Search:

By the ghost light : war, memory, and families / by Thomson, R. H.,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."From one of Canada's most beloved performing artists comes an audacious work of non-fiction that explores the stories that shape us and the reach that the past can have across generations. Growing up north of Toronto, R.H. Thomson's imagination was captured by romantic notions of war. He spent his days playing with toy soldiers on the carpet of his grandmother's house, recreating the Battle of Britain with model planes in his bedroom, or sitting at the local theatre watching World War II B movies--ones that offered a very clear perspective on who were the heroes and who the villains; which side were the victors and which the vanquished. Yet Thomson's childhood was also shaped by the spirits of real-life warriors in his family, their fates a brutal and more complicated reminder of the true human cost of war. Eight of Robert's great uncles--George, Joe, Jack, Harold, Arthur, Warren, Wildy, and Fred--fought in the First World War, while his great Aunt Margaret served as a wartime surgical nurse in Europe. Five of the great uncles--George, Joe, Fred, Wildy, and Warren--were killed in battle while two others--Jack and Harold--would return home greatly diminished, spending the rest of their lives in and out of sanitariums, their lungs scarred by disease and poison gas. Throughout their lives, the great uncles, as well as great aunts and cousins, were faithful letter writers, their correspondence offering profound insights into their experiences on the front lines to their loved ones back home, a somber record of the sacrifice the family paid. In By the Ghost Light, R.H. Thomson offers an extraordinary look at his family's history while providing a powerful examination of how we understand war and its aftermath. Using his family letters as a starting point, Thomson roams through a century of folly, touching on areas of military history, art, literature, and science, to express the tragic human cost of war behind the order and calm of ceremonial parades, memorials, and monuments. In an urgent call for new ways to acknowledge the dead, R.H. has created "The World Remembers," an ambitious international project to individually name each of the millions killed in the First World War. Epic in its scope and incredibly intimate in its exploration of lives touched by the tragedy of war, By the Ghost Light is a truly original book that will challenge the way we approach our history"--
Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Thomson, R. H.; Thompson family; World War, 1914-1918;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Wolf season / by Benedict, Helen,author.;
"After a hurricane devastates a small town in upstate New York, the lives of three women and their young children are irrevocably changed. Rin, an Iraq War veteran, tries to protect her blind daughter and the three wolves under her care. Naema, a widowed doctor who fled Iraq with her wounded son, faces life-threatening injuries. Beth, who is raising a troubled son, waits out her marine husband's deployment in Afghanistan, equally afraid of him coming home and of him never returning at all. As they struggle to maintain their humanity and find hope, their war-torn lives collide in a way that will affect their entire community"--
Subjects: War fiction.; Domestic fiction.; War and families; War; Natural disasters; Solidarity; Communities;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Fatherland : a memoir of war, conscience, and family secrets / by Bilger, Burkhard,author.;
Includes bibliographical references."What do we owe the past? How to make peace with a dark family history? Burkhard Bilger hardly knew his grandfather growing up. His parents immigrated to Oklahoma from Germany after World War II, and though his mother was an historian, she rarely talked about her father or what he did during the war. Then one day a packet of letters arrived from Germany, yellowing with age, and a secret history began to unfold. Karl Gönner was a schoolteacher and Nazi party member from the Black Forest. In 1940, he was sent to a village in occupied France and tasked with turning its children into proper Germans. A fervent Nazi when the war began, he grew close to the villagers over the next four years, till he came to think of himself as their protector, shielding them from his own party's brutality. Yet he was arrested in 1946 and accused of war crimes. Was he guilty or innocent? A vicious collaborator or just an ordinary man, struggling to atone for his country's crimes? Bilger goes to Germany to find out"--
Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Gönner, Karl, 1899-1979.; Bilger, Burkhard; Ex-Nazis; Teachers; World War, 1939-1945;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Jade legacy / by Lee, Fonda,author.;
"Jade, the mysterious and magical substance once exclusive to the Green Bone warriors of Kekon, is now known and coveted throughout the world. Everyone wants access to the supernatural abilities it provides, from traditional forces such as governments, mercenaries, and criminal kingpins, to modern players, including doctors, athletes, and movie studios. As the struggle over the control of jade grows ever larger and more deadly, the Kaul family, and the ancient ways of the Kekonese Green Bones, will never be the same. The Kauls have been battered by war and tragedy. They are plagued by resentments and old wounds as their adversaries are on the ascent and their country is riven by dangerous factions and foreign interference that could destroy the Green Bone way of life altogether. As a new generation arises, the clan's growing empire is in danger of coming apart. The clan must discern allies from enemies, set aside bloody rivalries, and make terrible sacrifices ... but even the unbreakable bonds of blood and loyalty may not be enough to ensure the survival of the Green Bone clans and the nation they are sworn to protect"--
Subjects: Fantasy fiction.; Novels.; Families; Imaginary wars and battles; Jade; Magic;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

