Sarah Sundin's Blog, page 128

Today in World War II History—July 1, 1942

British troops digging defensive trenches near El Alamein, Egypt, 4 Jul 1942 (Imperial War Museum: 4700-32 E 13924)

80 Years Ago—July 1, 1942: First Battle of El Alamein begins—German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel makes deepest penetration yet into Egypt.

Sub USS Sturgeon sinks Japanese transport Montevideo Maru off Luzon in the Philippines; 845 Australian POWS and 208 US & Australian civilians are killed in Australia’s worst maritime disaster.

US discontinues production of alarm clocks to save metal; however, rising absenteeism will lead to a quick repeal (Read more: “Make It Do—Metal Shortages in World War II”).

Destroyer USS Coghlan receives US Navy’s first shipboard twin Bofors 40-mm gun.

Bofors twin-mount 40-mm heavy machine gun aboard the Queen Mary, which was used as a troop transport during WWII, Long Beach, CA, June 2017 (Photo: Sarah Sundin)

The post Today in World War II History—July 1, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

Today in World War II History—June 30, 1942

US Coastguardsman and dog on beach patrol, Parramore Beach, VA, 21 Oct 1943 (US Coast Guard photo)

80 Years Ago—June 30, 1942: Soviets evacuate Sevastopol as Germans advance.

German troops under Rommel reach El Alamein, Egypt.

US begins draft registration for men ages 18-20.

US Coast Guard’s Beach Patrol Division is established under Capt. Raymond Mauerman.

Destroyer USS Fletcher, first in new flush-deck Fletcher class, is commissioned in Kearny, NJ (See photos from my tour of Fletcher-class destroyer USS Cassin Young in Boston, MA: “Through Waters Deep Destroyer Tour – Topside”).

Technical drawing of a US Fletcher-class destroyer, published in All Hands magazine, 1954; note that the radars are missing (US Navy)

The post Today in World War II History—June 30, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

When Stone Wings Fly by Karen Barnett

 

Kieran Lucas is living untethered. Raised in foster homes, she’s finally connected to her “Granny Mac.” But Granny Mac is slipping into dementia. In her agitation, she relives her past when her mother was killed and the family lost their home in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. If only Kieran could find the little stone bird Granny Mac says is buried on the old homestead. Park historian Zach Jensen is eager to help her unravel the mystery of Kieran’s family.

In the 1930s when the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was formed, Rosie McCauley desperately tries to keep her family home, the only stability her sister Lorna knows. But the homestead is failing, and when the government offers her a lifelong lease, it seems like a solution to all her problems. But her decision puts her at odds with her neighbors, especially when she befriends a “furriner,” ornithologist Benton Fuller, who is fascinated by the owls on her property – and by Rosie.

As tensions rise in the mountains, the repercussions could last for generations.

Gorgeous storytelling, knit together with Karen Barnett‘s signature love of nature and national parks. When Stone Wings Fly is a touching and heart-wrenching story of family and love and of letting go. Rosie and Kieran and Granny Mac are compelling women trying to make it on their own in difficult circumstances and finding strength to do so. I have loved every single one of Karen Barnett’s books, but this one may be her best yet!

The post When Stone Wings Fly by Karen Barnett first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

Today in World War II History—June 29, 1942

Photographer of the US Army Pictorial Service photographs troops in North Africa, 1944 (US National Archives)

80 Years Ago—June 29, 1942: Capt. Charles Kegelman of the US 15th Bombardment Squadron, flying with 12 RAF Bostons to Hazebrouck, France, becomes the first Eighth Air Force member to bomb Nazi-occupied Europe.

Germans take Mersa Matruh, Egypt.

US Army Pictorial Service is established to take still and motion pictures for propaganda and training.

The post Today in World War II History—June 29, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

Today in World War II History—June 28, 1942

Maj. Gen. Lewis Brereton, WWII (public domain via Wikipedia)

80 Years Ago—June 28, 1942: Germans begin a summer offensive toward Stalingrad and the Caucasus.

US Army Middle East Air Force is formed in Cairo, Egypt, under Maj. Gen. Lewis Brereton.

The post Today in World War II History—June 28, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

The Sound of Light Cover Reveal Giveaway Winners!

 

Thank you so much for helping me celebrate the cover reveal for my next World War II novel, The Sound of Light, coming from Revell on February 7, 2023! I’m so pleased with the cover, and I’m so glad you all share my enthusiasm.

Thanks to the 532 of you who entered the book giveaway! And here are the ten winners! Winners, you have all been notified by email. Please check your spam folder if you can’t find it.

Faith Creech

Patricia Habermann

Rebecca Hoover

June Horne

Amy Isham

Pam Krage

Tami le Roux

Katelynn Nutzhorn

Cheri Schueller

Jenn Soehnlin

Thanks again, everyone! And congratulations to the winners!

The post The Sound of Light Cover Reveal Giveaway Winners! first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

Today in World War II History—June 27, 1942

Nazi saboteur trial, Washington, D.C. The special seven-man military commission opens the third day of its proceedings in the trial of eight Nazi saboteurs in the Department of Justice building (Library of Congress: cph.3c34579)

80 Years Ago—June 27, 1942: Two more German saboteurs are arrested in Chicago; all eight who landed in US by U-boat earlier in June are now imprisoned.

The White Rose resistance group, students at the University of Munich, begins distributing anti-Nazi pamphlets.

First destroyer escorts (DE-1 and DE-2), USS Bayntun and USS Bazely are launched at Boston Navy Yard, MA; both will soon be commissioned into the British Royal Navy.

The post Today in World War II History—June 27, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

Today in World War II History—June 26, 1942

German Panzer Mk III above Mersa Matruh, Egypt, late June 1942 (German Federal Archive: Bild 101I-785-0293-45)

80 Years Ago—June 26, 1942: Germans and Italians attack British at Mersa Matruh, Egypt.

First flight of Grumman shipboard XF6F-1 Hellcat fighter plane.

The post Today in World War II History—June 26, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

Today in World War II History—June 25, 1942

Gen. Sir Claude Auchinleck, WWII (Imperial War Museum)

80 Years Ago—June 25, 1942: Gen. Sir Claude Auchinleck replaces Lt. Gen. Neil Ritchie over British Eighth Army in Egypt.

Australian and US troops land at Milne Bay, New Guinea to build an airfield.

The post Today in World War II History—June 25, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.

Today in World War II History—June 24, 1942

Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, 31 Dec 1943 (US National Archives: USA C-2182)

80 Years Ago—June 24, 1942: Maj. Gen. Dwight Eisenhower arrives in Britain to assume command of US European Theater of Operations (ETOUSA), including North Africa.

German troops under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel invade Egypt.

Allied POWs begin work on a 294-mile extension of the Burma-Thailand Railway under brutal conditions.

The post Today in World War II History—June 24, 1942 first appeared on Sarah Sundin.