By the Ghost Light Audiobook Libro.fm

From one of Canadas most beloved performing artists comes an audacious work of nonfiction that explores the stories that shape us and the reach that the past can have across generations

Growing up north of Toronto RH Thomsons imagination was captured by romantic notions of war He spent his days playing with toy soldiers on the carpet of his grandmothers house recreating the Battle of Britain with model planes in his bedroom or sitting at the local theatre watching World War II B moviesones that offered a very clear perspective on who were the heroes and who the villains which side were the victors and which the vanquished
Yet Thomsons childhood was also shaped by the spirits of reallife warriors in his family their fates a brutal and more complicated reminder of the true human cost of war Eight of Roberts great unclesGeorge Joe Jack Harold Arthur Warren Wildy and Fredfought in the First World War while his great Aunt Margaret served as a wartime surgical nurse in Europe Five of the great unclesGeorge Joe Fred Wildy and Warrenwere killed in battle while two othersJack and Haroldwould return home greatly diminished spending the rest of their lives in and out of sanitariums their lungs scarred by disease and poison gas Throughout their lives the great uncles as well as great aunts and cousins were faithful letter writers their correspondence offering profound insights into their experiences on the front lines to their loved ones back home a somber record of the sacrifice the family paid
In By the Ghost Light RH Thomson offers an extraordinary look at his familys history while providing a powerful examination of how we understand war and its aftermath Using his family letters as a starting point Thomson roams through a century of folly touching on areas of military history art literature and science to express the tragic human cost of war behind the order and calm of ceremonial parades memorials and monuments In an urgent call for new ways to acknowledge the dead RH has created The World Remembers an ambitious international project to individually name each of the millions killed in the First World War
Epic in its scope and incredibly intimate in its exploration of lives touched by the tragedy of war By the Ghost Light is a truly original book that will challenge the way we approach our history