"They tread the path of glory to finally reach their farm or city."
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The Path to Glory by Bill Burrell Trafford Publishing
book review by John E. Roper
Life often seemed bleak for the young men of Canada during the Depression. Forced by economics to leave their family farms and small towns to seek work elsewhere, many braved the dangers of riding the rails, clinging precariously on top of boxcars in the hope that maybe they could find a job in another province. Some lucky ones did find employment on the bigger farms or as fruit pickers in orchards, but frequently these positions were temporary with no assurance of a solid future. Small wonder, then, that when Canada declared war on Germany and asked for recruits, so many of these young men volunteered to go.
Burrell's story primarily follows the life of Stan Anderson, a farm boy turned soldier in World War II. After some brief training, Stan found himself on a boat to England where he and thousands of other young recruits waited for their deployment. On a weekend trip to London he met his future bride, Dorothy. Romance would have to wait, though, for soon he and 26,000 other Canadians were wading ashore to fight and possibly die in Sicily and beyond.
In his brief, 21-page book, Burrell pays homage to Stan, POW Tom Cairns, and "the two Dorothys" who served in their own way in England during the war. Burrell's respect for his protagonists and other veterans he has met over the years is evident, as is his love for the various Royal Canadian Legions where he has been able to listen to stories of those turbulent times. The brevity of his book only allows for a glimpse of their fascinating lives.