Remembrance Day
Remember those who have served and continue to serve our country during times of war, conflict, and peace.
(All of these titles are available at the Westlock Library)
Against all odds : a true story of ultimate courage and survival in World War II
Kershaw, Alex, author.
2022
"The national bestselling author of The First Wave tells the untold story of four of the most decorated soldiers of World War II-all Medal of Honor recipients-from the beaches of French Morocco to Hitler's own mountaintop fortress. As the Allies raced to defeat Hitler, four men, all in the same unit, earned medal after medal for battlefield heroism. Maurice "Footsie" Britt, a former professional football player, became the very first American to receive every award for valor in a single war. Michael Daly was a West Point dropout who risked his neck over and over to keep his men alive. Keith Ware would one day become the first and only draftee in history to attain the rank of general before serving in Vietnam. In WWII, Ware owed his life to the finest soldier he ever commanded, a baby-faced Texan named Audie Murphy. In the campaign to liberate Europe, each would gain the ultimate accolade, the Congressional Medal of Honor. Tapping into personal interviews and a wealth of primary source material, Alex Kershaw has delivered his most gripping account yet of American courage, spanning more than six hundred days of increasingly merciless combat, from the deserts of North Africa to the dark heart of Nazi Germany. Once the guns fell silent, these four exceptional warriors would discover just how heavy the Medal of Honor could be-and how great the expectations associated with it. Having survived against all odds, who among them would finally find peace?"-- Provided by publisher.
Breaking the silence : veterans' untold stories from the Great War to Afghanistan
Barris, Ted
2009
Describing combat, imprisonment or lost comrades from the wars was thought to be reserved for Remembrance Day or the Legion lounge. Nobody was ever supposed to see a soldier get emotional, or show their vulnerability. About 25 years ago, Ted Barris began breaking through this silence. Because of his unique interviewing skills, he found that veterans would talk to him, set the record straight and put a face on the service and sacrifice of men and women in uniform.
Conscience : two soldiers, two pacifists, one family -- a test of will and faith in World War I
Thomas, Louisa, author
2011
Enemy alien : a true story of life behind barbed wire
Luciuk, Kassandra, author
2020
Enemy alien tells the story of Canada's first national internment operations through the eyes of John Boychuk, a Ukrainian internee held in Kapuskasing from 1914 to 1917. Based closely on John Boychuk's memoir--the only comprehensive internee testimony in existence--Enemy Alien follows Boychuk from his arrest in Toronto through his more than three years in a northern work camp. This beautifully illustrated graphic history details the everyday struggle of the internees in the camp, including forced labour and exploitation, abuse from guards, malnutrition, and homesickness. It documents moments of internee resistance, such as work stoppages, hunger strikes, escape attempts, and riots. For Boychuk, this experience only reinforced a commitment to radical politics.
The fight for history : 75 years of forgetting, remembering, and remaking Canada's Second World War
Cook, Tim, 1971- author
2020
A masterful examination of how Canadians framed and reframed the war experience over time. Just as the importance of the battle of Vimy Ridge to Canadians rose, fell, and rose again over a 100-year period, the meaning of Canada's Second World War followed a similar pattern. By the end of the 20th century, Canada's experiences in the war were largely framed as a series of disasters. This book is about the efforts to restore a more balanced portrait of Canada's contribution in the global conflict.
Frozen in time : an epic story of survival and a modern quest for lost heroes of World War II
Zuckoff, Mitchell
2013
A game of birds and wolves : the ingenious young women whose secret board game helped win World War II
Parkin, Simon, author
2020
By 1941, Winston Churchill had come to believe that the outcome of World War II rested on the battle for the Atlantic. A grand strategy game was devised to reveal the tactics behind the vicious success of the German U-boats. Through play, the designers developed "Operation Raspberry," a countermaneuver that helped turn the tide of World War II. Combining vibrant novelistic storytelling with extensive research, interviews, and previously unpublished accounts, Simon Parkin describes for the first time the role that women played in developing the Allied strategy that, in the words of one admiral, "contributed in no small measure to the final defeat of Germany."
The girls of Atomic City : the untold story of the women who helped win World War II
Kiernan, Denise, author
2013
The last good war : an illustrated history of Canada in the Second World War, 1939-1945
Granatstein, J. L., 1939-
2005
Using a wealth of first-person accounts and rarely seen illustrations, one of Canada's most respected historians tells the story of how a nation became involved in World War II, how it fought the war and how it emerged as a united, prosperous nation and a respected "middle power" on the world stage.
No better friend : one man, one dog, and their extraordinary story of courage and survival in WWII
Weintraub, Robert, author
2015
POW - behind Canadian barbed wire : alien, refugee and prisoner of war camps in Canada 1914-1916
Carter, David J., 1934-
1998
Remembered in bronze and stone : Canada's Great War memorial statuary
Macleod, Alan Livingstone, author
2016
Unbroken : a World War II story of survival, resilience, and redemption
Hillenbrand, Laura, author
2014
