Includes bibliographical references and index.

Ordinary objects telling extraordinary stories of the Second World War. A knife, a diary, a recipe book, a cotton pouch containing hidden photos, and a stringed instrument. Each belonged to an individual in their twenties during the Second World War: a fresh-faced prairie boy, a melancholic romantic, a capable young woman, a survivor, and a musician wounded at the front. Try asking your friends, over a cup of tea, what object they'd choose to represent their lives. The enthusiasm of their responses will give you an indication of how well objects anchor sprawling personal histories. Joseph Pearson, a Canadian historian and author, talked to elderly family members, friends, colleagues, and acquaintances--people drawn from everyday life--asking them the same question: is there an object that tells your wartime story? In many cases, he asked the question in reverse: could he discover the Second World War story of a deceased person through an object they owned? My Grandfather's Knife offers an illuminating way in to an often dark history of the twentieth century, told very well through the stories of everyday objects in the hands of everyday people, in engaging and rigorously researched prose.