“All We Thought We Knew” by Michelle Shocklee … and a GIVEAWAY!

Welcome to Friday Reads!

 

 

You can enter to win a print copy of All We Thought We Knew by Michelle Shocklee, courtesy of the publisher. (US ONLY!) You can enter by using the Rafflecopter link at the bottom of this post. (Contest ends October 25, 2024) Share on X If you’re the chosen winner, I’ll contact you for your information to pass along to the publisher.

 

About the book…

 

She was so sure she knew her family’s story . . . Now she wonders if she was wrong about all of it.

1969. When Mattie Taylor’s twin brother was killed in Vietnam, she lost her best friend and the only person who really understood her. Now, news that her mother is dying sends Mattie back home, despite blaming her father for Mark’s death. Mama’s last wish is that Mattie would read some old letters stored in a trunk, from people Mattie doesn’t even know. Mama insists they hold the answers Mattie is looking for.

1942. Ava Delaney is picking up the pieces of her life following her husband’s death at Pearl Harbor. Living with her mother-in-law on a secluded farm in Tennessee is far different than the life Ava imagined when she married only a few short months ago. Desperate to get out of the house, Ava seeks work at a nearby military base, where she soon discovers the American government is housing Germans who they have classified as enemy aliens. As Ava works to process legal documents for the military, she crosses paths with Gunther Schneider, a German who is helping care for wounded soldiers. Ava questions why a man as gentle and kind as Gunther should be forced to live in the internment camp, and as they become friends, her sense of the injustice grows . . . as do her feelings for him. Faced with the possibility of losing Gunther, Ava must choose whether loving someone deemed the enemy is a risk worth taking, even if it means being ostracized by all those around her.

In the midst of pain and loss two women must come face-to-face with their own assumptions about what they thought they knew about themselves and others. What they discover will lead to a far greater appreciation of their own legacies and the love of those dearest to them.

 

Amazon purchase link

 

Q&A with Michelle…

Q:  How did you come up with the idea for All We Thought We Knew?
A:  After my husband and I moved to Tennessee in 2017, I soaked up the history of our new home state like a sponge. One of the interesting things I discovered was that German Enemy Aliens and German POWs were held at Camp Forrest, a large military installation in Tullahoma,  Tennessee, during World War II. As a self-proclaimed history nerd, I found this fascinating. I’d read about Japanese Enemy Aliens, but I didn’t know Germans and Italians were also detained, some for the entire war. I began to research the topic, and soon Gunther’s and Ava’s stories began to emerge.

Q:  What inspired you to write books in this genre?
A:  I was a reader of Christian historical fiction long before I became a published author. I thoroughly enjoy researching historical events and learning about the people who lived through them. There is so much we can take away from examining events of the past. One of my favorite  things to do is visit historical sites and museums, then incorporate what I learn from them into my books.

Q:  What was your research process like for this book?
A:  The research for this story was fascinating. I found several books about Enemy Aliens that helped me understand what they experienced, from the moment Pearl Harbor was attacked, to their arrests, and finally to life in an internment camp. I also made several trips to Tullahoma to see the town and the area where Camp Forrest once stood. Like many military installations of that era, Camp Forrest was decommissioned after the war and was torn down. While there aren’t any buildings to  visit, there are roads and railroad tracks that lead to nowhere, which fueled my imagination.

I also delved into the history of the Vietnam War for this book. I was a child in the 1960s and 70s, but I remember the unrest and division the war brought to Americans. Many families were divided when it came to the war, and whether or not America should have been involved. I  wanted to bring those emotions out through Mattie’s and Nash’s stories, and hopefully show the feelings of both sides. I felt it was important to include what it was like to be a soldier returning from war and the hardships they endured.

Q:  Describe the audience you envisioned while writing this book. Who do you think will enjoy this book?
A:  I hope readers of all ages, women and men alike, will connect to this story. Both Ava and Mattie are young women with hopes and dreams when tragedy strikes and everything changes. Gunther, too, is a young man, full of the promise of a new life after leaving Germany to come to America. He could have never imagined he would find himself arrested and imprisoned for simply being German. Although the book is set in Tennessee, the story takes place during two wars that changed America
and its citizens. Family issues as well as political issues drive both the 1940s story as well as the 1969 story, and those are topics that affect all of us, even today. There is enough romance in the book to satisfy readers who enjoy that kind of thread, but there’s also lots of fascinating history, wartime events, and life on a working horse farm.

