Lifesavers and Body Snatchers: Medical Care and the Struggle for Survival in the Great War

Witness to Yesterday (The Champlain Society Podcast on Canadian History)

In this podcast episode, Greg Marchildon talks to Tim Cook about his book, Lifesavers and Body Snatchers: Medical Care and the Struggle for Survival in the Great War, published by Penguin Canada in 2023. Based on deep archival research and unpublished letters of soldiers and medical personnel, Lifesavers and Body Snatchers is a powerful narrative that reveals how medical services supported the soldiers at the front during World War I and, in turn, shaped Canadian public health. Cook offers a definitive medical history of the Great War, bringing to light shocking revelations of the brutality of combat and the necessity of agonizing battlefield decisions, which led to unimaginable strain for the heroic men and women who fought to save the lives of soldiers. After the war, the hard lessons learned by doctors and nurses weren’t the only things they brought back to Canada: Cook exposes the disturbing story of medical doctors harvesting body parts in medical units behind the lines, in the name of medical innovation and education. This uncovered history has never been told before and is part of the hidden legacy of the war. Tim Cook is Chief Historian and Director of Research at the Canadian War Museum. His bestselling books have won multiple awards, including three Ottawa Book prizes for Literary Non-Fiction and two C.P. Stacey Awards for the best book in Canadian military history. Cook is a frequent commentator in the media, a member of the Royal Society of Canada, and of the Order of Canada. Image Credit: Penguin Canada If you like our work, please consider supporting it: bit.ly/support_WTY. Your support contributes to the Champlain Society’s mission of opening new windows to directly explore and experience Canada’s past.