Cheryl Pula has created a compelling series of novels about the heroic fliers of the 8th Air Force, during WWII. Her characters jump off the page at you and all the events are based on her extensive interviews with WWII veterans. Pula's action scenes will keep you up at night because they are that realistic, you will feel like you are in the plane during the battle scenes. All of her books are based on actual events that happened during World War II. When you recognize that the average age of a bomber crewman during the war was under 24 years of age, and that the average crew would not survive past their sixth mission, it is not surprising that these young man are often referred to as our greatest generation. As the publisher, we refer to Cheryl's books as "addictive." Now you can get the entire series at one time and "binge read" to your heart' s content! "Wars are fought by human beings, with feelings, emotions, hopes and dreams. Ordinary people who are thrown together under extraordinary circumstances." Said Cheryl Pula. I have never been a traditional "history buff" but Cheryl Pula has influenced me to understand more about the lives and stories of the Great Generation who served. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, and can't wait to read more in the series. For those, like me, who learn through understanding the actions and emotions of well-developed characters, I can enthusiastically recommend this book, and the other in the series. This was the type of book you could not put down after reading just a few chapters. We were surprised at the prejudice shown during this period in our history. Matt being part American Indian kept him from being treated fairly. Hopefully, this would not happen today. We were amazed at the hardships endured by our very young troops and the amount of spunk they showed in overcoming them. For boys so young this was amazing. The bravery shown by these young men was also amazing. The hardships of being on their own away from family and friends hit us. Also, the intelligence and bravery was outstanding. The fortitude shown by our nation during this trying time was heartwarming. What struck us as being amazing also was the fact that the companies in our nation came together and built the B-17 bomber to withstand the forces required of it. The steady nerves of those brave young men in the face of the horrors of war - seeing your friends blown to pieces in front of you and still being able to carry out your mission left us spellbound. All in all, Cheryl did an outstanding job protraying the stuff young Americans were made of during that time period. We look forward to reading Book 2. Phyllis and Dale Robinson, Plain City, Ohio
About the Author: A native of New York Mills, New York, Cheryl Pula is a retired Reference Librarian with a degree in B.S. degree in Russian Language with a minor in German and received a Master's in Library and Information Science from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Though officially retired in August 2011, she now works parttime at the New York Mills Public Library in New York Mills, NY. In 1988, Pula was awarded the New York Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Award. She served on the Board of Trustees of the New York Mills Public Library. Cheryl also teaches for the Mohawk Valley Institute for Learning in Retirement at SUNYIT in Marcy, New York, teaching a variety of historical subjects to retirees who are interested in continuing their education. She has taught courses on unsolved historical mysteries; the American Civil War; World War II; The Titanic and several other topics. Cheryl is the author of Ethnic Utica, published in 1994 by Utica College. With her brother, she is coauthor and co-editor of a book on the Civil War regiments from Oneida County entitled, With Courage and Honor: Oneida County's Role in the Civil War. She is a contributing author, co-editor and served as proofreader for The Polish- American Encyclopedia, published by McFarland Publishers in January 2011. The book has just been chosen as one of the Top Ten outstanding reference books of 2012. For her work on the Encyclopedia, she was awarded the Polish-American Historical Society's Distinguished Achievement Award in January 2012. She is also the author of the series of novels about Eighth Air Force B-17 bomber crews in World War II England. Cheryl is a national speaker. To learn more about Cheryl Pula or to schedule her to speak at your next event, we invite you to visit her website at: http: //8thmilitary.co