J.L. Granatstein is the former director and CEO of the Canadian War Museum and a distinguished research professor emeritus of history. He is an award-winning author of more than sixty books on Canadian political and military history, the recipient of numerous honorary degrees, and an Officer of the Order of Canada.

• PrefaceAcknowledgmentsMaps1. The Militia Myth: Canadian Arms to Confederation2. Making an Army: Beginnings3. A Militia under Arms: Sam Hughes’s Army4. Becoming Professional: Arthur Currie’s Army5. Losing Professionalism: The Interwar Years6. McNaughton’s Army: The Long Wait7. Into Battle: Sicily and Italy, July 1943–June 19448. Into Battle: Northwest Europe and Italy, June 1944–May 19459. The Professional Army, 1945–196810. Professionalism under Siege, 1968–200111. Afghanistan and the Remaking of the Army12. ConclusionNotesA Selected Bibliography of Secondary SourcesIllustration CreditsIndex

"Granatstein is, without doubt, one of Canada’s pre-eminent military historians ... [Should any] Canadian wish to become functionally knowledgable about our army, this book is an excellent place to start."- Steven Dieter (The Globe and Mail) "[An] immensely readable tour de force through the political and battlefield swamps of army history."- Ron Lowman (Toronto Star) "Everyone who cares for and about Canada's army will be pleased with Granatstein’s superb book."- Major Michael McNorgan (Canadian Military Journal)