Small Press & Self-Published Books About WWII
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Bill Broz Professional Resource Connection with guest co-editor Virginia Broz Small Press & Self-Published Books about WWII our moment of truth, your Product Information: Reviewer 2: a reader from Ames IA chance, could happen like Paperback: 151 pages United States: This is a great story of courageous this. You see a very small Publisher: McMillen Publishing: Y men. I’ve met Mr. Lang and am in- press release in your local news (November 2003) spired by what he has done. He is truly paper: ISBN:1888223529 one of the great Americans of the greatest generation. The book is rather Author to sign book about Iowa guer- Usually ships in 24 hours choppy and I was surprised to find so rilla. In honor of Pearl Harbor Remem- List Price: $14.95 many typographical errors. Personally, brance Day on Sunday, a book about Buy new: $14.95 Used & new from I was willing to overlook that because an Iowa World War II soldier will be $8.00 of my interest in the story. featured at a book signing in Ames. Reviewer 1: a reader from IA United The book, Lang: The WWII Story of What do you do? Even though an American Guerilla on Mindanao, States: you have lost your chance to invite Philippine Islands, was written about An unbelievable story of one man’s Dick Lang, an Iowa farm boy who, journey through the war in his early Mr. Lang to speak in your class, the after the island where he was serving 20’s. I found this book to be very in- story about his service sounds was invaded, joined the Filipinos as a tense and emotional and very realis- phenomenal, at least to two people guerrilla to fight the Japanese. The tic. I have had the joy of having known from Ames who knew the man. Richard Lang for many years and have author, Norman Rudi, also an Iowan, Along with reading about what will sign copies of his book from 1-3 had to experience my own sorrow af- happened to Anne Frank and Eli p.m. Saturday at Waldenbooks in ter his recent passing. Ames. Wiesel in WWII, your students So, the book sounds promising could read the story of someone You think—perhaps this book but no visit from Mr. Lang. Like too from their state, their county even. about an Iowan in WWII would be many of his generation, he has They could read about WWII in the a good inclusion to my collection of died. Then, something troubling in Pacific theatre (not too many books WWII titles for my eighth grade the review: in your collection about that). So, WWII unit. Ames is just down the I did see a few typographical errors do you think like an American, an road. I should look into this. Maybe and the story was somewhat choppy Iowan, a person interested in the Dick Lang lives there and speaks to in areas, but it was so easy to look history of WWII and interested in beyond that considering the adventure classes of students studying WWII. making that history come alive for you are experiencing on his behalf. You decide to investigate before your students—and buy the book? making the trip to Ames, and you The second review echoes similar Or do you think like an English land at Amazon.com ordering themes: teacher and say, “I am not buying information and customer reviews: any book from some vanity press 10 THE ALAN REVIEW Fall 2004 c10_20TAR_Fall04 10 10/14/04, 3:30 PM full of spelling errors!” (It’s middle school classroom. Her story Fairfield. I saw a letter to the editor McMillen, not Macmillan). about one of those leaps began you wrote a few months ago that We say buy the book while you about ten years ago with a letter to indicated you are a WWII vet. My have the chance. We say buy the the editor in The Fairfield Ledger, students and I are reading books next one you hear about too, and our local county newspaper in rural about the war, and I wondered if follow up on that one to see if the southeast Iowa. you’d be interested in visiting one veteran who wrote it can come to *** *** or more classes. .” your school to talk to your stu- Our Eighth grade literature of Jerry Yellin, whose WWII dents. Such a move could become WWII and the Holocaust unit, experiences included flying off Iwo one of the most rewarding actions which had focused on just the Jima to escort bombers to Tokyo, you take in your teaching career. Goodrich and Hackett play based did come to class that year. It Our thesis in the column is that on The Diary of Anne Frank in 1977 turned out that he had just written books about WWII, especially first- when I began teaching, had about his story in a book called Of person accounts by veterans from expanded to include hundreds of War and Weddings. Over the years, you local area, are likely to come memoirs and novels by 1995. My he continued to visit, and he has from small press or self-published theory is that the veterans and brought dozens of copies of his sources rather than the Scholastic others who experienced WWII were book for our classroom collections. catalog. Bringing these diamonds in deciding to tell their stories before He has brought videotape and the rough into your classroom often it was too late. Many of the stories photographs. He has even brought requires quick action and a leap of were told from the point of view of two vintage P-51 airplanes to our faith. In this column Virginia Broz young people near the ages of the little local airport to demonstrate and I will discuss some of those students in my classes, and stu- strafing maneuvers as 150 eighth leaps of faith we have taken and dents found the books accessible graders watched, shading eyes from the rewards those leaps have and interesting and often mesmeriz- the sun, holding ears to muffle the brought. We will also review the ing and moving. roar of the low flying Mustangs. publications we talk about, some of Occasionally students invited This veteran has spoken with which you can buy. But our grandparents or great grandparents hundreds if not thousands of primary purpose here is to alert you to visit the classroom to share their Fairfield students by now, as well as to the treasure hunt in your own experiences, and I was always on with students in other schools in back yard. We estimate that no less the lookout for community mem- Iowa and in other states. Every time than six times a year, the newspa- bers who might be willing to come he does, he brings history to life. per this small state of Iowa depends to school. That’s why I cut out a His memory of his war years is on, The Des Moines Register, carries letter to the editor one September crystal clear. His analysis of his a press release like the one above. day and stuck it in the December feelings and beliefs, both then and Many more such press releases are pages of my desk calendar. The now, is insightful and wise. His carried only in city and regional letter-writer mentioned in passing hope for the future is bright, and it papers. But we all know that there that he was a WWII veteran. He is reflected back to him in the will be fewer and fewer of those sounded like an articulate person, thoughtful and hopeful eyes of press releases. The common figure and I thought I might give him a thirteen-year-olds who are at an age in published accounts is that call when we were reading Night where they are both realistic and sixteen million American men and and Maus and The Cage and idealistic about the future. women served in WWII. About four Farewell to Manzanar and the For Jerry Yellin, now 80 years million are alive today. They are dozens of other titles students old, the invitation to speak to dying at a rate of 1,000 per day. would chose from. school children led to very signifi- Virginia Broz is a national That phone call went some- cant experiences: board certified teacher of early thing like this: “Mr. Yellin? You I had never given much thought to my adolescent English Language Arts don’t know me, but I teach eighth status as a veteran in the eyes of youth and a twenty year veteran of the grade English and reading here in until I was asked to speak to eighth 11 THE ALAN REVIEW Fall 2004 c10_20TAR_Fall04 11 10/14/04, 3:30 PM grade classes in a middle school. That excerpts from two of those letters, he lives there now, students see experience opened my eyes to my own first a tough observation from a him on the street and in the grocery youth and the general lack of interest young man and then the expansive store, and have heard him speak in I had in hearing about WW I from my uncles who had served. I wondered if manifesto of a young woman: the town square on Memorial Day. But sometimes local history and the generation I would be speaking to (Student 1): . Something I am also would feel the same about me as I felt thinking about is that when you came local geography figure heavily in about vets from the First World War.