A PORTRAIT OF WAR 1939-1943 Richard S. Malone. Toronto, Collins, c1983. 272pp, cloth, $24.95. ISBN 0-00-217105-8. Grades 11 and up. Reviewed by J. D. Ingram. Volume 12 Number 1 1984 January Richard S. (Dick) Malone is perhaps known better as a newspaper man particularly associated with the Winnipeg Free Press and the Globe and Mail. It was Malone's good fortune that he not only survived the Second World War but also served in situations that provided unique opportunities to observe situations and personalities first-hand. He was a staff secretary to the Minister of National Defence, J.L. Ralston, a Canadian liaison officer to Bernard Montgomery, and a founder of the Canadian army's paper The Maple Leaf. The author did not intend the book as a history or a complete account but simply, "an attempt to fill a few of the gaps in the Canadian record, to capture some of the colour of that exciting period and to describe the roles played by many of the leading actors." Malone's story ranges from the serious to the comical, yet always in a factual and honest manner. Malone's cure for seasickness was to sip brandy all day long (on crushed ice) so that by the end of the day, "you find yourself more than a trifle boiled. . .but still fighting." Memory recalls for the author the deaths of Canadians in Italy: "All went well until I tried to write down the names and regimental numbers. It was impossible, my hand could hardly hold a pencil. . ." In contrast, was a party where stage star Hermione Baddeley entertained Canadian troops and stayed after the show to play poker amidst a bomb shattered library. Malone deals rather extensively with the mid-war "resignation" of General Andy McNaughton. Here is an account seemingly accurate and unbiased, yet different from that portrayed in John Swettenham's biography of McNaughton. It was nearly forty years ago that the same publishers issued Malone's book, Missing From the Record (1946). The present book is not free of minor errors, nevertheless it is interesting and informative. Canadians are fortunate that more history from a Canadian view is becoming available. Volume II covering the years 1943-1945 is to follow. J. D. Ingram, Gordon Bell H. S., Winnipeg, MB.