Love Lies Bleeding

Love Lies Bleeding

After my Dad died in 1994, we discovered a suitcase in the basement that contained his war memorabilia, including letters he wrote home to his parents in Richmond Hill, during his six years overseas. Excerpts from these letters are woven throughout this story to give the reader an authentic sense of what it felt like to be fighting so far from home. Though restricted by censorship, the letters chronicled the life of an ordinary soldier in World War II, from training in England, to his participation in various theatres of war including Sicily, Italy, France, Belgium, Holland and finally, Germany itself. They told of the terrible destruction he saw, the tales of atrocities he’d heard, and the stink of death he smelled. They also spoke of the loneliness that occasionally overwhelmed him, the low morale the forces experienced, and the enduring hope for peace and a return home. They also stated over and over that he had to be there, that he believed in being there, an ordinary man doing extraordinary things and he became my father.

Another battle was being waged at the same time, with the same elements involved; loneliness, low morale and the hope for peace, but this battle was waged at home. Mothers, sisters, wives, husbands, fathers, and friends were sending their loved ones overseas, not knowing if they’d ever return. I look at my own sons and I wonder, could I do it; could I part with them for six long years not knowing if I’d ever see them again? It defies my imagination.

Awards

• 2000/2001 “Starred Our Choice Award” – Canadian Children’s Book Centre.
• 2000 – Resource Links – Best Books List
• 2000 – Canadian Book Review Annual Highly Recommended
• 2002/2002 – Red Cedar Selection
• 2001 – Short-listed – Geoffrey Bilson Historical Fiction Award

Reviews

• a little gem of a novel.
  — The Globe and Mail
• Haworth-Attard’s writing is deft and convincing.
  — The Toronto Star
• This is living history, richly detailed and enjoyable.
  — Quill and Quire — Starred Distinction
• Haworth-Attard dextrously mixes the ordinary with the extraordinary… a powerful picture.
  — Canadian Children’s Book Centre Book News