An historical look at WWII through the eyes of one soldier has been documented in Lucky Stars and Gold Bars: A World War II Odyssey. Karen Sladek, the daughter of the letter-writing GI, Lt. Lyle Sladek, provides a historical collection of letters, photos, and documents that not only recount the hard days of fighting and the long, lonely nights away from home, but they also helped to give Karen a new glimpse into her father, "Dad never really talked about the war, I knew he was there but that was about it. Then one day I happened on these letters and I was immediately drawn into his world and the people he fought with. It was an amazing experience."
Written with youthful energy and a deep patriotic commitment, Sladek's WWII letters posted from 35 states, 5 continents, and 3 theaters of war to his parents back home on the farm, Lyle Sladek's poignant correspondence presents a living history and tribute that honors the contributions of a nation and reveals the sacrifices of the Greatest Generation on the 60th anniversary of WWII.
Karen Sladek's grandparents saved every letter they received from their son during his four-year military career. Sladek's father discovered the cardboard box when his parents died thirty years after the war. Twenty-five years later, Sladek stumbled upon the carton in the family home. This time they were read and re-read, used to launch into many discussions with her dad, now 81, about a war and an era she found herself to know little about. Fascinated by her father's global odyssey in the WWII Army Air Corps, Sladek embarked on extensive research and interviews with her father. Gaining a deep understanding of him, the war, and the Greatest Generation, she felt compelled to share his firsthand account and historical trove of letters, photos, and documents with the public. Hence, she transformed the material into a unique book with narrative passages that personalize the life and times and flesh out the events of that epic era. The effect, in the words of some readers, is "history that reads like a novel."
Sladek believes other boomers want to fill in the missing gap in their family history and understand how it really was for their relatives. She fears her generation holds misconceptions about the war and that we are losing our past, our story. It is a grave mistake, she warns, to not understand how the war affected your family, your nation, and shaped your world. It's not about medals and valor, but about ordinary people, the common experience. The Greatest Generation is fading into history. It is projected that by August 14 of this year, the 60th anniversary of victory over Japan (V-J Day), less than one-fourth of the sixteen million veterans who served in WWII will still be living.
$32.95; ISBN 0-9721925-8-1; 522pp; 236 photos; softcover with flaps
To Order: 800.247.6553 or www.LuckyStarsAndGoldBars.com
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