A Literary and Personal View of the Impact of War on the Warriors and their Families

This talk focuses on the immediate and lingering effects of war on those who fight them and on the loved ones left behind, based on extensive interviews and research with WWII veterans, and captures the emotional hold that impacts the combat veterans throughout their lives. Numerous anecdotes and a PowerPoint presentation from the 60th anniversary trip to Iwo Jima are included. Speaker Ray Elliott draws upon research conducted for his two recent works of historic fiction -- one from a child's point of view whose father is killed on Guadalcanal (Wild Hands Toward the Sky) and one from an Iwo Jima survivor's looking back on his life (Iwo Blasted Again) as he lies dying.

This event is Free and Open to the public. For more information, please contact Gil Belles, c/o Western Illinois Museum, 309.837.2750.

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