This book examines Canada’s collective memory of the First World War through the 1920s and 1930s. It is a cultural history, considering art, music, and literature. Thematically organized into such subjects as the symbolism of the soldier, the implications of war memory for Canadian nationalism, and the idea of a just war, the book draws on military records, memoirs, war memorials, newspaper reports, fiction, popular songs, and films. It takes an unorthodox view of the Canadian war experience as a cultural and philosophical force rather than as a political and military event.

Jonathan F. Vance is a native of Waterdown, Ontario, and the author of many books, including award-winners Death So Noble: Memory, Meaning, and the First World War (1997), Unlikely Soldiers: How Two Canadians Fought the Secret War Against Nazi Occupation (2008), and A History of Canadian Culture (2009).

Jonathan F. Vance's profile page

• Commended, Francois-Xavier Garneau Prize, Canadian Historical Association
• Winner, Charles P. Stacey Award
• Winner, Sir John A. Macdonald Prize, Canadian Historical Association
• Short-listed, Lionel Gelber Prize, Munk Centre for International Studies (Trinity College)
• Winner, Dafoe Book Prize, J.W. Dafoe Foundation

Jonathan Vance … is to be congratulated on his fine achievement in spelling out how Canadians met this collective need to commemorate their war-time participation, suffering and death … His success in pulling together the previous Canadian writings and sources, including his splendid use of illustrations … is altogether admirable, excellently researched, finely published.

The Vancouver Sun

One attractive feature of this book is the illustrations, more than 80 of them, accompanied by excellent captions.

The Globe and Mail