Even when things are bad you'll find humor ... it's a coping mechanism, a way to survive, a way to cope. Charles Osgood proves that with Kilroy Was Here: the Best American Humor From World War II. He admits that some of the humor came from "being there", but the entries were interesting even if I didn't laugh. (Many times I did, however.) ;-) He explains where the once familiar face of Kilroy came from, too.

Now a tourist stop, as well as a PBS series, Bletchley Park, once known only as Station X was where code-breakers cracked the Nazi Enigma code. Bletchley Park: the Code-Breakers of Station X, by Michael Smith is a nicely written, brief history of the park and those who worked there. (The 'X' was not so much secrecy as it was the 10th of a number of MI6 locations). Wonderful pictures!

Here is a wonderful look back at the wheels that carried us across the country. Western Wagon Wheels: a Pictorial Memorial of the Wheels That Won the West, by Lambert Florin is full of pictures of all sorts of wagons, trolleys, delivery vehicles, etc. I loved how a picture would be 'shared with love by the family of' or 'the children were eager to roll this wagon out of the barn for me', it added a nice touch. Be sure to check out Gladstone, the horse who would pull the (horse drawn) car to the top of the hill, but then would catch a ride back down!

Wow. Just ... wow. What a read! In 2003 an article about how quickly the veterans of WWII were dying sparked an interest in WWI veterans ... were there any still alive? There were, and Richard Rubin tracked them down and interviewed them for The Last of the Doughboys: the Forgotten Generation and Their Forgotten World War. The youngest was 103 (he'd lied about his age to enlist)! In between the interviews there are chapters on the battles they were in, how an error in wording allowed 11,000 women to enlist in the Navy (who mostly served in WA. DC, in ugly uniforms, at low pay), and the deplorable treatment of the blacks (who could be drafted, and then given the worst jobs). Some were with the cavalry, one was the last living soldier who was stationed in Siberia, one was trained and shipped out, only to arrive overseas on November 11th, so was sent home again. There was even one couple featured ... they had been married for 83 years! Wow. Just ...wow!

Reading Hermit With Dog