A Bard of Wolfe’s Army: James Thompson, Gentleman Volunteer, 1733–1830
edited by Earl John Chapman and Ian Macpherson McCulloch

In this book, editors Earl Chapman and Ian McCulloch not only present Thompson's anecdotes in one volume for the first time, but they also provide a wealth of explanation and historical background that helps to bring the period to life and places Thompson's experiences in context.

From the foreword by Peter MacLeod, curator, Canadian War Museum:
In the course of his short but adventurous military career, Thompson met James Wolfe, who addressed him as 'Brother Soldier,' at the siege of Louisbourg, carried a wounded French soldier to an aid station after the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, and kept the sword of the commander of the American assault on Quebec City as a souvenir.

Striking as they are, these are just three examples of a cascade of sparkling vignettes covering crime, scandal, valour, victory, defeat, honour, humour, a pet puppy and day-to-day life as a soldier."

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The Information Front:
The Canadian Army and News Management
during the Second World War
Timothy Balzer

In wartime, it is not only success on the battlefield that determines victory. Winning hearts and minds is a vital part of military strategy and relies in large part on the effective management of how and what information is reported from the front.

In this illuminating study, Timothy Balzer explores how the Canadian military developed and relied on public relations units to manage news during the Second World War. The soldiers assigned to these units were mainly former journalists who were responsible for censoring information, supervising and assisting war correspondents, coordinating policy with the Allies, and ensuring the steady flow of news to Canada.

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Citizen Sailors: Chronicles of Canada’s
Naval Reserve, 1910–2010
edited by Richard Gimblett and Michael L. Hadley

This commemorative volume produced on the occasion of the centennial of the Canadian Navy, 1910-2010, records a special kind of dual citizenship: Canadians exercising the profession of the sea in their nation's service, while also living out the demands of their civilian occupations in their home communities. The perspectives of the part-time citizen-sailors who have made up Canada's Naval Reserve over the past century provide an interesting, valuable, and timely alternative history of the Canadian Navy.

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The Oxford Companion to Canadian Military History
Jack Granatstein and Dean F. Oliver

The evolution of Canada as a military power is chronicled here by military historians J.L. Granatstein and Dean F. Oliver in this authoritative and highly readable book. Their entries include concise biographies from James Wolfe to Louis Riel to Rick Hillier; key military-political issues like the conscription crises, war finance, and Canada-US relations; lesser-known conflicts such as the Pig War and the Aroostook War; and more recent issues facing the Canadian Forces, including sexual harassment and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Rare photographic material and original wartime paintings (reproduced in full colour) illustrate the people, events, and hardware that define Canada's military history. Additional material includes a timeline chart and a list of ministers and military chiefs.

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We Were Freedom:
Canadian Stories of the Second World War
The Historica-Dominion Institute

Compiled and edited by The Historica-Dominion Institute, We Were Freedom: Canadian Stories of the Second World War is a remarkable collection of oral histories that pays tribute to the men and woman who served in Canada’s greatest military effort. Ernest Peter Bone remembers flight training in Manitoba; Cyril Roach recalls the Allied invasion of Normandy; Helen Jean Crawley describes her work as a searchlight operator; Joseph Friedman tells of his experiences as a prisoner of war. Accompanying these deeply personal stories is a wealth of archival material—photographs, medals, letters, newspaper clippings, identity cards and more.

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