“Riding into Battle: Canadian Cyclists in the Great War” by Ted Glenn

The Great War, the War to End All Wars, World War I… whatever you like to call it (especially since it was ‘great, definitely did not prevent any future wars at all, and was followed by another world war not a full quarter century later) often seems ignored compared to World War II. You can watch Hitler and the Nazis for days on pretty much any television channel that deals a bit with history. It seems to take a special event to get attention for the First World War to get it’s due.

I do realize this may have something to do with far less film footage being available but… still.

In any case, I developed an addiction to World War I fiction a few years ago (Birdsong, A Farewell to Arms, The Cartographer of No Man’s Land – all recommended absolutely) but I’ve never been brave enough to try a history of battle, despite all the histories I’ve read of World War II. So seeing Ted Glenn’s Riding into Battle: Canadian Cyclists in the Great War available for request, I jumped at the chance. After all, I had no idea that cyclists were used in battle in war so it seemed as good a place as any to start.

And I was lucky enough to be granted a copy. And I only have one regret.*

I learned so much from this history of a very specific part of the First World War. It was quick, it was engrossing, and made me very much want to move on to more non-fiction accounts of that war.

Anybody got any suggestions?

*and that is that I have an e-ARC and maps would be soooooo much easier to see and follow in a physical copy so, should the kind people at Dundurn or Mr. Glenn want to allow me to read it again, but better, I’d happily accept a physical copy. I am not to proud to humbly beg!

I received a copy of Riding into Battle: Canadian Cyclists in the Great War through NetGalley via Dundurn in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.