Fight or Pay is a social history of the Canadian effort to support CEF families while their breadwinners were away in Europe during the Great War. Though all soldiers fighting overseas were eligible for a small monthly separation allowance for their families, as well as the option of providing part of their pay, typically this was not adequate support wives with children or dependent mothers. This is the story of the Canadian Patriotic Fund, a private charitable source of money that was paid out according to need by community organizers. It is also a study of how the Canada cared for its pensioners and invalids in the early part of this century.

I'll confess, I didn't finish the book, despite putting up a good fight. Morris has done some first-rate research, and lavished incredible detail on this social history. However, it was a slog to read. Maybe just the wrong time for me to do so, and as an American, perhaps just a step beyond my immediate interest. It would be more interesting, however, to contrast what Canadians and Americans created to serve their military families, invalids and pensioners. ( )