All We Thought We Knew by Michelle Shocklee

 

1969. When Mattie Taylor’s twin brother was killed in Vietnam, she lost her best friend and the only person who really understood her. Now, news that her mother is dying sends Mattie back home, despite blaming her father for Mark’s death. Mama’s last wish is that Mattie would read some old letters stored in a trunk, from people Mattie doesn’t even know. Mama insists they hold the answers Mattie is looking for.

1942. Ava Delaney is picking up the pieces of her life following her husband’s death at Pearl Harbor. Living with her mother-in-law on a secluded farm in Tennessee is far different than the life Ava imagined when she married only a few short months ago. Desperate to get out of the house, Ava seeks work at a nearby military base, where she soon discovers the American government is housing Germans who they have classified as enemy aliens. As Ava works to process legal documents for the military, she crosses paths with Gunther Schneider, a German who is helping care for wounded soldiers. Ava questions why a man as gentle and kind as Gunther should be forced to live in the internment camp, and as they become friends, her sense of the injustice grows . . . as do her feelings for him. Faced with the possibility of losing Gunther, Ava must choose whether loving someone deemed the enemy is a risk worth taking, even if it means being ostracized by all those around her.

In the midst of pain and loss two women must come face-to-face with their own assumptions about what they thought they knew about themselves and others. What they discover will lead to a far greater appreciation of their own legacies and the love of those dearest to them.

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About The Author

 

Michelle Shocklee is the author of several historical novels, including COUNT THE NIGHTS BY STARS, winner of the 2023 Christianity Today Book Award in Fiction, and UNDER THE TULIP TREE, a Christy Award and Selah Award finalist. As a woman of mixed heritage--her father's family is Hispanic and her mother's roots go back to Germany--she has always celebrated diversity and feels it's important to see the world through the eyes of one another. Learning from the past and changing the future is why she writes historical fiction.

With both her sons grown, Michelle and her husband make their home in Tennessee, not far from the historical sites she writes about.

Michelle loves hearing from readers! Connect with her at www.MichelleShocklee.com

 

My Review

 

 Family, and war, that is the theme here, really from beginning to end, and sadly loss.

So much hurt and bitterness, and injustice. With so much out of our control, and yet, this story does span decades, and wars.

Interment camps, and death, fighting prejudice, and heartache, even when already being held.

Animals here hold the key to some healing, and love how the author gave us an injured war dog, and a gentle horse!

Ava Delaney, who is she? Well, she is the one that holds this story together, and she shares her journey with her daughter in a way that is hard and special.
Don't miss this story that spans from WWII to Vietnam, beautifully woven by Michelle Shocklee!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Tyndale House, and was not required to give a positive review.