This is D-Day, the long-awaited Allied invasion of German-occupied Europe. The Allies will storm five beaches. One is code-named Juno Beach. Here, 14,500 Canadians will land on a five-mile stretch of sand backed by three resort towns. The beach is heavily protected by a seawall, barbed wire, underwater obstacles and hundreds of mines. Behind these defenses a heavily armed German force waits inside thick concrete pillboxes and deep trenches that bristle with machineguns and artillery pieces.
About 3,500 Canadians will lead the way. The fate of the invasion is in their hands. They either break the German defenses or die trying. Piling out of small, frail landing craft, they struggle through bullet- and shell-whipped water to gain the sand. And the bloody battle for Juno Beach begins. With his trademark you-are-there style, acclaimed military historian Mark Zuehlke plunges readers into a vivid and powerful account of the day-long battle that put the Allies on the march toward victory in World War II.
This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for older teen readers and adults who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read!
Assault on Juno is Mark Zuehlke’s second book in the Rapid Reads series. Ortona Street Fight documented Canada’s first major triumph of World War II—the December 1943 battle for Ortona, Italy. With more than twenty books to his credit, Zuehlke has been hailed as Canada’s leading popular military historian. He is also an award-winning mystery writer. Mark lives in Victoria, British Columbia.