In the shadow of lightning / by McClellan, Brian,1986-author.;
"From Brian McClellan, author of The Powder Mage, comes In the Shadow of Lightning, a brand-new epic fantasy where magic is a finite resource-and it's running out. Demir Grappo is an outcast-he fled a life of wealth and power, abandoning his responsibilities as a general, a governor, and a son. Now he will live out his days as a grifter, rootless, and alone. But when his mother is brutally murdered, Demir must return from exile to claim his seat at the head of the family and uncover the truth that got her killed: the very power that keeps civilization turning, godglass, is running out. Now, Demir must find allies, old friends and rivals alike, confront the powerful guild-families who are only interested in making the most of the scraps left at the table and uncover the invisible hand that threatens the Empire. A war is coming, a war unlike any other. And Demir and his ragtag group of outcasts are the only thing that stands in the way of the end of life as the world knows it."--
Subjects: Fantasy fiction.; Novels.; Families; Imaginary wars and battles; Kings and rulers; Magic; Murder; Outcasts;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Till the boys come home : war at home, 1918 / by Harrod-Eagles, Cynthia,author.;
In 1918 the Great War has taken so much from so many and it threatens to take even more still from the Hunters, their friends and their servants. Edward, in a bid to run away from problems at home, decides not to resist conscription and ends up at the Front. Sadie's hopes for love are unrequited, and Laura has to flee Artemis House when it is shelled and she finds herself in London driving an ambulance. Ethel, the nursery maid, masks her own pain by caring for other people's children but she must take care not to get too attached. The government has to bring in rationing, and manpower shortages means the conscription age is extended. The Russians have fallen out of the war and a series of terrifying all-out attacks drive the Allies back almost to the Channel, and for the first time England faces the real prospect of defeat. No one can see an end to the war and yet, a small glimmer of hope remains ...
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Historical fiction.; World War, 1914-1918; Families;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Call across the sea / by Kacer, Kathy,1954-;
Henny has grown up with her father<U+2019>s boat, the Gerda III, as a home away from home. She loves sailing the waters between Denmark and Sweden, carried along by the salt breeze. But when Nazi rule tightens in Copenhagen, Henny joins the resistance. And when Hitler orders the Gestapo to round up all Jewish citizens, Henny realizes that the Gerda III isn<U+2019>t just a boat<U+2014>it<U+2019>s a means of escape for her Jewish neighbours. Safety and freedom are just across the channel in Sweden<U+2014>as long as Henny doesn<U+2019>t get caught. The fourth book in Kathy Kacer<U+2019>s Heroes Quartet series, Call Across the Sea brings to life a little-known part of World War II and highlights the unsung acts of heroism that moved history forward."LSC
Subjects: Historical fiction.; World War, 1939-1945; Jewish families; Escapes; Boats and boating;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

A need for violence / by Mayo, Matthew P.,author.; Richards, Dusty,creator.;
The epic journey west takes a deadly turn when the Harrigans get caught in a war between two rival tribes -- in this sprawling frontier saga ...
Subjects: Western fiction.; Novels.; Families; Frontier and pioneer life; Indigenous peoples; Internal migrants; War;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

Question 7 / by Flanagan, Richard,1961-author.;
"By way of H. G. Wells and Rebecca West's affair through 1930s nuclear physics to Flanagan's father working as a slave labourer near Hiroshima when the atom bomb is dropped, this daisy chain of events reaches fission when Flanagan as a young man finds himself trapped in a rapid on a wild river not knowing if he is to live or to die. At once a love song to his island home and to his parents, this hypnotic melding of dream, history, place and memory is about how our lives so often arise out of the stories of others and the stories we invent about ourselves"--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Flanagan, Richard, 1961-; Flanagan, Richard, 1961-; Authors, Australian; Families; Prisoners of war; World War, 1939-1945;
Available copies: 0 / Total copies: 1
unAPI

The distant hours : a novel / by Morton, Kate,1976-;
Includes bibliographical references.
Subjects: Domestic fiction.; Family secrets; Mothers and daughters; World War, 1939-1945; World War, 1939-1945;
© c2010., Atria Books,
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 3
unAPI