{"product_id":"by-the-ghost-light-wars-memory-and-families-paperback","title":"By the Ghost Light: Wars, Memory, and Families - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eR. H. Thomson\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNATIONAL BESTSELLER - From one of Canada's most beloved performing artists comes an audacious work of non-fiction that explores the stories that shape us and the reach that the past can have across generations - \"Thomson makes visible the ghosts of the Great War, untangling themes of loss and longing, service, and grief.\" --Tim Cook\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eGrowing up, R.H. Thomson's imagination was captured by romantic notions of war. He spent his days playing with toy soldiers on the carpet of his grandmother's house, recreating the Battle of Britain with model planes in his bedroom, or sitting at the local theatre watching World War II B movies.\u003cbr\u003e Yet Thomson's childhood was also shaped by the spirits of real-life warriors in his family, their fates a brutal and more complicated reminder of the true human cost of war. Eight of Robert's great uncles--George, Joe, Jack, Harold, Arthur, Warren, Wildy, and Fred--fought in the First World War, while his great Aunt Margaret served as a wartime surgical nurse in Europe. Five of the great uncles--George, Joe, Fred, Wildy, and Warren--were killed in battle while two others--Jack and Harold--would 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.\u003cbr\u003e In \u003ci\u003eBy the Ghost Light\u003c\/i\u003e, R.H. Thomson offers an extraordinary look at his family's 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 calm gravitas of the memorials, and monuments.\u003cbr\u003e Epic in its scope and incredibly intimate in its exploration of lives touched by the tragedy of war, \u003ci\u003eBy the Ghost Light\u003c\/i\u003e is a truly original book that will challenge the way we approach our history.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eR.H. THOMSON has appeared in film and theatre across Canada, as Matthew Cuthbert in \u003ci\u003eAnne With An E\u003c\/i\u003e, in the movie \u003ci\u003eChloe\u003c\/i\u003e directed by Atom Egoyan, as Marshall McLuhan in \u003ci\u003eThe Message\u003c\/i\u003e by Jason Sherman, and \u003ci\u003eThis Was The World \u003c\/i\u003eby Ellie Moon. As well as being an advocate for the arts, R.H. has worked on many history and arts projects. For the First World War Centenary, he built \u003ci\u003eThe World Remembers-Le Monde Se Souvient, \u003c\/i\u003ean international commemoration exhibit now installed at the Canadian War Museum and explorable online at theworldremembers.org\u003ci\u003e. \u003c\/i\u003eHe is a Member of the Order of Canada and was awarded the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 360\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.2 x 8 x 5.2 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e October 28, 2025\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47194147127545,"sku":"9781039008403","price":19.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0789\/2782\/3097\/files\/Xr1U_DjzI29781039008403.webp?v=1767916719","url":"https:\/\/bookscloud.io\/products\/by-the-ghost-light-wars-memory-and-families-paperback","provider":"BooksCloud Book Dropshipping","version":"1.0","type":"link"}