The Night Witches by Bruce Myles
Witches on Sewing Machines.
Although I have a preference for historical fiction, every once in a great while I’ll crack open a non-fiction book, and I’m so glad I finally pulled Night Witches off my shelf and read it! First published in 1981, author Bruce Myles had interviewed surviving Russian female pilots long after WWII. As young women they volunteered to become frontline pilots after Hitler broke his non-aggression pact and attacked the Soviet Union. For months the ladies trained for combat and in 1942 they dove right into the Battle of Stalingrad, one of history’s bloodiest battles. The planes they flew made distinct sounds of sewing machines, and because they often attacked German forces at night, the Nazis dubbed them “Night Witches.” I devoured this book. The personal stories of the dangers and horrors the women faced was breathtaking. This was one of those books where at the end I let out a big sigh and sat there in a stupor contemplating all that happened. A fascinating book about a horrific time in history! I would dare to say that I would even recommend it as a book club read.
Annette
Novels set in WWII:
The Last Train to London by Meg Waite Clayton (About Hitler's annexation of Austria and the Kindertransport.)
We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter (Based on the author's own family.)
Sarah’s Key by Tatiana De Rosnay (About the Vel’ d’Hiv Roundup in Paris)
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (Won a Pulitzer)
City of Thieves by David Benioff (Set during the Siege of Lenningrad)
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows (During German occupation of Guernsey Island)
Further reading about WWII and the Holocaust:
Non-fiction About the Pacific Theater during WWII:
U.S. Internment Camps during WWII:
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