The Making of The Allies

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 SHOW NOTES:

In today’s episode, I talk about some of the dramatic events of The Great War (World War I) and the making of Book 5 in the American Family Portrait series, The Allies.

• While preparing this podcast episode, it became clear to me that The Allies is one of my favorite books and time periods. I’ve already used it twice in other episodes on this website. You can find them by clicking the following links:

FROM MY LIBRARY AUDIO: An eyewitness account of a London zeppelin raid

VIDEO PODCAST: The Incredible Power of Historical Fiction (if you haven’t watched this one yet, you should!) 

• Historical fiction novels about World War I are not as popular as other time periods. The most popular time period for American history novels is the Civil War, with World War II second most popular. 
• For those who enjoy reading historical biographies, I would highly recommend William Manchester’s excellent trilogy on Winston Churchill, The Last Lion. Volume II describes the time period covering World War I.
• In The Allies, I follow three dramatic historical threads: the emergence of aviation, espionage, and heroic women in the war.
• The aviation story begins in (of all places) Colombus, New Mexico and proceeds to France and the legendary Lafayette Escadrille, an elite American air squadron.
• The espionage story includes the night the Black Tom Factory in New Jersey exploded as a result of German sabotage. The explosion was so great, it damaged the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and was heard as far away as Philadelphia. It was the 9/11 of the era.
• One of the most dramatic story lines in The Allies follows the adventures of American nurse ambulance drivers during the war who were led and inspired by the legendary Edith Cavell. I’ll devote the next podcast to Ms. Cavell and her heroic nurses.

CLICK HERE to start reading the American Family Portrait series in minutes!

Other episodes in this series: 

VIDEO

1. Why I Write Christian Historical Fiction
2. The Incredible Power of Historical Fiction
3. The Making of The Puritans
4. The Making of The Colonists
5. The Making of The Patriots
6. The Making of The Adversaries

AUDIO

1. Sports on Sundays: Keeping the Sabbath in the Days of The Puritans
2. My 13-year Odyssey to Getting Published
3. John Winthrop: The Forgotten Founding Father
4. A Middle-Aged Male Author Attempts to Write Poetry From a Teenage Character
5. 300-year-old Bible stolen
6. The Incredible Patience Wright
7. The Making of Behold
8. The Making of The Pioneers