HOME  |  CONTACT US  |
 
Juno: Canadians at D-Day, June 6, 1944

by Ted Barris
ISBN: 0887621333


Post Your Opinion
A Review of: Juno: Canadians At D-Day, June 6, 1944
by Greg Gatenby

>From a literary point of view, Juno: Canadians At D-Day, June 6, 1944 by Ted Barris is a fine book. Barris seems to have interviewed hundreds of Canadian veterans from all branches of the service and has brilliantly melded their memories into a narrative rich in anecdote and rife with emotion. Because he is such a good writer, Barris knows when and how to tell a story for maximum effect. Even when dealing with incidents also described in the other books, Barris trumps the other accounts because he knows how to make the reader cringe at the nearness of an exploding shell, duck as bullets buzz by the helmet, and sink into numbness as your best friends are shot next to you and the corpses of the enemy pile up. There's skill not just to evoking these feelings-the higher skill lies in knowing when to back off and let the facts of the story carry the weight. In this, Barris excels. The only failing of the book is the inadequacy of the maps where crucial information is lost in the gutter of the deep binding. Otherwise, Barris's book, also blessed with a perceptive Foreword by the British author, John Keegan, the dean of contemporary scholars on war, is the best single account of that day in June 1944 when hundreds of Canadians died, and hundreds more were seriously wounded, defending liberty and making this country proud.
footer

Home First Novel Award Past Winners Subscription Back Issues Timescroll Advertizing Rates
Amazon.ca/Books in Canada Bestsellers List Books in Issue Books in Department About Us