IN THE CLUTCH OF CIRCUMSTANCE: REMINISCENCES OF MEMBERS OF THE CANADIAN NATIONAL PRISONERS OF WAR ASSOCIATION. Edited by Tony Strachan. Victoria, Cappis Press, c1985, 285pp, cloth, $17.95, ISBN 0-919763-10-3. Distributed by Cappis Press, 1119 Oscar St., Victoria, B.C., V8V 1X3. CIP Grades 9 and up Reviewed by Alfred F. Greenwood Volume 14 Number 5 1986 September In the Clutch of Circurnstance is a collection of reminiscences of prisoners of war in World War I, World War II, and the Korean War, Selection was made from stories gleaned from all over Canada by representatives of the British Columbia chapter of the National Prisoners of War Association. All of these tales illustrate the varying degrees of harshness of treatment imposed on prisoners by their jailers. Despite moments of high comedy, it is a generally depressing document, cataloguing the depths to which man can sink when his brother becomes his enemy. The few incidents of humanitarian treatment give a faint glimmer of hope for humankind. The chapter headed "Good God, a Jew" was written by Norman Rubenstein, a teacher in Victoria and former president of the British Columbia chapter. We buried Norman not long ago. He had lived a life of ill-health, a consequence of his treatment as a P.O.W. As most of us old sweat mourners were considerably older than he, his death was no doubt hastened by the treatment illustrated in this chapter. He was one of many. In the Clutch of Circumstance is a worlhy addition lo the history of warfare and a strong argument for the other methods of settling our differences. Alfred F. Greenwood, Victoria. B.C.