Breakout from Juno

With its trademark "you are there" style, Mark Zuehlke's ninth book in the Canadian Battle Series chronicles the First Canadian Army's bitter and costly combat debut in World War II - the breakout from Normandy's beaches to the closure of the Falaise Gap. On July 4, 1944 - after a month-long stalemate - 3rd Canadian Infantry Division attacked the village of Carpiquet and adjacent airfield. In a fierce battle against the fanatical 12th SS (Hitler Youth) Panzer Division, the Canadians won the village but not the airfield. A speedy victory had been anticipated. Instead, they faced a bloody fight to win a very small piece of real estate - a precursor of what lay ahead in the ensuing weeks.Hitler had ordered the beachhead contained at all costs, arraying his finest armoured divisions so that they squared off against the Canadian divisions in one battle after another. The Canadians advanced relentlessly, but at a great cost in bloodshed. Initially, only 3rd Division - which had...