Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day is this Saturday, December 7th, and I have found the best book for both children and adults! "The Good Fight, How World War II Was Won", by Stephen E. Ambrose, is an account of the "great" war from beginning to end. You might think that this would be a very large volume filled with reams of historical information. It is filled with information, but the length of the book is very deceiving. It's a mere 96 pages packed with more information than the length would suggest.
When opening the book you first encounter a time-line of important events, starting in 1933 when Adolph Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. As the reader quickly surveys this time-line, it becomes easier to understand how the war began, and it's very evident why we became involved when the reader finds December 7th, 1941 on the time-line and reads, "Japanese launch sneak attack on U.S. military bases at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii".
This book is really "kid friendly" because as you open the book to read it, one page is filled with the important information relevant to the heading, and on the opposite page there is a full spread of one picture that is also relevant to the heading. On the information side, there is also a "quick facts" section that will quickly surmise the important facts that gives the reader insight and background to this page. For instance, under the first heading, "War Origins: Europe", the reader begins to understand how Hitler was quickly becoming very powerful. It describes how he used his "Gestapo", or secret police, to imprison people who disagreed with him at the beginning of his reign. Later on, he did much worse to people, but even in the beginning, he displayed his evil nature. He took away people's rights to vote, abolished unions and began to arm the country for war. I found a very interesting piece of information about him in the "quick facts" section. It gives a little background about how much he hated anyone of Jewish descent. He did a search on his paternal grandfather because he didn't know anything about him. He found out that this relative was Jewish, but he quietly kept this secret.
I found myself learning more and more about this incredible war. While reading about the "Invasion of Saipan", I found reading about the Navy pilots riveting. In 1944, when our country was losing many great Americans every day, this battle proved to be the "greatest aircraft-carrier battle of the war". Many of the planes from both America and Japan were trying to sink the other's ships. The battle lasted late into the night which caused much concern to the American commanders. All of our planes were very low on fuel and didn't have much time left before they needed to land on the carriers. The commander of the American aircraft carrier made a brash decision to turn on the lights in order for the pilots to find their way back immediately. This decision was a courageous one. No Japanese or German commander would dare to risk the lives of one the ships for a few pilots. As it turned out, the planes landed safely and the carriers were not attacked. (My own father was a Naval air pilot in this war and found myself reflecting on his experiences during the war.)
There are many stories like this through out this incredible book. After reading this book from cover to cover, and studying the incredible pictures that go right along with the events, I found myself in awe of the great men and women who risked their lives during the worst world war in history. I also found myself very grateful to be living in this great country. This should be a text book for middle school, junior high and high schools!
There is also a glossary and index at the back, as well as related web-sites. Mr. Ambrose is renowned for his expertise and knowledge of this war and this book only helps secure him, in my opinion, as the "best" writer of information and facts concerning World War II!
Ready for a new, bright and beautifully drawn Christmas book? "Merry Christmas, Big Hungry Bear!", by Don and Audrey Wood, is as good as it gets for a picture book! Once again, they have collaborated on another rendition of their cute little mouse and large bear from an earlier book called "The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear." This newest book has all of the elements that would entice children ages 3 through 7. Besides the fact that the pictures are bold and brightly painted, the text has the essence of what Christmas is all about. Little mouse has many presents, but begins to worry because "the big, hungry Bear", who lives at the top of the hill, loves presents. Little mouse begins to hammer boards against his door to prevent the bear from taking any of his lovely presents. What happens next? You'll have to get the book to find out, but you just might be surprised!