Invisible Wounds That Kill

This touching article published in the Philadelphia Inquirer (click on title of post for link) on Memorial Day 2009 articulates how the hidden traumas of World War II haunted a survivor of Okinawa so that even though he physically returned from the war, he never really came home. Marvin Ravinsky, who died alone and destitute, finally received honor and recognition. The author of this article, Chris Gibbons, respectfully gives tribute to the warrior who was forgotten and isolated during his life.

Soldier from the War Returning - The Greatest Generation's Troubled Homecoming

Thomas Childers, Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania, has written a book, with the above title, from the heart. He details the truth about the return of World War II veterans. Using both his personal story, which includes his father's return from England and the death of his maternal uncle in the last bomber shot down over Germany before VE day (written about in Wings of Morning), he articulates the truth that many of we children of World War II veterans have discovered - that even if our fathers came home physically whole, there were invisible wounds from the war that we intuited, but were not able to put voice to for many years. He also thoroughly details the high unemployment and the high divorce rate after the war. A great read if you want to discover the not so rosy homecoming of the Greatest Generation.

The NPR show Here and Now broadcast an interview with the author on Memorial Day, May 25, 2009. (click on title for a link to the show's site.