Step back in time with this three-book collection of award-winning stories set in Nebraska during WWII.
Canteen Dreams
A heartwarming WWII love story, Canteen Dreams won the 2008 American Christian Fiction Writers' Carol Award for short historical fiction.
In the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, Nebraska schoolteacher Audrey Stone wants to support the war effort in any way she can. When her community starts a canteen at the train station, Audrey spends nearly every spare moment there, offering food and kindness to the soldiers passing through. She never expected to fall for a local boy…or face the challenges of budding love in the face of war. Rancher Willard Johnson admires Audrey's passionate nature, but when his brother is killed in action, he feels he must avenge by enlisting himself. His father insists he stay, but Willard knows he must go. Reality intrudes, and he never expected the jealousy he experiences when he sees those in uniform. Can Willard's budding relationship with Audrey weather the storms of war? Or will one of the other soldiers at the canteen steal her heart?
Sandhill Dreams
A heartwarming WWII love story, Sandhill Dreams was a finalist in the 2009 American Christian Fiction Writers' Carol Awards for short historical fiction.
Lainie Gardner once dreamed of becoming a nurse. Of serving her country. Of doing something important in the war. But rheumatic fever changed all that, and instead of running home to her parents' coddling, Lainie is determined to find a war job at Fort Robinson in Nebraska's sandhills, where she meets a soldier with his own broken dreams. Tom Hamilton has feared dogs since he was bitten as a child, but his assignment at Fort Robinson is training war dogs and their handlers. Surely the Army has another use for him, but he's trapped in a job he can't stand in an out-of-the-way outpost. Every day is a reminder of his cowardice. Who would want to build a future with a man like him? Getting to know Lainie is a welcome distraction from the work that causes so much turmoil.
Is it possible new dreams will bring Lainie and Tom more joy than they ever imagined? Or will their fears hold them apart?
Captive Dreams
A mischievous light filled her gaze. "What do you think you're doing, Specialist Chance? Stealing a kiss?"
He studied her sweet lips and liked the idea.
A heartwarming WWII historical from award-winning author Cara Putman:
Anna Goodman's mother is dead, her father has given up on life, and her brother is missing in action in World War II. Anna's dreams for the future are held captive by the responsibilities the war and life have thrust upon her. She's desperate to hold the farm together while working at a war factory in nearby Kearney. She can't do it alone. She must interact daily with Specialist Sid Chance, the cocky know-it-all who oversees the German prisoners who work on her family farm—prisoners that are a constant reminder of her father's harrowing experience in World War I. As Sid gets to know the determined Anna, he must balance her mistrust against his desire to help farmers. With so many able-bodied men deployed around the world, the prisoners' labor is essential to save local farms from ruin. He must also battle against prejudice from men like Anna's father, who can't stand their presence or the memories they force him to relive. Sid wants to protect Anna, if she'd only let him. Anna's as skittish as a colt, but he's determined to win her heart. When the farm's future is at risk, Anna must decide whether she can trust Sid with her heart…and her future.