Songbird
ISBN-13-9780615926698
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When the perils and social changes of World War II confront a small southern town, faith, family, and love sustain the lives of one young woman and her family. Can those left behind endure?
"I'm waiting for my life to begin. Waiting for the train to come in," Ava Stilwell, a young woman eager for life, sings a popular song with the big band that reflects her heart. In the midst of a world at war, Ava finds love, a passion for her music, and new opportunities, but the war still looms over her, threatening to take it all away.
It's 1943, and World War II has gripped the nation, including the Stilwell family in Jacksonville, Alabama. Rationing, bomb drills, patriotism, and a changing South barrage their way of life. Neighboring Fort McClellan has brought the world to their doorstep in the form of young soldiers from all over the country and German POWs from halfway around the globe.
Songbird is an inspirational, historical fiction novel, dealing with family, faith, strong women, and the American home front. It explores many historical elements of the World War II era, such as women's aid groups, the writings of Ernie Pyle, D-day, radio and music of the 1940s, and the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. It is the first book of The War Song Series.
Song of Return
ISBN-13-978-0692955932
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While World War II has ended, new challenges arise. The world has forever changed, but can the Stilwell family change with it?
"And, confidentially, I confess. I sent a note to the local press that I'll be changing my home address for you," Ava sings out with the band as surviving soldiers from World War II, including her brother James, return to life on the home front. The home they are returning to, however, is not the same home they left behind. A changed economy, broken relationships, new educational opportunities, children born to them during the war, and family expectations all await them. They must meet this new world while trying to escape the horrific one of war they just left behind. The war has also changed the women. Many are reluctant to give up the jobs and freedoms given to them during a time when it was up to them to keep the home front running.
Ava Stilwell's world keeps expanding even after the war. Can she balance being a new wife with college and her burgeoning musical career? Can her cousin Rosemary continue to work and be with the man she truly loves? How does one war widow cope with her grief and enter the life of Carson Stilwell? World War II has changed the world and the Stilwell family forever, but faith and love continue to sustain them.
Song of Return is an inspirational, historical fiction novel and the second book of The War Song Series.
The Final Song
The Korean War looms large, and things will never be the same again. How can the Stilwell family cope with a world changed by war and heading into yet another?
“All I want is loving you and music, music, music,” Ava sings out with the big band what she has learned first-hand since the war. Her husband, her family, and her music are what really matter to her, and she will do everything she can to preserve them.
A world still reeling from World War II is not ready for another, but the fight against communism is bringing a new conflict. Mothers must once again fear for their sons’ lives, and soldiers, including James Stilwell, must decide if they will return to the battlefield.
Meanwhile, can an unlikely, distant romance brought about by the war continue? How does a young mother care for her son and help a husband who cannot acclimate to the post-war world? How do mid-twentieth century women manage family, work, and continual social change? Faith and love guide the Stilwell family through one war to another.
The Final Song is an inspirational, historical fiction novel and the third book of The War Song Series.
