marriage of almost 66 years.

Grieving, Roy decided to write to her, recalling their times together and telling her what was happening in the present. So he tells her about her funeral; about visiting her grave; about his first trip abroad since her death; and singing happy birthday to Margaret at her grave. These, and other anecdotes from a widower trying to make sense of the world in the absence of the mainstay of his life, are interspersed with memories of their adventurous life together.

That life encompassed years in Cyprus when Roy was an Army unit commander. “It was all teamwork,” said Roy.

This teamwork helped them weather storms, including the theft of their car and possessions when returning to England, and having nowhere permanent to live because of a change of posting.\

“We managed our way out of this by working together and never doubting our love for each other and our joint responsibility for our family,” he writes in the book.

Retirement from the Army brought new interests for them both, including in the motor industry. It brought grandchildren and great-grandchildren, charity work and deep friendships. Eventually it brought illness and Margaret’s death, and now this book, which Roy hopes may help others similarly grieving. Above all, it is a celebration of love and all the more beautiful for that.

Letters to Margaret by Roy Ward is available from Pegasus Publishers and elsewhere online.