Q:  What messages or symbols are included in All We Thought We Knew? Why are they important to the story?
A:  I chose Psalm 34:17-18 as the verse that represents the message I hope readers take away as they read about Mattie, Ava, and Gunther. It says, “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

Each of the characters in the book faces something that could easily destroy them. Something that could crush their spirit to the point of not wanting to keep going. I think we all face things like that in our lives, at one time or another. But God is faithful. He hears us, he sees us, and he delivers us. It’s a journey sometimes, and that’s the journey the  characters are on in All We Thought We Knew.

Q:  What do you hope readers will take away from the story?
A:  I hope readers take away an awareness that sometimes things are not always as they seem. Sometimes we assume things about people that simply aren’t true. It’s when we genuinely get to know others, with  honesty and acceptance, that we see them for who they are. I also hope readers come away with the firm understanding that no matter how bad the circumstances, no matter how brokenhearted we are, God sees us and he cares. Yes, the book is fiction, but the situations the characters face are real. Death, war, and family brokenness are all things people experience every single day. As the writer of Ecclesiastes says, there is nothing new under the sun. It’s how we get through them—and Who we trust to help us—that makes the difference.

Q:  Which character in this book was the most challenging for you to create? Which one developed more naturally for you?
A:  Mattie’s character was the most challenging to write because she is not like me at all. I tend to be quiet and don’t like confrontation. Mattie, on the other hand, wants everyone to know how she feels, wrong or right. As I wrote her story, I worried readers might not like her for that reason, but I also knew it was who she was. We all know people like Mattie, and just like the rest of us, they want to be loved for who they are. Mattie has some hard lessons to learn, and I hope readers will appreciate the growth that happens as she struggles through them.

Gunther’s character was the most interesting to write because of the fascinating history regarding Enemy Aliens. They endured a terrible injustice, and I couldn’t help but admire the men and women whose lives I read about in history books who lived through it. A soldier going to war has an expectation that they may be captured and held prisoner, but the people classified as Enemy Aliens were in America legally. Some were born here, yet because of their family ties to Japan, Germany, and Italy, they were forced to live behind barbed wire fences in heavily guarded camps all across the country. My hope is that by telling Gunther’s story, readers have a better appreciation of everything those people had to endure.

Q:  The books that you’ve authored have included such topics as slavery, human trafficking, and the death of a loved one. Why is it important for you to have such important real-life themes in your books?
A:  Although the characters in my books are fictional, the things they experience are real. Slavery, human trafficking, death, and war still happen today, making them as relevant to us as they were to people who lived hundreds or thousands of years ago. Everyone has a story to tell. Stories of triumph and failure, victory and loss. Learning from each other and from history is an important way to help us navigate the world when bad things happen.

As an author of historical fiction, I create stories that aren’t always pretty or perfect, because life isn’t always pretty or perfect. But even though I write about hard subjects, I always want to create a story that has hope. A story that has truth woven throughout the pages—the kind of truth that has stood the test of time and can be relied upon. For me, that truth is found in God’s Word. His age-old promises have seen people through the most difficult circumstances we can face walking this earth, myself included. That’s what I want the characters in my books to learn and experience.

Q: Do you have any forthcoming writing projects or author events that you would like to share with us?
A:  I look forward to several book signing events once All We Thought We Knew releases in October. Readers should stay tuned to my social media pages for specific dates and locations, as well as giveaway opportunities. Soon after the book releases, I’ll host a Facebook Launch Party with lots of fun information about the book and chances to win prizes.

As for writing projects, I’m currently working on a new historical split-time novel that will release sometime next year. It’s set in Tennessee, but I can’t give out the details just yet. However, the history is very cool, and the story has some twists readers are going to love! I’ll share more about it in the coming months.

 

Thanks, Michelle. I’m sure my readers enjoyed learning more about you and your book.

 

About Michelle…

 

 

Michelle Shocklee is the author of several historical novels, including Appalachian Song, Count the Nights by Stars, a Christianity Today fiction book award winner, and Under the Tulip Tree, a Christy and Selah Awards finalist. Her work has been featured in numerous Chicken Soup for the Soul books, magazines, and blogs. Married to her college sweetheart and the mother of two grown sons, she makes her home in Tennessee, not far from the historical sites she writes about.

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