This is the story of a young man’s journey through World War II. It covers a wide cross section of the strengths and weaknesses of young men not attuned to killing, and not mentally prepared to face the horror of seeing their close friends die violent deaths in battle. The story is about the hopes, the prayers, the fears, the daily miseries and even the lighter moments that the aspiring heroes of the Perth Regiment experienced on the Italian front as part of 11th Infantry Brigade, 5th Canadian Armoured Division.
As the title suggests, from his first battle inoculation Private Stan Scislowski realizes he is not destined for the heroic role to which he once aspired. His fears affect him deeply: his burning dream of returning home a national hero becomes more and more improbable, and his attempts to come to terms with his un-heroic nature make the war as much a mental battle as a physical one. His story is much like that of the overwhelming number of Canadians who found themselves in the cauldron of war, serving their country with all the strength they could find, even when that strength was fading fast.
Not All of Us Were Brave focuses not on the heroes, but on the ordinary soldiers who endured the mud, the misery, the ever-present fear, the inspiration, and the degradation. The narrative holds nothing back: the dirty linen is aired along with the clean; the light is shown alongside the dark. It shows what war is all about.
Authors
- Control Number Identifier
- CaOOCEL
- Dewey Decimal Classification Number
- 940.54/215
- Dewey Decimal Edition Number
- 21
- General Note
- Issued as part of the desLibris books collection
- ISBN
- 1550022989 9781554882465
- LCCN
- D763.I813
- LCCN Item number
- S35 1997eb
- Modifying agency
- CaBNVSL
- Original cataloging agency
- CaOTU
- Physical Description | Extent
- 1 electronic text (368 p., [16] p. of plates)
- Published in
- Canada
- Publisher or Distributor Number
- CaOOCEL
- Rights
- Access restricted to authorized users and institutions
- System Control Number
- (CaBNVSL)thg00603109 (OCoLC)696033888 (CaOOCEL)410556
- System Details Note
- Mode of access: World Wide Web
- Transcribing agency
- CaOTU
Table of Contents
- Contents 6
- Foreword 8
- Introduction 12
- Maps 14
- Chapter 1: From the Holding Unit to the Perths 28
- Chapter 2: From Timberwolf to our Battle Baptism 62
- Chapter 3: The Winter Front 134
- Chapter 4: In the Mountains at Cassino 166
- Chapter 5: The Liri Valley Push 180
- Chapter 6: Spearhead in the Gothic Line 242
- Chapter 7: Into the Po Plains 292
- Chapter 8: Assault Across the Lamone River 320
- Chapter 9: The Battle of the Fosso Munio 342
- Chapter 10: The Push to the Bonifica Canal 358