John McCrae - Susan Raby-Dunne

Most Canadians are familiar with John McCrae through his iconic poem In Flanders Fields, which was penned on the battlefields of the First World War and remains a symbol of remembrance to this day. Although he will always be remembered as a war poet, the Guelph, Ontario, native was a physician, a university professor, and a veteran of the Second Boer War before he ever laid eyes on the carnage at Flanders Fields. Citing rarely seen diary entries and letters, as well as never-before-published photos of McCraes early life, military historian and McCrae enthusiast Susan Raby-Dunne tells the complete story of John McCrae -- a man whose final chapter of life made him immortal, but who accomplished so much and helped so many in the decades before.

Susan Raby-Dunne is a military historian, composer, veterans advocate, First and Second World War battlefield guide, and the author and editor of numerous books including John McCrae: Beyond Flanders Fields; Morrison: The Long-lost Memoir of Canadas Artillery Commander in the Great War; and Hell Burned Through: The Art and Story of a Lancaster Rear Gunner. Her musical version of the poem In Flanders Fields debuted on CBC radio and internationally in 2006. She is the Canadian representative of the US-based charity, Soldiers Heart. After years of ranching and breeding horses, she now devotes herself to writing.