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John Boyko

Goodreads Author

Born

in Hamilton, Canada

Website

http://johnboyko.com

Twitter

johnwboyko

Genre

History, Biography, Nonfiction

Influences

Kurt Vonnegut, Shelby Foote, Margaret Atwood.

Member Since

August 2012

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My 8th book, The Devil's Trick: How Canada Fought the Vietnam War, will be published by Knopf Penguin Random House in Canada and the US on April 13, 2021. It explores the largely unknown ways in which Canada was involved in the war and changed by it.

Sir John's Echo: The Voice for a Stronger Canada, was released by Dundurn Press in 2017.

Cold Fire: Kennedy's Northern Front, was published by Knopf Penguin Random House in Canada and the US in 2016. It was short-listed for the Dafoe Prize for Non-Fiction.

Blood and Daring: How Canada Fought the American Civil War and Forged a Nation was published in 2013. It was a national bestseller and chosen as one of the Globe and Mail's Best Books of the year. It was shortlisted for a Governor General's aw ...more

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John Boyko’s books

Average rating: 4.04 · 451 ratings · 79 reviews · 11 distinct works • Similar authors

	Blood and Daring: How Canada Fought the American Civil War and Forged a Nation really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 203 ratings — published 2013 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Devil's Trick: How Canada Fought the Vietnam War 4.10 avg rating — 134 ratings — published 2021 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Cold Fire: Kennedy's Northern Front 4.10 avg rating — 48 ratings — published 2016 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bennett: The Rebel Who Challenged and Changed a Nation 4.05 avg rating — 40 ratings — published 2010 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sir John's Echo: The Voice for a Stronger Canada (Point of View Book 6) 4.30 avg rating — 10 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Last Steps To Freedom: The Evolution of Canadian Racism 3.80 avg rating — 10 ratings — published 1998 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Into the Hurricane: Attacking Socialism and the CCF 3.38 avg rating — 8 ratings — published 2006 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Politics Conflict and Compromise 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bennett: The Rebel Who Challenged a Nation 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Last Steps to Freedom: The Evolution of Canadian Racism 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Canada and the Vietnam War

As the world slides into an avoidable war in the Middle East, I am reminded of another avoidable war: Vietnam. Canada was involved in the Vietnam War in many ways, including being part of a multi-lateral force that tried but failed to avoid the war; weaponry we made in Canada (including Napalm and Agent Orange) … Continue reading Canada and the Vietnam War Read more of this blog post »

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Published on March 07, 2026 04:01

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John Boyko wrote a new blog post Canada and the Vietnam War As the world slides into an avoidable war in the Middle East, I am reminded of another avoidable war: Vietnam. Canada was involved in the Vietnam War Read more of this blog post »
Mar 08, 2026 03:43AM · like

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Quotes by John Boyko (?)

“When, in 1861, Americans decided to butcher themselves in a civil war to determine if all men were truly created equal, the British colonies of Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia were officially neutral. Britain’s 1818 Foreign Enlistment Act prohibited joining a foreign military, but approximately forty thousand British North Americans defied it to join the fight”
― John Boyko, The Devil's Trick: How Canada Fought the Vietnam War

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“The road to progress is often paved with blood and bullshit.”
― John Boyko, Last steps to freedom: The evolution of Canadian racism

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“War is about sending our children to kill theirs. The devil's trick is convincing leaders that war is desirable, the rest of us that it's acceptable, and combatants that everything they are doing and seeing is normal or, at least, necessary.”
― John Boyko, The Devil's Trick: How Canada Fought the Vietnam War

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