Spell the Month in Books is a monthly blogging meme hosted by Jana over on Reviews from the Stacks. The concept is fairly simple: Find book titles that start with each letter in the month’s name, make a list, share your list, and that’s it. This is my first time participating, but it seems like a fun concept, so here I am lol. There are no official themes but, as November is Remembrance Month, I’ve decided to theme my books around war. Anything about, or set in a war or major conflict is fair game.
N = Nick Cardy: The Artist at War by Nick Cardy
Nonfiction; Published: 2013.
Renowned commercial illustrator, designer and comic book artist on Tomahawk, Aquaman and Teen Titans Nick Cardy, now in his 90s, has been drawing all his life. And thank goodness for that, as these recently unearthed sketches contribute not to to our pop culture history – as do his other works – but to our history.
Before beginning his career in comics, Nick was one of the young Americans shipped overseas to fight in World War II. He proceeded to do what he did best – carry a sketchbook and document his time in the conflict from beginning to end. From his basic training in the US, Cardy was deployed with the 3rd Armored ‘Spearhead’ Division, and fought through Europe (receiving two Purple Hearts on the way), ending up in Paris after VE Day. His sketches – in pencil, pen and watercolor – are extraordinarily vivid, and capture not only the humor and camaraderie, but also the horror of war.
Nick Cardy: The Artist At War presents the entire contents of Cardy’s wartime sketchbook, alongside his own commentary. It’s a chronicle of one man’s journey, but one that speaks for millions.
O = Once an Eagle by Anton Myrer
Historical Fiction; Published: 1968.
Once An Eagle is the story of one special man, a soldier named Sam Damon, and his adversary over a lifetime, fellow officer Courtney Massengale. Damon is a professional who puts duty, honor, and the men he commands above self interest. Massengale, however, brilliantly advances by making the right connections behind the lines and in Washington’s corridors of power.
Beginning in the French countryside during the Great War, the conflict between these adversaries solidifies in the isolated garrison life marking peacetime, intensifies in the deadly Pacific jungles of World War II, and reaches its treacherous conclusion in the last major battleground of the Cold War — Vietnam.
A study in character and values, courage, nobility, honesty, and selflessness, here is an unforgettable story about a man who embodies the best in our nation — and in us all.
V = Villa Air-Bel: World War II, Escape, and a House in Marseille by Rosemary Sullivan
Nonfiction; Published: 2006.
France, 1940. The once glittering boulevards of Paris teem with spies, collaborators, and the Gestapo now that France has fallen to Hitler’s Wehrmacht. For Andre Breton, Max Ernst, Marc Chagall, Consuelo de Saint-Exupery, and scores of other cultural elite who have been denounced as enemies of the Third Reich the fear of imminent arrest, deportation, and death defines their daily life. Their only salvation is the Villa Air-Bel, a chateau outside Marseille where a group of young people will go to extraordinary lengths to keep them alive.
A powerfully told, meticulously researched true story filled with suspense, drama, and intrigue, Villa Air-Bel delves into a fascinating albeit hidden saga in our recent history. It is a remarkable account of how a diverse intelligentsia–intense, brilliant, and utterly terrified–was able to survive one of the darkest chapters of the twentieth century.
E = Entangling Alliances: Foreign War Brides and American Soldiers in the Twentieth Century by Susan Zeiger
Nonfiction; Published: 2010.
Throughout the twentieth century, American male soldiers returned home from wars with foreign-born wives in tow, often from allied but at times from enemy nations, resulting in a new, official category of immigrant: the “allied” war bride. These brides began to appear enmasse after World War I, peaked after World War II, and persisted through the Korean and Vietnam Wars. GIs also met and married former “enemy” women under conditions of post-war occupation, although at times the US government banned such unions.
In this comprehensive, complex history of war brides in 20th-century American history, Susan Zeiger uses relationships between American male soldiers and foreign women as a lens to view larger issues of sexuality, race, and gender in United States foreign relations. Entangling Alliances draws on a rich array of sources to trace how war and post-war anxieties about power and national identity have long been projected onto war brides, and how these anxieties translate into public policies, particularly immigration.
M = Mohinder’s War by Bali Rai
Historical Fiction (Middle Grade); Published: 2020.
A thrilling World War II adventure set in occupied France, featuring an Indian RAF pilot. Great for fans of Michael Morpurgo and John Boyne, and those who want diverse historical fiction.
Thirteen-year-old Joelle Breton stumbles across Indian-born RAF pilot Mohinder Singh when his plane crashes in occupied France and it’s up to her and her parents to hide him from the Nazis. After all, her parents are brave members of the French Resistance and will do everything they can to help get Mohinder back to Britain. But when they are betrayed and tragedy strikes, Joelle and Mohinder will have to act fast if they are ever to evade the enemy.
B = The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Historical Fiction (YA); Published: 2005.
It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.
By her brother’s graveside, Liesel’s life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger’s Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordion-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library, wherever there are books to be found.
But these are dangerous times. When Liesel’s foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel’s world is both opened up, and closed down.
In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.
E = Empire of Sand by Robert Ryan
Historical Fiction; Published: 2008.
1915: While the war in Europe escalates, a young intelligence officer named Thomas Edward Lawrence is in Cairo, awaiting his chance for action. His superiors, however, have consigned him to the Map Room at GCHQ. But there’s more to Lieutenant Lawrence than meets the eye. A man of immense energy, he runs a network of agents across the Levant. Lawrence is convinced that an Arab revolt is the only way to remove the Ottoman presence, and leave a free, self-governed Arabia. Soon alarming reports reach him of trouble in Persia, orchestrated by infamous German agent Wilhelm Wassmuss. Intent on taking down Wassmuss, Lawrence assembles a small group and travels to Persia. Little does he know that his actions will bring about a resolution that might just save the lives of millions of men in the trenches of Europe.
R = The Ration Book Baby by Ellie Curzon
Historical Fiction; Published: 2023.
Nurse Annie Russell anxiously listens to the terrifying sounds of planes and gunfire overhead, worried about what the morning will bring for the patients in her care. The boys from the local airfield fly up in the skies each night, risking their lives to protect the people of Bramble Heath village, but they can’t stop every bombshell. Until a knock at the door makes her jump.
Awaiting Annie on the doorstep is a hatbox. Peeking under the lid, she gasps – inside is a whimpering newborn, round cheeks glistening with tears. The poor little thing may be all alone, but someone must truly love the baby… Tucked into a hand-knitted blanket, there’s a precious ration book, vital for food supplies in these darkest of days.
Her heart breaking, Annie does everything she can to care for her tiny charge. But, without a ration book, she knows that the frightened young mother could also be in dire need of help too. Then social services bring devastating news. If Annie can’t find the helpless child’s family soon, the authorities will have to take the little one away.
As the Nazi threat grows, more and more of the brave pilots at the local airbase don’t come home. Is one of the fallen the child’s father? And with her only clue leading nowhere, can Annie find the answers she needs, and reunite the innocent baby with its parents before it is too late?
© Adele Walker November 2026
