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Praise for Under the Apple Tree…

“I loved the story of the young boy who ‘keeps watch’ over the girlfriend his big brother leaves behind when he goes off to fight in WWII. Wakefield powerfully evokes the era when American values seemed as clear cut as the blue and gold stars that hung in the windows of houses across the nation. The novel is wonderful, sad and funny.”—Gay Talese

“A slice of America…Dan Wakefield has done it again. This is a quietly explosive book. It’s part of America, like apple pie and Pabst.” —The Alabama Journal

“He pulls it off! The question that remains is, just how did he manage to work such magic?”—Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, The New York Times

Books: Hometown Indiana

It is December 8, 1941. Everyone in Artie Garber‘s class in Birney, Illinois is in the school auditorium. They are hushed and serious, listening to President Roosevelt declare that the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor has brought on war. Down the street, Artie’s big brother Roy, recovering from a hangover, is preparing to join the Army. Shirley, a girl Roy cares for, is taking a new interest in the would-be soldier. And Artie, “going on 11” prepares to do his best for the War Effort. While Roy goes to Guadalcanal, he’ll be collecting newspapers in his wagon, spying on the local Chinese laundryman in case he is really a Jap, and watching for Messerschmitts on his roof.

This World War II novel reveals the strains, fears, personal tragedies, and courage of a small town on the home front. The story is told a new edition celebrating the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II— and also the enduring popularity of a book which has become an American classic.

Commemorative Edition