World War II. Hitler is threatening to take over the world. Eddie Carl thinks America should stop him—it’s just plain right. But Eddie’s just a kid, and the farm in Ellisville, Illinois, is a long way from the fighting.
Ellisville: where the big news stories are gophers in the graveyard and the new bank alarm. But then America joins the war and Eddie’s brother Thomas goes off to fly a bomber. Suddenly the war doesn’t seem so far away. And Eddie faces more grown-up problems at home: A fire at the Strothers’ place, and his gypsy friend accused of arson. Grampa Rob, all stubborn and mean. Grama Lucy with her secrets. And that redhead Sarah, who definitely likes him—unless maybe she hates him. Somehow Eddie’s in the middle of it all, trying to figure out what’s right. Let Thomas fight World War II. Eddie’s war is right here in Ellisville.
Eddie’s War is a lyrical collection of prose vignettes linking Eddie, his family, and a small-town cast of Ellisvillians. Poignant and funny, this World War II story tells how a distant war affects the life of one boy in the Heartland.