"In case of my death, my body will be sent to you. Don't be scared. I said in case."
When the author's aunt handed him 160 wartime letters from his father - spanning from Army induction in 1942 to postwar Europe in 1945 - he uncovered a side of his dad that had long been hidden behind silence and stoicism. Through these candid, heartfelt letters, U.S. Army Medic Elwood Turner details his journey from small-town New York to the frontlines of Europe with the 4th Infantry Division, offering a rare and personal look at World War II through the eyes of a young man who lived it.
This remarkable collection traces Elwood's path across the U.S. and into the heart of the war-England, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany - while also chronicling his budding romance with a British teenager named Hazel, who would later become his wife. Their story, pieced together through letters, photographs, and travel, unfolds against the backdrop of some of history's most pivotal events.
With modern-day reflections and revisits to the very roads Elwood once walked, this book preserves a legacy of service, sacrifice, and love. It is both a family memoir and a powerful tribute to the enduring spirit of the Greatest Generation.