The Necessary War

The definitive account of Canadians fighting in the Second World War written by Canada's premier military historian
Tim Cook, Canada's leading war historian, ventures deep into the Second World War in this epic two-volume story of heroism and horror, loss and longing, and sacrifice and endurance.
Written in Cook's compelling narrative style, this book shows in impressive detail how soldiers, airmen, and sailors fought--the evolving tactics, weapons of war, logistics, and technology. He also examines the war as an engine of transformation for Canada. With a population of fewer than twelve million, Canada embraced its role as an arsenal of democracy, exporting war supplies, feeding its allies, and raising a million-strong armed forces that served and fought in nearly every theatre of war. The six-year-long exertion caused disruption, provoked nationwide industrialization, ushered in changes to gender roles, exacerbated the tension between English and French, and forged a new sense of Canadian identity. It showed that Canadians were willing to bear almost any burden and to pay the ultimate price in the pursuit of victory.

TIM COOK is the Great War historian at the Canadian War Museum, as well as an adjunct professor at Carleton University. His books have won numerous awards, including the 2008 J.W. Dafoe Prize forAt the Sharp End and the 2009 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction forShock Troops. In 2013, he received the Pierre Berton Award for popularizing Canadian history, and was recently inducted into the Order of Canada. He lives in Ottawa with his family.