"I never thought of it before, but that year must have been the biggest change in my life. In less than a year, I had changed from driving a 1927 Chev, or a four horse team in the field and a farm tractor from time to time, to what I was driving in England. They told us that the gun tractor with equipment cost $80,000 F.O.B. England. The ammo and gun which weighed seven tons they didn't say. Then there were ten men who depended on me to get them from point A to point B. And here I was, just a boy of nineteen." _____________________________________________________________ Observation Post is the eloquent narrative of a young man, son of Polish immigrants, who volunteered to serve in the Canadian Army during WWII. After the war, like the thousands of others who had also stepped forward to do what they felt they had to in those dark days, he spoke little of what had happened "over there". Years later, he was convinced that his family, and others perhaps, would like to know, and he started to write it all down. What emerged from scribblers filled by an initially hesitant hand is a moving and ground level account of what life was like for those who served. While this may be the story of only one young man and what he faced, it is also, in many ways, the opening of a portal for us to vicariously experience what all soldiers did and sacrificed for freedom, democracy and for strangers in far off countries who needed their help.
About the Author: Gnr. A.J. (Tony) Malinowski was one of three Polish Canadian brothers who volunteered to serve in the Canadian Army during WW II. Only two returned. Many years later his son, Mel, convinced Tony to write down what it had been like "over there". Like so many other veterans, Tony never spoke much of his war experiences and had been reluctant to do so. But, eventually, he began. History from textbooks, with dates, places and the listing of famous names can be dull and even boring to read. However, the anecdotes by those on the front lines, who spent thousands of hours living in trenches while shells exploded all around them, tell it like it was. History must be recorded and preserved. Memoirs such as "Observation Post" give us the facts, the feel, the smells, the good times, and the bad, from those who were "there".