Juno Beach: Canada's D-Day Victory June 6, 1944

Canadian Battle #4

by Mark Zuehlke

On June 6, 1944, the greatest armada in history stood off Normandy and the largest amphibious invasion ever began as 107,000 men aboard 6,000 ships pressed toward the coast. Among them were 14,500 Canadians, who were to land on a five-mile-long stretch of rocky ledges fronted by a dangerously exposed beach. Drawing on personal diaries as well as military records, Juno Canada's D-Day Victory June 6, 1944 dramatically depicts Canada's pivotal contribution to the critical Allied battle of World War II.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, War, Military Fiction, Canada, Military History

444 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 28, 2004

About the author

On January 1, 1981, Mark Zuehlke walked away from a journalism career to pursue magazine and book writing fulltime. He has never looked back. In 1992, Mark published his first book—Magazine Writing From the Boonies (co-authored with Louise Donnelly)—and now concentrates almost exclusively on writing of books.

Fascinated by Canada’s military heritage, Mark first set to writing about the role Canadians played in World War II after discussing the Battle of Ortona with several veterans in a Royal Canadian Legion following a Remembrance Day Ceremony in Kelowna, B.C. Discovering no book had been written on this pivotal battle, Mark decided to fill that gap. Ortona: Canada’s Epic World War II Battle was the result. The book’s success encouraged him to develop The Canadian Battle Series, which documents the Canadian World War II experience and has resulted in his being declared by Jack Granatstein as the nation’s leading popular military historian.

Mark is also an award winning mystery writer, whose popular Elias McCann series has garnered much critical praise. Set in storm-swept west coast Vancouver Island village of Tofino, the series follows the investigations of reluctant community coroner Elias McCann. Hands Like Clouds, the debut title in this series, won the Crime Writers of Canada’s Arthur Ellis Award for the 2000 Best First Novel and the third instalment, Sweep Lotus, was nominated for the 2004 Arthur Ellis Best Novel.

When not writing, this Victoria, British Columbia resident can often be found tinkering around the Fernwood heritage house he shares with partner and fellow writer Frances Backhouse. He enjoys hiking, backpacking, cycling, kayaking, travelling, and cooking.

Reviews

[Harold Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential reading. Does for the Canadians on D-Day what Ambrose did for the Americans, and fills the gap left in virtually every other book about D-Day, which generally treat the Canadian beach, one fifth of the entire operation, as some kind of footnote. Now the story has been told in a combination of historical accounts and veteran's interviews. Excellent.

[Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buy.

Terrific. Immediately starting the next in the series.

[Dylan Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

essential read for Canadians who enjoy war/history books

[Bernie Charbonneau · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very precise illustration of the bravery and valor exhibited by the CEF in storming Normandy. This is the first of a trilogy that follows the 3rd Canadian division in its fighting to liberate fortress Europe. This first book is very detailed in units and placement so an understanding of how we are at this point in conflict is recommended. This is solely a Canadian history of events that occurred on D-Day so for that reason seeking information on troop logistics is very detailed with maps and even fine movement of platoons. This book ends at midnight of June 6 with the last 48 hours behind the men, what have the Reicht in store for the brave in the next coming days as they march on?

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written and well researched account of Canada's role in D-Day. Stories of heroic individuals and sacrifice make the story come alive. The early sections illustrate the immense undertaking that D-day was, the logistics and planning were mind boggling. Most accounts of D-Day focus on the US or UK, and Canada is a footnote, yet Canadians faced the fiercest fighting, other than Omaha Beach (US), and mangaed to pierce further into France than any other army. I also enjoyed Ted Barris' book on Juno, both tell the amazing story of Canada's role to make any Canadian proud.

[Paul Sveen]

I’ve read many books on Juno Beach; I’m Canadian and this beach was our charge in WW at Normandy. Spoilers? Really? We beat the hell out of the enemy. Almost a thousand KIA’s thousands wounded but we took the beach. I was particularly interested in the 7th infinity regiment, The Regina Rifles, Hussar Tank regiment and the Winnipeg Grenadiers. Great book to read as I was doing my du diligence in research on my second novel. Great source of historical information from both sides.

[Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book on the Canadian experience during the D-Day Invasion. It is there story told with plenty of first person accounts of the risks taken to make the day a success. Well written, the book does a great job of adding a volume of history to an often over shadowed effort. A must read for anyone interested in D-Day or Canadian military history.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

As Zuehlke points out, the Canadian contribution to D-Day is often overlooked. Next to Omaha, Juno was the most difficult beach to attack and the Canadians made it further in land than anyone else on June 6th. This book is an excellent account of that day. Zuehlke followed this up with "Holding Juno" covering June 7 - 12, 1944 and "Breakout from Juno" covering July 4 - August 21, 1944.

[David Horton · Rating 4 out of 5]

By all means, if you are a student of Canadian war history or are eager to know more, read this book. By all means, avoid listening to the audiobook. I did and it was a wretched experience. The narrator made so many mistakes with common Canadian pronunciations that it made for a disjointed experiences. I was often lost because I became distracted by the mangled language.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic read to really get a better understanding of the Canadian experience on D-Day. I was reading it as I traveled to Juno Beach and it proved a solid resource.
While at times it can be a little confusing/overwhelming with so many names being presented, it is an invaluable piece of knowledge that will stir emotions and educate Canadians and others alike.

[Colin Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an outstanding work of history. Zuehlke masterfully blends the micro and the macro into an engaging and fast-paced narrative. His prose is clear and easy to read, and he balances the shifting landscape and cast of soldiers effortlessly. Great maps, too.

[Russell Bright · Rating 5 out of 5]

The greatedt book I have read on the subject.

