The Volunteers: How Halifax Women Won The Second World War

The Volunteers: How Halifax Women Won The Second World War by Lezlie Lowe told the stories of the countless women who came to the aid of the city and in turn their entire country during WWII. Through Lowe’s extensive research she was able to rescue these stories and give credit to many of these heroic women by naming them and giving them their deserved place in history. She pored over archived photos and local newspapers and proudly put names to those who helped make coffee and hundreds of sandwiches, knitted socks, gave inspirational talks to returning injured soldiers, organized charitable events, or otherwise gave their time to keep the war machine running. Since gender roles were so rigid in the 1940’s these volunteers had to do all of their wartime work in addition to their household and parenting duties. I don’t know how they found the time to do it all.

Thankfully Lowe was able to interview some of these women, who were by the time of publication in their late nineties or even centenarians. I am sure she thanked them and told them of the valuable role they played in their own fight for our freedom, yet when these women were acknowledged for their contributions, Lowe was often met with self-effacement. This book was published in 2022, 77 years after the end of WWII, and our Haligonian heroines were happy to tell the author that they were only trying to do their part and didn’t expect anything from it. It may have been nearly eight decades since the end of the war but their work was not forgotten and Lowe has ensured their names are part of the historical record.

Although this was a story that needed to be told, Lowe sullied the presentation of her research by using a teenage vernacular which, as an oral discourse, did not transfer to the printed page. I understand that she was trying to emphasize certain points by inserting interjectional phrasing to state the eyeroll-obvious, but there is no place in formal literature for passages such as these:

“Nova Scotia’s distaste for those who are not from here–‘come-from-away’ is the common quasi-pejorative–is difficult to explain to, um, those who aren’t from here.”

“Though a little late to the, um, party, in September 1942, Auxiliary Services Director E. A. Deacon requested that one small concert party be organized in each Canadian military district to supply outposts.”

“She had a habit of paying for things herself, and of calling in financial favours from central Canadians. She knew how to get shit done.”

“How many hours a week did I volunteer? No. Sweet. Clue.”

These are but a sample of teenage oral discourse which belittled the achievements of her heroines. Instead of focussing the reader’s attention on the volunteers, I could only shake my head and wonder what got into the mind of Lowe to write like that. Not to mention her numerous pregnant “Uh, yeah.” asides. Please, edit these lexicalizations out completely on the next printing. You can convey the same meaning and tone by using a more formal language that suits the text.

Lowe acknowledges the men and women who fought and gave their lives on the battlefield. Of course, one cannot write a book about the sacrifices volunteer Haligonian women made during the war without paying tribute to those who died for the cause. Those who paid the ultimate price were known to history, and documentation pays tribute to those who served. However the women who stayed at home may never have even found their names on an official volunteer roster, or if such a list existed, it has long been lost. Lowe brings up a valuable point made by Sharon MacDonald, author of Hidden Costs, Hidden Labours: Women in Nova Scotia During Two World Wars:

“So, how to count? ‘Perhaps the sheer enormity of the relief work,’ MacDonald writes, ‘can only be grasped by quantifying it and yet, endless lists of numbers of bandages and quilts and knitted socks have a difficult time competing with lists of battles and dead soldiers.'”

The Volunteers is a thank-you to the countless women who gave their time to help those in need during WWII. We can do our part by reading their stories and learning of their valuable contributions.

Find this book in the Mississauga Library System's on-line catalogue