Holiday Reading (2020)


It’s a first for the blog: the JMS team has a few book and TV series recommendations for you to check out over the vacation season! If you’ve got some last-minute shopping to do, or if you’re looking for something to read, check out our liter!

Si vous cherchez un cadeau de dernière minute pour un passionné d’histoire militaire ou si vous cherchez simplement un moyen de passer le temps pendant les vacances, nous avons des tonnes de recommandations de livres pour vous ! Nous avons quelques recommandations de films et de télévision également. La plupart de ces livres sont disponibles sur kindle ou sur d’autres lecteurs électroniques, sinon ils sont disponibles en magasin.

Books

World War I

  • It Was the War of the Trenches (Jacques Tardi) – A graphic novel set in the trenches.
  • Le Dernier assaut : la vie de lieutenant Jean Brillant (Luc Bertrand) – Biography of a French Canadian Victoria Cross recipient.
  • Paris 1919 (Margaret MacMillan) – An in-depth account of the events of the Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles.
  • Sister Soldiers of the Great War: The Nurses of the Canadian Army Medical Corps (Cynthia Toman) – You want to know more about Canadian nurses in WWI? This excellent book is available on Kindle and e-readers.
  • The Eleventh Hour (Jacques Goldstyn) -A graphic novel by a French-Canadian author. For young people but very charming for readers of all ages.
  • The First World War (John Keegan) – A comprehensive and captivating account of the history of the First World War.
  • The Secret History of Soldiers (Tim Cook) – An history book with the focus on the lives of everyday soldiers, from one of Canada’s foremost military historians.

Spanish Flu

  • The Last Plague: Spanish Influenza and the Politics of Public Health in Canada (Mark Osborne Humphries) – The history of the Spanish Flu in Canada!
  • Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How it Changed the World (Laura Spinney) – A well-researched history of the Spanish Flu by a talented storyteller.

World War II

  • Appeasement (Tim Bouverie) – Tells the story of the how the indecision, failed diplomacy and political infighting of the British government enabled Hitler’s rise.
  • Canada at War: A Graphic History of World War Two (Paul Keery) – A graphic history that traces the achievements of the Canadian Forces in WWII. Great for younger readers and adults alike.
  • D-Day Girls:  The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis and Helped Win WWII (Sarah Rose) – The riveting true story of British female spies.
  • Fighting for America:  Black Soldiers – the Unsung Heroes of WWII (Christopher Moore) – A very American perspective, but it’s always interesting to read about black soldiers and racial dynamics in the world wars!
  • Infographie de la Seconde Guerre mondiale (N. Aubin, V. Bernard, N. Guillerat) – A WWII brilliantly explained through infographics (in French).
  • Les tirailleurs sénégalais : les soldats noirs entre légendes et réalités (Julien Fargettas) – A very interesting part of the war too often ignored by Western historians (in French).

Films and teleseries

Films

  • 1917 (film, Sam Mendes) – Beautifully filmed, this recent film is definitely a new classic!
  • Jojo Rabbit (film, Taika Waititi) – An award-winning 2019 film about a young boy in the Hitler Youth who befriends a Jewish girl.
  • Letters from Iwo Jima (film, Clint Eastwood) – The Battle of Iwo Jima from the Japanese perspective.
  • Paths of Glory (film, Stanley Kubrick) – A 1957 classic!

Teleseries

  • Amour, haine et propaganda (series) – A documentary about the role of propaganda in WWII. Available on Radio-Canada (in French).
  • Charité (series, Dorothee Shön) – An excellent German series on Netflix. Season 2 takes place in a German hospital from 1943-1945.
  • The Man in the High Castle (series, Frank Spotnitz) – An alternate history wherein the Axis had won WWII.

Happy reading from the Je me souviens team!