Dancing in Combat Boots: and other stories of American Women in World War II

When the going got tough during World War II, America’s women got going. By the millions, housewives and mothers took off their aprons and stepped into factories, offices, hospitals—anywhere capable hands were needed to replace those of the husbands and sons now battling overseas.

The eleven fictional stories in this remarkable collection are based on real women whose experiences were at once typical and extraordinary. Irene bucks rivets in an aircraft factory while Doris learns to pilot military planes. Marjorie survives the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor while Jean spends three years under guard in a Japanese internment camp. Lucy joins the segregated Women’s Army Corp and Kathryn joins the Red Cross—shipping off to the front lines where she dances in combat boots with American GIs.

From the topsy-turvy days following Pearl Harbor, through four long years of hardship, to the post-war campaigns to put women back in their place, these stories reveal the many facets of women’s lives as they gave their all for the war effort.

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This award-winning collection celebrates real women whose wartime experiences were at once typical and extraordinary. Read about WACS, Women Pilots, Doughnut Dollies and more.

2007 Colorado Book Award Finalist

2007 EVVY Award Winner for Fiction

Select Testimonials:

"Women--free, independent, and self-motivated women--were essential to our victory in WWII. Dancing in Combat Boots beautifully recreates the time when American women's roles were evolving and their personal horizons expanding. Poignant and inspiring, these stories celebrate the contributions of America's other war heroes, the women of World War II." - Doris Weatherford, author of American Women and World War II

"These are the stories of WWll that did not make the history books that we studied in school. I found the author did a great job of covering many aspects of the lives of the women in the US and how they not only survived the war, but supported it." - V. Pearce

"This is a must read for anyone interested in learning about true courage, strength and heroism off the battlefield. Each individual story is a compelling vignette of how these women's lives were shaped by the war, and how they confronted the challenges presented to them. Reading their stories was inspiring." - C. Dowd

"This short story collection is remarkable for its overall attention to craft and excellence. It's clear that the author invested sweat and passion in the topic (the role of women in World War II). The stories are based on actual case histories, so the tales ring true. What surprises is the quality of the prose. The author is authentic, original and altogether fresh. I highly recommend this book."  - Brian Kaufman, author of The Breach

Author's Note
Dancing in Combat Boots was a labor of love! Eight years in the making, it grew out of the research I did for my first novel, Remember Wake. While I was researching that story, I found gaps in the information available about everyday life for American women during WWII. Oh, there were plenty of details about the technicalities of their lives, like dealing with rationing or raising Victory Gardens, but I couldn't get a good sense of how they felt about the roles they played, nor could I guess whether or not they knew how pivotal their experiences would become. So I set out to track down women whose experiences were at once typical and extraordinary. I then took the best parts of their stories and wove them into the lives of my fictional characters. Each story in Dancing in Combat Boots is based on an actual woman, and to the best of my ability, I've stuck to the memories they shared. More than anything else, I hope this book honors and celebrates our mothers and grandmothers, the women of World War II.

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