Customer Reviews

Cornhusker Dreams (Romancing America: Nebraska)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I enjoyed this book because it is historically correct, telling three stories of sacrifices made on the homefront during WWII. I'd never thought about where guard dogs were trained or who brought in the crops while the young men were off to war before these stories. The characters are so easy to relate to and you get drawn into the war stories through the great characters. A great read.

This three in one book contains "Canteen Dreams", "Sandhill Dreams" and "Captive Dreams". These three books examine three different aspects of life on the home front during the Second World War. "Canteen Dreams" deals with the soldier's heading to war and the volunteer efforts to easy their journey by providing food and coffee at train stations along their way. "Sandhill Dreams" deals with the need for war dogs, their training and the interaction between soldiers and the local people. "Captive Dreams" covers the labor shortage on farms during the war and how the government solved that by using POW's. All three novels are historical romance novels with an edge. They deal with hard life issues such a prejudice, hatred and alcohol abuse. All well worth reading for anyone High School age and older.

In the first story, it seems the main focus is on a young girl trying to just enjoy flirting a bit too much for me to enjoy. Maybe if I was a teen, this would have come across better. But as a hard worker here and volunteer in my spare time, simply running around flirting all day is a bit much to read about and enjoy. And finding the main male attracted to a girl like this throughout the whole story sounds unbelievable. I'd have dumper her in a flash. No substance to continue any relationship here, that I saw. Could have been due to my age and upbringing, though.

What may have worked better here: focus more on the "work" involved, not flirting, and especially on the latter part of the story when many other volunteers joined the scene and this main "heroine" actually works with life, not mentally or with flirting, but something solid, like sending food to soldiers, making socks...and working on the farm with the family in mourning. ..something productive and not so high-school like flirting for the whole story. As is, this story seems better geared for a teen read, not an adult book club selection.

OK, the other two stories were great reads, though. Who hasn't had dreams shattered after working for years towards s certain career? Now this is an adult topic for all ages to enjoy.

And working with prisoners is actually what I do with some of my own volunteer time. So show-and-tell society, yes, excellent! Too many people want to lock people up, and forget about them. But Jesus tells us otherwise, and this message is equally important as other messages in novels out there.