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Old Enough to Fight: Canada's Boy Soldiers in the First World War (2013)

by Dan Black, John Boileau

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1721,235,586 (4)18
Between 15,000 and 20,000 underage youths, some as young as ten, signed up to fight in Canada's armed forces in the First World War. They served in the trenches alongside their elders, and fought in all the major battles: Ypres, the Somme, Passchendaele, Vimy Ridge, and the rest. Many were injured or suffered psychological wounds. Many died. This is the first book to tell their story. Some boys joined up to escape unhappy homes and workplaces. Others went with their parents' blessing, carrying letters from fathers and mothers asking the recruiters to take their eager sons. The romantic notion of a short, victorious campaign was wiped out the second these boys arrived on the Western Front. The authors, who narrate the fighting with both military professionalism and humanity, portray many boys who, in the heat of battle, made a seamless transition from follower to leader to hero. Authors Dan Black and John Boileau combed the archives and collections to bring these stories to life. Passages from letters the boy soldiers wrote home reveal the range of emotions and experiences they underwent, from the humorous to the unspeakably horrible. Their parents' letters touch us with their concern, love, uncertainty, and often, grief. Meticulously researched and abundantly illustrated with photographs, paintings, and a collection of specially commissioned maps, Old Enough to Fight is Canadian military and social history at its most fascinating.… (more)
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In 2014, the 100th anniversary of the start of WWI, I researched the war for a term paper and a museum display. Much information came to light of little known stories of the war. Of those stories I was particularly drawn to the ones about the underage soldiers who found a way to enlist and fight. A particularly poignant story was that of Herbert Bradley who joined up and fought until he was sent back home after it was discovered that he was underage. After all that, he died in 1918 of the Spanish flu at age 16.

As I was already interested in the stories of underage soldiers, I picked up "Old Enough to Fight" in part to see if the soldiers from Port Coquitlam were mentioned (they weren’t) but also in part to see how wide spread underage service was in WWI. According to Black and Boileau there were many boy soldiers who fought and the writers show us how prevalent they were as they take us through the battles that Canada fought by naming the teenagers who were there, many of whom died.

This book is not a mere catalogue of names; it shows us the boys in action, paying tribute to their contributions to the war effort. It also tells the story of Canada’s (and Newfoundland’s) war and the effect that the war had on the people of Canada and a whole generation. Canada matured as a country during the course of the war and the boys who joined matured as well. As Romeo Dellaire writes in his forward to the book, “The children involved in Canada’s War effort may have entered as innocent boys looking for adventure, honour, and purpose, but they underwent a maturation that many would not have originally anticipated.”
2 vote Familyhistorian | Nov 13, 2015 |
Many under-aged boys signed up for the First World War. In this book, authors Dan Black and John Boileau look at the stories of these boy soldiers: why did they sign up? What happened to them? Stories of individual soldiers are always poignant, but these stories are especially so given the young age of the soldiers.

This book provides an unique perspective, and a good historical account of Canada's role in WW1. Excellent maps, well researched. ( )
  LynnB | Jun 18, 2014 |
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Dan Blackprimary authorall editionscalculated
John Boileaumain authorall editionsconfirmed
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No young man believes he shall ever die. -- William Hazlitt (English literary critic and essayist, 1778-1830)
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In memory of the boy soldiers,who fought and died for Canada.
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It is quite the opportunity to write the forward to this unique historical account of the roles Canada's boy soldiers played during the First World War. (Forward by Romeo Dalllaire)
We knew the story of Canada's boy soldiers would resonate with Canadians by the enthusiastic response we got from everyone with whom we discussed our ideas, from ordinary citizens to professional historians.  (Preface)
Drummer Thomas Flynn ran toward the enemy position, swept up in the excitement of the moment.
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Between 15,000 and 20,000 underage youths, some as young as ten, signed up to fight in Canada's armed forces in the First World War. They served in the trenches alongside their elders, and fought in all the major battles: Ypres, the Somme, Passchendaele, Vimy Ridge, and the rest. Many were injured or suffered psychological wounds. Many died. This is the first book to tell their story. Some boys joined up to escape unhappy homes and workplaces. Others went with their parents' blessing, carrying letters from fathers and mothers asking the recruiters to take their eager sons. The romantic notion of a short, victorious campaign was wiped out the second these boys arrived on the Western Front. The authors, who narrate the fighting with both military professionalism and humanity, portray many boys who, in the heat of battle, made a seamless transition from follower to leader to hero. Authors Dan Black and John Boileau combed the archives and collections to bring these stories to life. Passages from letters the boy soldiers wrote home reveal the range of emotions and experiences they underwent, from the humorous to the unspeakably horrible. Their parents' letters touch us with their concern, love, uncertainty, and often, grief. Meticulously researched and abundantly illustrated with photographs, paintings, and a collection of specially commissioned maps, Old Enough to Fight is Canadian military and social history at its most fascinating.

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