Old gold: war, time machines, and good books
In my younger years, I read Herman Wouk’s “The Caine Mutiny” and “Marjorie Morningstar,” but somehow neglected two other bestsellers, his World War II saga “The Winds of War” and its sequel, “War and Remembrance.”
Inspired after reading David McCullough’s tribute to Wouk in “History Matters,” I recently picked up a paperback copy of “The Winds of War” from the public library and am three-quarters of the way through its 836 pages of small print.
Most of the action in “Winds” happens between the September 1939 German invasion of Poland and the December 1941 attack by Japan on Pearl Harbor. Centered on Navy Commander Victor “Pug” Henry, his wife Rhoda, and their three grown children, “Winds” features a large cast of characters, including Hitler, Churchill, FDR and even writer Somerset Maugham.
The occupations and relationships of the fictional characters, a spectrum running from university types to reporters and broadcasters to men and women in military service, allows Wouk an incredible freedom in presenting digressive viewpoints of the war in Europe. While longing for command of a ship, for example, Victor Henry instead works behind the scenes, first as a Naval attaché in Nazi Germany, then traveling on missions to Britain, Italy and the United States. Rhoda gives us an American wife’s take on life in Germany, but also in Washington, D.C., where she begins an affair with Kirby Palmer, an engineer. The storylines of their children take us all over the map: Poland during the invasion, Italy under Mussolini, pilot training in Florida’s panhandle, submarine exercises and behind-the-scenes action of a popular NYC radio show.
What struck me as most remarkable about “Winds,” however, was the sheer amount of history Wouk crams into his story. Though familiar with the history of World War II, “Winds” has both broadened and deepened my knowledge, like taking a leap from college sophomore to graduate student. Here were insights I’d never considered about FDR’s political machinations, the reasons why Hitler invaded Russia while still fighting Britain, the big-picture strategies of other nations, leadership lessons and more. It’s a fine thing to enjoy a story while sitting in such a classroom.
Want something a little lighter? Try Jack Finney’s “About Time: Twelve Stories.” Author of the 1970 sci-fi classic about travels into the past, “Time and Again,” in this collection Finney treats readers to more stories of such expeditions.
Related Items
Being at home in your ‘place’
A night at the opera: WCU composer debuts performance based on the work of Ron Rash
Parallel lives: a memoir that created memories
Jackson library exit critics cite Yancey chaos, dubious ‘list’
Finney’s affection for the past, especially for the decades from 1880 to 1930, is evident in this collection. My favorite story is “Where the Cluetts Are.” Sam and Ellie Clutt are a young couple looking to build a house in small-town Connecticut. Harry, the affable architect who tells the Cluett’s story — Finney’s narrators are often goodhearted people you’d invite over for a backyard cookout — is having no luck with his suggestions for the couple when Ellie accidentally comes across a set of Victorian house plans that belonged to Harry’s grandfather.
Despite the much higher cost, the Cluetts pick those plans and build the house. As the house goes up, and especially once Sam and Ellie make it their home, a spell from the distant past is cast over the property and over the Cluetts themselves. When Harry visits them, he finds Ellie dressed as if in the previous century. Later, the couple begin receiving little messages from the past, thoughts about people and places in town now long gone. They order sets of Dickens and Walter Scott for their library, and “have been seen playing croquet on the lawn, Ellie in a long white dress.” Rumors make the rounds about strange occurrences, like a snow that falls only on the Cluett house and nowhere else in town.
Harry says he doesn’t quite believe these stories, yet he concludes the tale with this thought: “Just the same, Ellie and Sam are living far back in the past: that’s where they are. For their new house is haunted by its old self. And its ghost has captured the Cluetts—rather easily; I think they were glad to surrender.”
Jack Finney struck paydirt as a writer with “The Body Snatchers,” which was made into the movie “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” It’s a good read, but for his best, try “Time and Again” or “About Time.”
Written 50, 60, and 70 years ago are lots of good books like “Winds of War” and Jack Finney’s time-travel tales. They go unread today because they’re forgotten, out of sight, out of mind and unfortunately, sometimes out of print. Some few which haven’t yet been toe-tagged for the book boneyard can be found in your public library, but your best bet is to browse the shelves of your local secondhand bookshop. Another option is to mine the online best-seller lists of a particular year and see if you strike gold there.
A gentle ghost of a house captured the grateful Cluetts. An old book can do the same for us.
(Jeff Minick reviews books and has written four of his own: two novels, “Amanda Bell” and “Dust On Their Wings,” and two works of nonfiction, “Learning As I Go” and “Movies Make the Man.” This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..)
