They Also Served [Paperback]

Jeanie Sutton Lambright (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 428 pages
• Publisher: Xlibris Corporation (October 11, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 141342306X
• ISBN-13: 978-1413423068
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,607,251 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars These Women Lived Through Four Major Conflicts, April 15, 2008

By 

Story Circle Book Reviews - See all my reviews

This review is from: They Also Served (Paperback)

When I read the title, I thought the book would be about women in the military. But it is so much more. Jeanie Sutton Lambright took two years of her life to capture the experiences that serve as a reminder that war touches all of us. These beautiful, meaningful stories are told by women who were born around the dawn of the women's suffrage movement, who grew up in the affluent 1920s, and who became adults during the Depression. They are the only women in history to live through four major conflicts with fathers in World War I, husbands and brothers in World War II and Korea, and sons in Vietnam.

Each story is about one woman who provides a different perspective on how they endured. They each are different - poor, rich, servicewomen, pilots, Europeans, Japanese Americans, African Americans, Hawaiians with a different outlook on December 7, 1941, women taking traditional men's jobs outside and inside the home, and many nurses. Some of these women were held in limbo because their husbands were MIA's or POW's. I marveled at their courage and wondered if my generation of baby boomers would have been as brave.

For example, Suzanne Haynes Murray writes, "World War II and its memories have been so much a part of our lives. For some widows it's almost a ritual to hold onto some talisman that was meaningful to their husbands. For me it was the GI bracelet, with his blood type engraved on the back, the initial for his religion, and the military identification number that was as familiar to him as his name."

Marie Benoit Lord writes, "It's been such a long time, I didn't think going back to those days would be so difficult. I thought I'd shed all the tears there were to cry, but when I allow myself to remember, there are always more. Eugene Lord and I had been married a little over seven years when he was killed on Christmas Day, 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge."

A further sadness is that many other stories will not be told because women took their history to the grave with them. It may be that they didn't want to talk about it, or maybe no one ever asked. However, some loved ones now are trying to tell what they remember hearing from their mothers, grandmothers, etc.

They Also Served offers a special bonus of numerous photos reprinted from personal collections and newspapers, as well as follow-ups on the life paths taken by the individuals profiled in the book.

We owe such a debt of gratitude to these women who were not trying to fight for women's rights but were showing the strength and capacity of the human spirit. Despite their diverse races, creeds and circumstances, none felt bitterness or resentment. Instead, they were (and still are) devoted to their country and feel "They Also Served."

Jeanie Sutton Lambright has had a lifelong interest in World War II by working with veterans in the federal government and visiting historical military sites in Europe and Asia. Now widowed, she was married to a decorated fighter pilot. She is a graduate of the University of Texas at Dallas and resides in Addison, Texas.

by Doris Anne Roop-Benner
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

5.0 out of 5 stars Not to be missed, May 14, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: They Also Served (Paperback)

Ms. Lambright poignantly captures the variety of hardships women endured in the WWII era. The book serves as a timely background for the WWII Memorial Grand Opening in DC. I recommend it as a gift for your grandmothers, your mother and also your children--these are stories that should be told and stories that will hopefully serve to inspire others to tell their own sagas. Terrific!

5.0 out of 5 stars A good read, History you can enjoy!, January 24, 2004

By 

John B. Quinlan (Garland, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: They Also Served (Hardcover)

This book is a wonderful read. I enjoyed it thoroughly. The stories about various women during WWII give us a look into the particular attitudes, values and beliefs from that time 60 years ago. Women have been neglected by historians, who like to weite about generals,presidents and the like. This book gives more insight into the lives of the regular, ordinary people and shows that they,too, can be heroes. All the stories are good, the twins on the cover were both nurses, the "bride in the box" was
both funny and inspiring. I highly recommend the book.