There’s a recently released movie on Netflix called The Six Triple Eight that I enjoyed tremendously. If you don’t have Netflix, that’s OK. We have two fiction books based on the storyline in the movie. What I loved most was learning about a story that hadn’t received much attention.
I’ve always been fascinated by reading about the 14 Native nations whose members served as code talkers and other communications specialists in World Wars I and II. And, I’m so impressed by the Women Airforce Service Pilots and the Tuskegee Airmen, who’ve only more recently gotten the attention they deserve for their roles in history. Watching the movie prompted me to search for more books about unsung heroes of World War II. I hope you find something intriguing and inspiring.
- No better time : a novel of the spirited women of the Six Triple Eight Central Postal Directory Battalion by Sheila Williams. In early 1945, 800 African American WACs arrived at their post in England where they were tasked with processing a backlog of 17 million pieces of mail sent to GIs from their loved ones back home, against tremendous odds.
- Sisters in arms : a novel of the daring Black women who served during World War II by Kaia Alderson. (Fiction) Based on the true story of the 6888th Postal Battalion (the Six Triple Eight), Sisters in Arms explores the untold story of what life was like for the only all-Black, female U.S. battalion to be deployed overseas during World War II.
- Soaring to glory : a Tuskegee airman's firsthand account of World War II by Philip Handleman. Harry Stewart Jr. had to sit in a segregated rail car on the journey to Army basic training in Mississippi in 1943. But two years later, the twenty-year-old African American from New York was at the controls of a P-51, prowling for Luftwaffe aircraft at five thousand feet over the Austrian countryside. By the end of World War II, he had become an American hero.
- The women with silver wings : the inspiring true story of the Women Airforce Service Pilots of World War II by Katherine Sharp Landdeck. The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) gave 1,100 women a chance to serve their country and prove that women aviators were just as skilled as men. While not allowed to serve in combat, the WASP helped train male pilots for service abroad, and ferried bombers and pursuits across the country.
- Immortal valor : the black Medal of Honor winners of World War II by Robert Child. The remarkable stories of seven African American soldiers ultimately awarded the World War II Medal of Honor in 1993, after having been denied simply because of their race.
Library tip of the month: FVRLibraries subscribes to Fold3, a source of military records, as part of our genealogy resources for patrons. It’s available from anywhere with an internet connection by using your library card. Search by name, place, service number, date, or unit, like “6888th Postal Battalion.” Call 360-906-5000 for assistance.
