Veteran’s Day was a busy day in my house when I was growing up. First, it’s my sister’s birthday (Happy birthday, Erika!). Second, my father was a Vietnam veteran, and I’d go with him and his VFW buddies to put flags on veteran’s graves. I was even a member of the VFW Ladies Auxiliary, and I’d march with him in the parades. My great uncle died in WWII, and we’d also make our way to the green in Voluntown, CT, to pay our respects at the memorial where his name is listed.
We must never forget the sacrifices made by the men and women in the military, and we should take the time to thank those who serve for our country.
Click here to read an essay about my father that I wrote for Phyllis Zimbler Miller’s (author of Mrs. Lieutenant) blog.
Click here to read an essay by Heather from Age 30+…A Lifetime of Books in which she talks about how WWII brought her grandparents together and why she likes to read books set during that period.
Judy Blundell’s What I Saw and How I Lied was read and reviewed by a couple of our participants. Here are excerpts of their reviews; click the links to read the full reviews.
What I Saw and How I Lied is several things at once: a coming of age story, a novel of suspense, and a book which captures the moral ambiguity and sexual tension of noir. The novel takes place shortly after the end of World War Two.
**Attention participants: Remember to email us a link to your reviews, and we’ll post them here so we can see what everyone is reading!**
A couple of our participants read and reviewed The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje for the WWII reading challenge. Here are excerpts from their reviews; click the links to read the complete reviews.
Even though the writing in this book is beautiful, the story was slow for me. I read this book years ago (when the movie was released) and re-read it recently. I enjoyed it more the second time around, but still didn’t feel any great affinity for it.
The English Patient is not the kind of book you pick up and think you will read through easily. At first I wasn’t too worried, it wasn’t that long and I figured I would read it quickly enough. I was very wrong. It took me quite awhile to read this book as I often had no idea what I was reading. I had to go back and reread sections and I was still confused. I had a hard time latching onto any timeline or cohesive plot. If I didn’t have the images of the film in my mind, or if this wasn’t a book club pick, I would never have been able to complete it.
**Attention participants: Remember to email us a link to your reviews, and we’ll post them here so we can see what everyone is reading!**
Mari from MariReads read and reviewed The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon for the challenge. Here’s an excerpt from her review:
Well, I loved it. It had a great combination of fantasy and historical fiction. The story follows cousins Sammy Clay and Joe Kavalier while they find success as comic book writers/artists in New York City in the time surrounding WWII. Both have reasons to lose themselves in their created comic world of Empire City and live vicariously through their superheroes. Joe is trying to help his family escape from Nazi occupied Czechoslovakia and Sammy is coming to terms with his sexuality.
Nise’ from Under The Boardwalk read and reviewed Ten Cents a Dance by Christine Fletcher. Here’s a little of what she had to say:
Ruby Jacinski is 15 and has to quit school to work to help support her family at the dawn of WW II. She takes over for her mother at the meat-packing plant whose arthritis is just too bad to continue working. Her only pleasure is meeting her friends to go dancing.
…I was mesmerized and could not put this book down as I was lost in Chicago in the 1940s.
Nise’ from Under The Boardwalk posted a review of The Boy Who Dared: A Novel Based on the True Story of a Hitler Youth by Susan Campbell Bartoletti. Here’s a little of what she had to say:
Historical fiction is a favorite genre and I couldn’t put this book down once I started it. Well written, emotional and a must read.
Katrina from Katrina’s Reads posted a review of Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels. Here’s a little of what she had to say:
While hiding from the guards in the marshy muds of Poland Jakob is discovered by a Greek geologist, who takes him home and stays his friend and companion for life. Jakobs life takes his through Greece and Canada and back again, yet no matter how far he travels from the terrors of his childhood he can never forget or lay his sister’s ghost to rest.
The language in this book is stunning, with a real poetic quality.
Douglas Jacobson’s Night of Flames has received quite a few reviews from our WWII Challenge participants this year, and we wanted to highlight their thoughts.
But first, we wanted to call attention to some great guest posts and interviews with the author as well.
Over at Historical Tapestry, Douglas Jacobson offered his views on why he enjoys war stories or stories in which characters are caught in the throes of war.
Anna Horner also interviewed Douglas Jacobson for the Baltimore Literature Examiner about Comet Line and Belgian resistance, his research, and advice for novice writers.
Here’s what participants have said about Night of Flames by Douglas Jacobson as part of the WWII reading challenge. Feel free to click the links to read the complete reviews.
Night of Flames surprised me with how much I enjoyed it and how interesting and intriguing I found the story to be. The book was just so rich with history and historical details, while still focusing deeply on the characters and the plot. I always enjoy reading books about World War II and the Holocaust, but what I liked about this one in particular was the lack of gruesome details and difficult scenes.
While the historical events carry the story, character development was on the one-dimensional end of the spectrum and left me feeling less than invested. The dialogue, both internal and external, was stilted and flat. Overall, the writing was factual and lacked emotional depth.
While I am not a WWII buff, this book was a great read! You did not need to know a lot about the war to be able to appreciate the sacrifices that everyday people made in the name of freedom. It was a very engaging read and I was instantly invested in the outcomes of Anna, Irene and Justyn.
I truly enjoyed Anna’s character as I felt she was a strong, intelligent and brave woman with a very caring nature. At risk to herself, she did not hesitate to help her Jewish friends Irene and Justyn. The character of Jan was not as thoroughly developed as Anna’s but I still got the feeling that he was an extremely patriotic and conscientious man who would do whatever was necessary to find his beloved Anna.
Jacobson’s no-nonsense writing style will place readers in the heart of the resistance, though some readers could get bogged down by the military strategy and direction, such as how the resistance used holes dug in the earth to hold lanterns that were lit to signal the Allies as to where to drop supplies.
I grew attached to the characters, mainly their passion and their selflessness. I’m partial to strong female characters, so naturally, I liked Anna. It takes a one feisty lady to scream at and smack a creepy SS officer!
Overall this was a good read with vivid scenes, some relatively unknown history and a fascinating look at life inside the Resistance organisations, particularly in Belgium. So often, WWII literature use France as their location, so it was a change to read about Poland and Belgium.
**Attention participants: Remember to email us a link to your reviews, and we’ll post them here so we can see what everyone is reading!**
Heather from Age 30+…A Lifetime of Books posted today about her grandmother’s experiences in Coventry during WWII, and her take on Helen Humphreys’ Coventry (a book I read earlier this year and highly recommend).
Heather and her family have some fascinating WWII-related stories to tell. Click here to read the post, where she also includes a link to the story of how her grandparents met during the war.
Nise’ from 
Douglas Jacobson’s Night of Flames has received quite a few reviews from our WWII Challenge participants this year, and we wanted to highlight their thoughts.