Today marks the 79th anniversary of the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, the event that propelled our nation into history’s bloodiest war.
Looking back, I have to say stories from WWII have captivated me from an early age—probably from the day I first picked up The Diary of Anne Frank in school. I also remember vividly, decades later, the morning I met with an editor at a writing conference and she told me that my Genesis-winning WWII manuscript wouldn’t sell. That people were over-hearing about WWII.
Well, she was wrong. The opposite trend seems to have prevailed. World War Two stories appear to be enjoying a resurgence, including an ongoing string of Hollywood blockbusters such as Hacksaw Ridge and last year’s Midway movie. I also see WWII- and 1940s-themed novels sprinkled prominently through every relevant category in this year’s Christy Awards finalists list.
What explains the enduring appeal? I believe there are several reasons these stories speak directly to our souls. Although few human endeavors are entirely pure in motive and flawless in execution, out of any conflict within memory, WWII stands out as the clearest expression of the forces for good confronting epic evil.
Themes such as liberation from tyranny and resilience in the face of a common enemy resonate well, given the trials of our day. The bleak events of WWII also offered plenty of opportunity for the high-stakes “hero’s journey,” which is the heartbeat of story.
Heroism. Resilience. Liberation. Good versus evil. These themes resonate precisely because they reflect deep spiritual truths. There is an epic battle between the forces of good and evil that has been playing out in the heavenlies since the dawn of time. The conflicts we see on earth are echoes of that one. There is an enemy of our souls who prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking to steal, kill and destroy. There is also plenty of opportunity for an individual to rise as a hero by standing for God through adverse circumstances, like Desmond Doss in Hacksaw Ridge.
Another key WWII theme—which is also deeply spiritual—is imprisonment versus freedom. That one echoes loudly in my WWII novels. The Plum Blooms in Winter —which thrilled my heart to no end by becoming a Cascade award winner and a Christy- and Carol-Award finalist—and my new release, The Mulberry Leaf Whispers, are bookends in a sense. One follows a WWII American airman taken prisoner by Japan, while the other tracks a Japanese naval officer taken prisoner by the U.S. Their experiences are very different, but each of them needs the hand of God to lift him out of despair.
But the theme runs deeper than that. Every one of the point-of-view characters in this series spends a significant stretch of time in some kind of prison. And even when they escape their physical bonds, my characters struggle to break free from spiritual bondage to the tragic wounds of their pasts.
I believe I know why that theme worked its way in. Miyako’s journey to overcome her past abuse threads through both novels. The Lord used writing her journey in a powerful way to open my eyes to some aspects of my own past trauma. I found myself taking tentative steps toward freedom in time with hers.
But freedom is never free. It must be gained at a cost and guarded with vigilance. Whether on a national/political level or a personal level, powerful forces always stand arrayed against it. Since “it is for freedom that Christ set us free” (Gal 5:1), the eternal enemy of our souls is out to keep us in bondage.
About a year ago, I rushed to the theater to take in the Midway movie on release day. I was beyond excited to see the Doolittle Raid, the event that kicks off both my novels, portrayed with a big CGI budget on the silver screen.
I was not disappointed—I was thrilled. But why was I the only one crying at the movie’s end? Oh, there may have been a few eye-dabs around the theater, but I was beyond that. I had my face buried in my hands, sobbing.
It was a splash screen in the final moments that got me. It mentioned the tragic death toll of the Battle of Midway. More than three thousand Japanese combatants went to the bottom of the ocean that day—young men, mostly, victims of their militaristic government’s propaganda machine. And they took three hundred and seven brave Americans with them.
Deaths from the war itself totaled more than fifty million. The movie left me awash in gratitude for the generations of heroes who have fought and died to keep our freedoms intact. And for God’s providence, which was in full view at Midway. But it also left me deeply moved at the depth of evil, and at the ravages of our broken world—which have been on abundant display in the year that has elapsed since.
Linda Thompson stepped back from a corporate career that spanned continents to write what she loves—stories of unstoppable faith. Her debut novel, The Plum Blooms in Winter, was a Cascade Award winner and a Christy- and Carol-Award finalist. Linda writes from the sun-drenched Arizona desert, where she lives with her husband, a third-generation airline pilot who is also her Chief Military Research Officer, one mostly-grown-up kid, and a small platoon of housecats. When Linda isn’t writing you’ll find her rollerblading—yes, that makes her a throwback—taking in a dramatic desert moonrise, or enjoying their first grandbaby.
A WWII Japanese naval officer. The teenage daughter of a legendary Christian samurai. Three centuries separate them, but a crucial question binds their destinies together.
Which lives have value?
1587. Bartered off in a peace agreement to the ancient enemies of her illustrious house, is Sono a war prize, a hostage or a bride?
1942. Matsuura Akira’s naval vessel explodes under enemy fire. His honor is eternally decimated. A prisoner’s life is of value to no one—least of all to himself. Can a long-buried truth provide the vital spark that reignites his will to live?
The novel is available now in paperback, and on special $2.99 preorder pricing on Amazon Kindle. There’s also a suite of exclusive pre-order bonuses for those who order the book by the 12/15. Details here.
