An outstanding collection of firsthand accounts from the front lines of our military history, drawn from letters, diaries, and reportage from the Plains of Abraham and the Red River Rebellion to the battlefields of two world wars and Korea, as well as the harrowing missions in Bosnia and Afghanistan. This is a book that animates our past in the words of those who lived the Canadian military experience.

J. L. GRANATSTEIN is the author of over 60 books, including the bestsellersWho Killed The Canadian Military? and Whose War Is It?, along withYankee Go Home?, Victory 1945 and The Generals, which won the J. W. Dafoe Prize and the UBC Medal for Canadian Biography. A distinguished research professor of history emeritus at York University, he was a member of the RMC Board of Governors and is chair of the Advisory Council of the Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute. He lives in Toronto. Visit Granatstein atwww.whosewar.ca.

J.L. Granatstein's profile page

Norman Hillmer is professor of history and international affairs at Carleton University and is a former senior historian at the Department of National Defence. Granatstein and Hillmer have collaborated on five books, including "First Drafts: Eyewitness Accounts from Our Past" and the national bestseller "Prime Ministers: Ranking Canada’s Leaders".

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Eyewitness accounts form the basis for this engaging book by two of the country’s leading historians.… Collectively, they form the intricate mosaic of our shared past, and speak to the rich and terrible military history that has shaped this country. ... Granatstein and Hillmer are to be commended for sharing a portion of it with this and future generations of Canadians.

The Globe and Mail

From World War II to the Korean War, to the Gulf War and Afghanistan, this book is filled with hundreds of personal accounts. They tell of desolation, isolation, loneliness, yet there is a feeling of hope too amidst possible death. Reading [Battle Lines] is humbling and will leave you emotionally shaken, knowing so many sacrificed so much for past and future generations.

Shelflife

...a fine selection of the most gripping and the most poignant.

The Beaver

... an important contribution from two distinguished historians.

The Canadian Jewish News