The Juno Beach Trilogy

Book excerpt: Together in one convenient ebook, three of Mark Zuehlke's epics of Canadian soldiers in World War II take us from the dramatic events of D-Day (June 6, 1944) to the days following, and the final push. Juno Beach, Holding Juno and Breakout from Juno focus on the Normandy Invasion and its aftermath. Juno Beach dramatically unfolds as 18,000 Canadian soldiers storm the five-mile-long stretch of Juno Beach. At battle's end one out of every six Canadians in the invasion force was either dead or wounded. The Canadians were the only Allied troop to meet their objectives. Holding Juno chronicles the crucial six days following the successful invasion. The ensuing battle was to prove bloodier than D-Day itself. The Canadians made it possible for the slow advance toward Germany and an Allied victory. Breakout from Juno takes us to the next battle a month later. On July 4, 1944, the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division won the village of Carpiquet but not the adjacent airfield. The 3rd Division, 2nd Infantry and 4th Armoured Divisions -- along with a Polish division and several British divisions came together as the First Canadian Army. This is their story.