Fighting from Home: The Second World War in Verdun, Quebec (review)

Until recently, historians showed little interest in studies of the Canadian home front during the Second World War. Building upon the works of Jeff Keshen and Magda Fahrni, among others, Serge Durflinger's study of Verdun, Quebec, provides a useful addition to what has lately become a growing body of literature. Though the home front has become a subject of interest, much work remains to be done. While Durflinger's love for his hometown is obvious throughout the study, this does not compromise his objectivity. While he emphasises Verdun's uniqueness, he also argues that the city was in many ways a microcosm of Canada as a whole.

Durflinger adopts a community-based approach to explain the Canadian home front during the Second World War, contending that this new model applies to both wartime social history and local studies, providing a useful complement to national–level examinations. He states that while local histories are often criticized for their narrow context, national studies "may neglect local conditions and communities"(p. 4).

Durflinger's primary argument is that several factors gave Verdun its unique wartime character, and that regardless of ethnicity or language, Verdun's residents displayed a great degree of community self identification and pride for their contributions to the war effort. The basic questions guiding the work ask why the war effort in Verdun manifested itself in such a 'patriotic' manner, how the war affected daily life, how the war influenced political relations in Verdun and the degree to which local linguistic divisions reflected national trends. Durflinger largely satisfies his stated goals in a highly readable narrative. The work is filled with anecdotes on topics ranging from the interesting story of the naming of the frigate HMCS Dunver to the town's reaction to the conscription plebiscite.

The wide scope of the work provides a thorough view of the war's impact on Verdun. Durflinger not only addresses the citizens' significant support for wartime charities and bond drives, but also the war's socio-economic impact. The war brought industrial jobs to the area, but also created conflicts within families and amongst the city's distinct linguistic communities.

Two criticisms of the work can be offered, the first of which centres on the nature and causes of conflict between French and English residents of Verdun. While the author certainly suggests that there were limits to the goodwill and unity, he does not provide a general explanation for the nature of these boundaries. Instead, incidents of French/English divergences are portrayed episodically – the author deals with these cases as they emerged over issues ranging from nominal French-Catholic support for the Anglo-Protestant Young Men's Christian Association to conscription. The second criticism concerns linkages between Verdun and Canada as a whole. Though the author connects several local trends to the wider national experience these links are sometimes lacking or require additional information to fully place the city in a national context. Readers unfamiliar with the Canadian home front during the Second World War may be left wondering how such a charming and "unique" city reflected Canada as a whole.

Criticisms aside, this is an excellent work of scholarship, providing a useful addition to both wartime social history and urban studies. It provides a useful model for specialists pursuing local examinations of the Canadian home front during the Second World War, while its lively writing and insightful stories make it enjoyable for those with a general interest in the subject.