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| Tanamera by Noel Barber |
Following on from
Margaret Tanner’s WWI novels and Anna Brentwood’s 1920s settings, I’m excited
to share what drew me to set my novels in WWII and then tell you more about my
amazing heroines.
With an
undergraduate history degree concentration in 20th century history
and a life-long passion for WWII fiction, it now seems clear I was destined to write
novels set during this dramatic time period. Even in elementary school, I
gravitated toward historical fiction set during WWII. I still own well-worn paperback
copies of Summer of My German Soldier
and Farewell to Manzanar. But
it was in high school, after devouring Herman Wouk’s Winds of War and War
and Remembrance multiple times that I discovered author Noel
Barber. I was immediately captivated by
the combination of romance and thriller-packed action in a WWII setting in his
novels. If you’re now curious why I own 8 copies of Barber’s novel , Tanamera, you can discover the
answer here!
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| My Tanamera collection |
Fast-forward several
decades: I had completed a “practice novel” and was anxious to begin my writing
career, preferably with a historical romance setting. Trouble was, I had no
interest in Regencies or kilted highlanders (with the obvious exception of
Jamie Fraser of Outlander fame). I believed the heady combination
of the era’s glamour and larger-than-life stakes could provide the perfect
backdrop for heart-melting and passionate romance novels. To brainstorm what my hypothetical WWII romance
heroines might have done -- and in particular what might have taken them
overseas near the action (and the heroes!) -- I consulted Our Mothers’ War. Yellin profiled numerous ways that American women served
overseas, but the one I’d never heard about intrigued me most: the thousands of
“Red Cross Girls” who were deployed in every theater of the war.
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| RECRUITING POSTER |
These women who
worked for the Red Cross met extraordinary qualifications for the time period.
To interview, a woman needed to be aged 25-35, have earned a college degree,
and have some career experience. Common character attributes paint a picture of
an even more accomplished woman: poised, charming, strong conversational
skills, self-assured, independent, adaptable, and possessing ingenuity,
creativity and stamina. The Red Cross also wanted women who could hold their
own in a male-dominated environment, women who could project a complex persona
of big sister/girl-next-door with just a dollop of sex appeal.
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| DEBARKING SHIP |
The Red Cross
Girls, as they were then known, served as recreation workers in Europe
(initially England and then moving across the Channel after D-Day to follow the
troops through France and into Germany (as my heroine Vivian does in Courage to be Counted.)
Mediterranean
regions (moving from North Africa into Italy), the Pacific (initially Australia
and New Zealand and then island-hopping behind the boys to New Guinea,
Guadalcanal, Biak, Guam, Saipan, Tinian, the Philippines, Iwo Jima, and
Okinawa), China, Burma, India, Persia, Iceland, Greenland, Canada, Alaska,
Brazil, Panama, and Cuba. The Red Cross
Girls often served closer to the front lines than even the combat nurses.
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| IN AND OUT OF THE BATTLE LINES |
As George Korson’s At His Side notes, “These Red Cross clubmobile girls had one of
the most extraordinary experiences of the war, performing an unprecedented
service with enthusiasm and a contempt for personal danger that had the whole
Army tossing its helmets into the air. They had a ringside seat at one of the
greatest dramas of all time, moving with more freedom than many soldiers. Even
war correspondents could not drive in and out of the battle lines as they did
every day.”
They opened and
staffed recreation clubs in leave destinations and on military bases, drove
Clubmobiles (converted buses, GMC trucks, Jeeps) to deliver doughnuts, coffee,
cheer and conversation to small bases and behind the advancing troops in every
theater of the war.
They used “duckmobiles” to serve Navy ships and other vessels in harbors
around the world, met every troopship and troop train, staffed leave and rest
hotels, and provided recreation services to recuperating soldiers in hospitals.
They were courageous
and extraordinary women in every way, and I hope you’ll want to read their stories
in my Clubmobile Girls series. I hope to release the second book
early next year.
ABOUT ELERI:
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| WW2 AUTHOR ELERI GRACE |
Eleri Grace writes historical romance novels featuring Red
Cross Girl heroines and Flyboy heroes. She hopes her novels will reflect her passion
for the 1940s era and that her readers will come away with an appreciation for
the many couples who were swept up in war-time courtships forged in a time of
larger-than-life uncertainties.
Before penning her first
novel, Eleri honed her writing skills as a corporate lawyer, a historical
researcher, and an avid writer and reader of fan fiction.
She lives in Houston, Texas
with her teenage son, her soon-to-depart-for-college daughter, and two feuding
cats.
To learn more about Eleri
Grace and her books, visit her at her website:
COURAGE TO BE COUNTED
Vivian Lambert wants to do her
part. When she wins a coveted overseas post with the Red Cross, she focuses on
her war service. Falling hard for a sexy pilot wasn't part of her plan.