[Pj · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mark Zuehlke does for Canadian military history what Stephen Ambrose did with Band of Brothers: He lets us know what our fathers-grandfathers or our neighbours went through during the Second World War (sorry, I'm afraid I haven't read his other histories yet. They're definitely on my to-read list.) In Juno Beach, he gives as clear a picture as I can imagine on what it was like not only to assault the D-Day beaches, but he also looks at the Canadian Airborne Battalion's contributions, the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force.
He gives a greater understanding of those days than anything I have ever read in the past. As an example, one history I read about D-Day many years ago noted simply that, when the Queen's Own Rifles assaulted Bernieres-sur-Mer, they cleared the town out so quickly that the follow-up waves met no opposition. But in Juno Beach, Zuehlke describes exactly what the assault wave met, and how tough the fight actually was.
Anyone interested in Canadian history should read his books. Highly recommended.

[Roberta Westwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Important Canadian history

For Remembrance Day this year I decided to read one of the many WWII books I still want to read. This day helped me open up to the more grisly details that were sure to come. While they did, this was also a very humanizing and sensitive account of Canadian soldiers in the D-Day battle at Juno Beach. I was amazed at the level of detail that had been documented, allowing Zuehlke to create such a work. The name, age and a personal detail about many of those who were lost, or lived on, was included. This included aboriginal and immigrant men who served. I have a new appreciation of the planning details, the reality on the ground and the bravery of our men. Highly recommended reading for all Canadians.

BTW, a Canadian narrator would have been better, as others have mentioned, but it did not ruin the book for me. I chose not to be distracted by it, and focused on the story.

I listened to the Audible audiobook.

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story of WWII D-Day and the Canadian's mission of taking Juno beach in Normandy France. The book covers the preparation for the invasion and actual events of D-Day on Juno beach. Five beaches were taken on D-Day in WWII: The British took Sword and Gold, the Americans Utah Beach and Omaha Beach and the Canadian where assigned Juno. Since Juno and the Canadian fell under the British Second Army. Command, they sometimes are not recognized as they should be. Of the five beaches, Juno was taken latest in the day and was one of the deadliest of the five. Also, the Canadians, with their all-volunteer army, were able to push more inland than any of the other beach groups. Of course D-Day was one of the most important battles in modern history. This book did an excellent of putting you on Juno beach on the morning of June 6, 1944, in all its tragedy and glory.

[LibraryCin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Canadian soldiers were a big part of the D-Day invasion in WWII. They were to take Juno Beach while the British took Gold and Sword Beaches and the Americans took Omaha and Utah Beaches.

This is a very detailed account of the Canadian troops as they fought for Juno Beach and made their way inland on June 6, 1944. I did have a little bit of trouble with some of military terminology, but I might have done a bit better with it (and possibly rated it higher) if I'd been reading at home with less distractions. I certainly ended the book feeling proud to be Canadian. The author has a couple more books focusing on the days following D-Day, so I have added one of them to my tbr. Just after Remembrance Day was a good time to read this.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an all-encompassing account of Canada's soldiers on D-Day. It is very detailed, but most of the time that is a good thing. The book is full of lesser known details that really illuminate both the preparation for and execution of Canada's landing on Juno. Zuehlke overall also portrays the nature of fighting in WWII very effectively. Anyone interested in military history will like this book very much. At times, the level of detail might make it a little inaccessible for a popular audience. An excellent work of history.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strongly focused on the personal experiences of wide cast of participants at the expense of an understanding of the plan, the tactics and context. Some loose ends are left dangling - probably to create interest for the follow-on volumes relating the continued experiences of Canadian forces i Normandy and NW Europe.

The author admits that this is intentional and perhaps an account like the official history should be read prior to studying this volume.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 1 of 3 of Zuehlke's Normandy Campaign series. After books like Ryan's and Beevor's on D-Day, it is interesting and rewarding to read one that is focused on the Canadian experience on Juno beach (including some on airmen and sailors). Usually, we are treated as a footnote to the US and British landings. Even most Canadian histories cover a longer time span, so an entire book devoted to that first day is most welcome. On to the next book.

[Petra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must-read for everybody interested in WWII. The Canadian landing on Juno Beach isn't as well known as the American or British landings.

Juno Beach: 'However the figures are examined, it is indisputable that the battle for Juno Beach was won at a loss in men killed or wounded that was only exceeded by that of the Americans at Omaha.'

[Lorina Stephens · Rating 3 out of 5]

NB: I read the eBook version, which may be different from the hardcover.

A quick, informative, journalistic view of Canada's involvement in the D-Day operation, Juno Beach. Zuehlke's style makes for a well-documented overview of this complex operation, and would do well as a text for schools.

[Julian Haigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Feel as if you are embedded with the Canadian soldiers landing on Juno, bombing it from the sky and sea and parachuting behind enemy lines - see what they go through the days leading up and the famous D-Day landing. So glad to have such a detailed account of Canadian action.

[Míceál Ó Gealbháin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zuehlke does for Juno Beach what Joseph Balkowski did for Utah and Omaha Beach.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outstanding history of Canada's often overlooked contribution to D-Day.

[Nowen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Flashes of compelling stories. However, the focus hopped around too quickly between groups. Perhaps the narrative needed extended coverage or better organization. The maps were excellent.

[Don Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is part of Mark's series of the Canadian Army in WW 2 and D-Day where Canadians had to take, hold and then break out from Juno into Normandy France.

[Harleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

gives a clear perspective of what happened on D-Day in Europe with lots of details

[Louis · Rating 4 out of 5]

You will never have to read another book on the subject. Well researched and the amount of detail is incredible. I actually felt like I was there watching.

[David Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read recommend to all

[Steve Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best account of Canadians on D-Day in my opinion.