Until all Ukrainians can return home safely.
The true story of Maurice Bury, a Canadian drafted into the Soviet Red Army in 1941, just in time to face Operation Barbarossa, the greatest land attack in history—Nazi Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union.
The Eastern Front
He was a man in the wrong place at the wrong time.
In the spring of 1941, Canadian-born Maurice Bury was thrown into the battled against the invading Nazi forces. He hadn’t even had time to finish his officer training.
Unprepared for the assault, the Soviets retreated and were captured by the millions at a time. By the fall, Maurice and the men in his command were starving in a POW camp.
As the last of their strength ebbed, Maurice conspired to find an escape for himself and his men. After a nightmarish journey across Ukraine, he joined the underground resistance against the Nazi oppressors.
He risked death time after time, but he also found ordinary people who risked their own safety to help him. Not only in standing against the Nazis, but an even more dangerous ambition: to return home to Canada.
It’s a story that reads like fiction. It’s not.
Available in large-format paperback through Ingram and Amazon, and in your local bookstore.
“0ne of the most important books written. It is the true story of one man trapped by the ravages of World War II.”—Caleb Pirtle III, author of Back Side of a Blue Moon.
“A page-turner that provides insights into the world of the Red Army during WWII in ways I’ve not read before.”—Mary L. Doyle, author of The Peacekeeper’s Photograph
“A well-written and powerful read.” — ELS, Amazon reviewer
“This book isn’t like most you might have read about World War II. It is told from a completely different perspective. The descriptions of battlefield scenes in this book are almost too realistic. This book is not for the faint-of-heart, but it’s absolutely full of heart and indomitable spirit.” — Joy Lorton
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Book 1: Army of Worn Soles
A memoir in novel form
A Canadian is drafted into the Soviet Red Army in 1941, just in time to be thrown against Nazi Germany’s invasion in Operation Barbarossa. Caught in the vise of the Nazi and Communist forces, Maurice Bury concentrates on keeping his men alive as they retreat across Ukraine from the German juggernaut. Now the question is: will they escape from the hell of the POW camp before they starve to death.
“A story you will love to read over and over”—Tony Poulsen, Amazon reviewer
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Goodreads reviews for Army of Worn Soles
Under the Nazi Heel
A memoir in novel form
For Ukrainians in 1942, the occupying Germans were not the only enemy.
Maurice Bury was drafted into the Red Army just in time to be thrown against the invading Germans in 1941. Captured and starved in a POW camp, he escaped and made his way home to western Ukraine, where the Nazi occupiers pursued a policy of starving the locals to make more “living space” for Germans.
To protect his family, Maurice joins the secret resistance. He soon finds the faces multiple threats. Maurice and his men are up against Soviet spies, the Polish Home Army and enemies even closer to home.
Experience this seldom seen phase of World War 2 through the eyes of a man who fought and survived Under the Nazi Heel.
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Reviews
“If you read one book this year, this is the one.”—Caleb Pirtle, Venture Galleries
“I found the action of the story to sound very accurate and highly recommend this to any reader who enjoys stories of World War II.”—author Bob Nailor
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Goodreads reviews for Under the Nazi Heel
Walking Out of War
Ukraine, 1944: After the Soviets burned the Ukrainian city of Ternopyl to the ground to crush the stubborn Nazi occupiers, they rounded up every remaining Ukrainian man around for the Red Army’s final push on Germany. Maurice Bury, Canadian citizen, Ukrainian resistance fighter and intelligence officer, is thrust once again into the death struggle between Hitler’s Germany and Stalin’s USSR.
Fighting across the Baltics in the autumn of 1944 is tough and bloody. Then the Red Army enters Germany, where they’re no longer liberators—they’re the long-feared Communist horde, bent on destruction, rape and revenge. The Communists are determined to wipe Nazism from the face of the earth. And the soldiers want revenge for Germany’s brutal invasion and occupation.
Maurice has determined his only way out of this hell is to survive until Nazi Germany dies, and then move home to Canada. But to do that, he’ll have to not only walk out of war, but elude Stalin’s dreaded secret police.
“Full of heart and indomitable spirit”—Joy Lorton, Amazon reviewer
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From the reviews
“Walking Out of War is a well-written and powerful read, and a difficult one. The violence and war crimes are startling, and Bury, being a master at his craft, effectively paints mental pictures. He doesn’t linger on vile acts, however; he isn’t gratuitous. But he is a vivid writer and skilled at choosing the right verbs and adjectives to bring his prose to life, where the reader can visualize scenes as if watching them on film. “—Elise Stokes, Goodreads reviewer
“A very compelling read.”—Frederick Brooke, Goodreads reviewer
Goodreads reviews for Walking Out of War