Never before have the stories of animal war heroes been collected in such a special way. This book consists of eight connected fictional stories about a Canadian platoon in WW1. The Storming Normans have help from some very memorable animals: we meet a dog who warns soldiers in the trench of a gas attack, a donkey whose stubbornness saves the day, a cat who saves soldiers from rat bites, and many more. Each story is followed by nonfiction sections that tell the true story of these animals from around the world and of the Canadian soldiers who took Vimy Ridge. Through the friendship that grows between three of these soldiers in particular, we get a close-up look at life in the trenches, the taking of Vimy Ridge, the bonds between soldiers and their animals and what it meant to be Canadian in WW1.
Innocent Heroes: Stories of Animals in the First World War
Written by Sigmund Brouwer.
Published in 2017 by Tundra.
This book was amazing and really shows so many different perspectives throughout the first World War. It shows the courage, strength, determination, and dedication both animals and people felt. I recommend this book to anyone.
This book tells the lives of devoted Canadian soldiers young and old from different races fighting alongside animal heroes such as;
mules, dogs, horses, pigeons and etc.
It’s unique that not only humans but animals helped and fought in the war
it was amazing
it was really cool
This was an interesting blend of fiction and truth, combining a made-up, animal-centered storyline about men in a Canadian platoon during WWI with real facts about the animals featured in the different chapters.
I really loved learning about all those different animals from WWI–and the Canadian platoon they were with. But then at times I felt like the way it was done, switching between chapters of fictional stories and then nonfictional explanations, made the narrative feel really disjointed.
Basically, it’s a good book with a lot of interesting details that gets bogged down at times by the alternating format it’s written in. I still liked it, though, and I suspect a lot of other people; especially kids with a passion for army history will too.
This book consists of eight connected fictional stories about a Canadian platoon in WW1. The Storming Normans have help from some very memorable animals: we meet a dog who warns soldiers in the trench of a gas attack, a donkey whose stubbornness saves the day, a cat who saves soldiers from rat bites, and many more. Each story is followed by nonfiction sections that tell the true story of these animals from around the world and of the Canadian soldiers who took Vimy Ridge. Through the friendship that grows between three of these soldiers, in particular, we get a close-up look at life in the trenches, the taking of Vimy Ridge, the bonds between soldiers and their animals and what it meant to be Canadian in WW1. I really liked it because of how good the writing was. It was amazing! It was also funny in some parts like Leo the lion. You should really read this book because it has a good mix of feelings, like joy and sadness and hope. It was amazing!
Did you know that animals played an important role in World War 1? Well, then “Innocent Heroes” is a great book for learning about that topic. This book is made of short stories. Such as “Boomer”, “Tomato”, “Leo”, etc.
From my perspective, it is a good book because of the uniqueness of each story. For example, in the story “Boomer”, a cat eats rats that bite soldiers. A few of the stories are funny. Like, in the story “Charlie”, a donkey’s stubbornness saves the day. Some stories are action packed and violent. One of the stories is called “Little Abigail”. The story is about a pigeon who gets hit by three enemy darts, but she still flutters away for forty kilometers to courier a message.
I do not typically like short-story books because they do not have sequels. However, this was still a good book. If you do not like reading violent books, do not read this book. As an example, the gun dart description in one of the stories is very deep.
If you like animals, and want to see them as heroes, then read this book. I recommend this for all ages because both adults and children can be fond of animals.
It is a awesome story of animals working with humans during the war. It is very descriptive so it just paints a picture in the mind about what it was like back in world war two.
I really like it. I found out a bunch of different things about the war. I also found out about the Winnie the Pooh story. I liked how the pigeon was persistent! It also explained how mascots were very important in the war. The mascots got more people to join the war and cheered up the soldiers.
This book showed many different perspectives about the war. I really enjoyed how the author portrayed the Canadians, being one myself.
I liked the fact that there was info about the animals that the stories were based on. Though I would like the info to be at the end of the book.
This book told me that we should be grateful for the animals in our lives and we should be happy that they dont have to be taken away to go in the war. This book is amazing. i recommend this to anyone
Innocent Heroes is a well-written book that has very strong characters and a great grasp on the soldiers emotions during world war one. As well as the impressive storyline the book also does a great job of highlighting the war effort of animals during WWI. This book makes you feel proud to be Canadian.
Innocent Heros
The purpose of this book was to reflect on the animals in the WWI. This work helps people understand how animals were affected in war. He does a good job connecting the feeling to the matter. Since the book is very serious at times, He does not make many ‘funny comments’. This book has very effective writing style because he does not tell us what happened until after it happened. This book is not better than any other book on WWI because I have not read any other book on WWI but that is not saying I don’t like this book or it’s not good.
I really love this book. It teaches you about how animals can help you, the bond between humans and animals are strong. It also teaches you how the bond of brothers in arms can become stronger than anything. The most important thing it teaches you about is how even the smallest animal like a pigeon can be useful.
The book is a great book about war that teaches you about some aspects of war. The book shows how animals were used in war and how it would be impossible to win the war without animals. I would recommend this book to anyone.