Canada and UN Peacekeeping – Cold War by Other Means 1945-1970 shows again why Seam M Maloney is the ‘go to’ guy for information on the past and present of Canada’s military. This volume, as does his previous books, debunks a lot of the assumed ‘facts’ Canadians hold near and dear to their hearts.

The assumption that the men and women of Canada’s Armed Forces have done little more than prance around in blue berets after we invented the concept of peace keeping is quickly laid to rest in this 2004 release (well worth hunting down on amazon.ca).

The extensive research Maloney has done in the creation of this title is evident throughout and he includes comprehensive foot-notes for the historian wanting to dig deeper still into the subject. Most fascinating are the various personalities, both civilian and military, who appear sprinkled amongst the politics which drove everyone during this period.

Many of today’s ‘issues’ especially in the Middle East and Africa have their roots in this time frame as they pertain to the UN and the reader is shown how conflicts that have raged for centuries were ‘fine tuned’ by UN member countries, almost assuring that they would never end.

As usual, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Canadian politics, military history and the players involved in both.

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