Interviews

Ms. Russell that you so much for taking the time to speak with us and answer some questions about your amazing novel, LOVE AT WAR.

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Q: LOVE AT WAR has such a unique premise. How did you come up with the idea?

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I wrote LOVE AT WAR after my mother died. All of my uncles served in WWII, and I found letters her brothers wrote home. Her brother Russell was the most constant correspondent, and one letter to my grandparents made me cry: "We have everything packed and are ready to leave tomorrow. About noon time we will pull out like real soldiers tomorrow. Please don't worry about me, Ma. . . Just pray for me, which I know you will. . ."

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I found the letter packed away in a box that held newspaper clippings of an explosion in Bremen after the war had officially ended. That explosion killed Russell. He never returned to his wife and infant daughter. He never saw his parents or his siblings again. Then, his daughter Sandy let me read letters Russell and her mother wrote to each other during his deployment. Their letters were passionate, filled with longing and desire. As I read the letters and looked through old pictures, I realized how much WWII defined my mother, our family, and ultimately, the current world order. The story isn't about specific events that happened to my family, but all of my uncles served. What I had to do was incorporate my own family lore into a novel packed with historical fact.

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[Unfortunately, the rest of the interview is no longer available.]