The Countdown is On...
The Women is Coming February 6th!
Happy holiday season, friends-- Yes, it is here again — that crazy, busy season of baking, decorating, cooking, and cleaning. And reading, of course. I don't know about you, but the busier I become and the longer my "To Do" list is, the more I need to take some time for myself, and that usually means finding a quiet corner and a good book. It's a great way to recharge for the holidays. I can’t believe that after more than three years of research and writing and re-writing, my new novel, The Women, is — at long last — only a couple of months from publication. February 6th is the big day, and I literally cannot wait for you to read this story that means so very much to me. It has changed me,
this book, opened my eyes in myriad and unexpected ways. You may think I say that often or lightly, but honestly, I don’t. I’ve been writing for three decades, and in that time, I’ve written more than 25 novels. Each one is special for me, of course; each one takes me on a journey of self-discovery that alters who I am and what I think, at least a little bit. But this book has been different, bolder, more important, from the very beginning. A little off-the-record back story: I first proposed this Vietnam-era story to an editor in 1997. Back then, my (very smart, very worldly) editor was blunt in her assessment of my idea. She felt I wasn’t old enough and wasn’t experienced enough to write the novel I’d imagined. Also, the world wasn’t quite
ready to return to those turbulent times. So many of us remembered the pain of it all. You know what it’s like to hear a truth you don’t want to hear? That was the moment. I respected this editor so much that I listened to her and shelved the idea. Over the years, now and again, I’d pull the idea out and dust it off and think: “Am I ready yet? Am I good enough?” “Is the world ready?” Year after year, I decided I wasn’t ready. Why? Because I knew that it would take everything I had to re-create the Vietnam era of my youth and that it was an important subject that deserved a great story. You see, I was a kid during the war, and I remember the chaotic turbulence of the time well. My friends’ dads were serving in Vietnam. One of them was
killed in action, and another was shot down and lost. When the war ended, I saw how the Vietnam veterans were treated when they came home. All of it made a lasting impression on me and fueled my desire to tell this story. But it wasn’t until we were in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, and I saw how exhausted and overworked our nurses and doctors were, that it all came together for me and clicked in my head. Having written The Nightingale about the women of the French Resistance in WWII and The Four Winds about women during the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression, I had learned a thing or two about women’s lost historical stories. I know how much my readers valued stories about courageous, historically overlooked women. It was time — and
I felt ready at last — to delve into a story about the women — military and civilian — who served in Vietnam, to shine a light on these American heroes and their all-too-often forgotten story.
The missing. The forgotten. The brave… The women. “Women can be heroes.” When 20-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears these unexpected words, it is a revelation. Raised on idyllic Coronado Island and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing, being a good girl. But in 1965 the world is changing, and she suddenly imagines a different choice for her life. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she impulsively joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path.
As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is overwhelmed by the chaos and destruction of war, as well as the unexpected trauma of coming home to a changed and politically divided America. She belongs to a generation that was fueled by dreams and lost on the battlefield. This novel is about the brave, resilient young women — mostly nurses, but not all — who served in the Vietnam War. It is the story of their coming of age, their camaraderie, their experiences in combat hospitals, and their struggle for peace and acceptance when they came home. I really love this story and this novel, and I am in awe of the women who inspired it.
Meeting the Real-Life Women
Who Inspired Me
On Veteran’s Day, I was honored to join these women vets and their families at the Women’s Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC. Here’s a short video of the real veterans in front of their Memorial. It was awe-inspiring, heart-expanding, and heartbreaking to see them gather, most of them for the first time in years, to share their stories, and cry and laugh and hug.
The research that this book required was daunting. I was unbelievably fortunate to connect with several people who aided in my efforts and vetted the book for accuracy. First and foremost is the formidable former Army Nurse Corps Captain Diane Carlson Evans, founder of the Vietnam Women’s Memorial. Her tireless work on behalf of her sister-veterans is an inspiration. See photos of her below.
More Photos from the 30th Anniversary of the
Vietnam Women's Memorial
So far, more than 100,000 readers have marked The Women as a book that they want to read. Wow! Can you believe it? I am honored that so many readers are waiting for this story. If you want to join them, mark it as "want to read" on Goodreads, and you'll be first in line to hear about giveaways and things.
I am so appreciative of the praise below from authors whose work I respect. “The Women is historical fiction at its very best. So moving, so wrenching, and yet, in the end, uplifting. Brava! I loved The Nightingale and The Four Winds, but The Women is my favorite.”
—Nicholas D. Kristof, Pulitzer Prize–winning coauthor of Half the Sky “One of the greatest storytellers of our time, Kristin Hannah, tackles one of the most cruel and despicable wars of the last century, the Vietnam War. The Women reveals the powerful contributions and horrific sacrifices of the American military nurses who served in a war whose agencies refused to acknowledge that they were even there. Perhaps no words can bring closure to a nation still ashamed of booing our returning heroes, but the heroine, Frances McGrath, stirs a deep, overdue compassion and tears for every single soldier — and especially the forgotten women who sacrificed so much. Never has a novel of war metamorphosed so
profoundly into a story of the human heart.”
—Delia Owens, author of Where the Crawdads Sing “Stuns with sacrifice; uplifts with heroism...an important, long overdue tribute to the brave women nurses who served in Vietnam.”
—Bonnie Garmus, author of Lessons in Chemistry
All of this book stuff is exciting after three years of being at home and writing. I would LOVE to cross the country talking about this book and my heroine, Frankie McGrath, and the real-life heroes who inspired her, but unfortunately, some difficult family issues require that I stick a little closer to home. Thus, I won’t be doing an extensive book tour this year. I’m really sad about that. I hate not being able to meet my readers in lots of cities across the country, but sometimes life simply gets in the way, and family — and my loved ones’ mental and physical health — always comes first. It’s how we women are, right? Here are my upcoming in-person book events. They are ticketed, live events that include a copy of the book. I hope one is near you! Monday, February 5, 2024
8:00 pm
Segerstrom Center for the Arts
600 Town Drive
Costa Mesa, CA
Tickets here. Tuesday, February 6, 2024
7:30 pm
Seattle Arts and Lectures
Benaroya Hall – S. Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium
200 University Street
Seattle, WA
In conversation with Megan Chance
Tickets here. Thursday, February 8, 2024
7:00 pm
Thalia Book Club at Symphony Space
Peter Jay Sharp Theatre
2537 Broadway at 95th Street
New York, NY
In conversation with novelist, editor, and columnist
Elisabeth Egan (A Window Opens).
Tickets here. Saturday, February 10, 2024
11:00 am
The Council of Friends of Lancaster County Public Libraries
Calvary Church
1051 Landis Valley Road
Lancaster, PA
In Conversation with Adriana Trigiani
Tickets here. Monday, February 12, 2024
7:30 pm
SOLD OUT!
Denver Post Pen and Podium Series
The Robert and Judi Newman Center for the Performing Arts
2344 E Iliff Avenue
Denver, CO
Tickets here. Thursday, February 15, 2024
7:30 pm
Dallas Museum of Art
First United Methodist Church
1928 Ross Avenue
Dallas, TX
(Across from Dallas Museum of Art)
Tickets here.
My friends over at Bookreporter.com are running a special contest. They are giving 25 readers the chance to win an advance copy of The Women. All winners will be given the opportunity to provide feedback on the book and ask me a question, which will be part of a live "Bookreporter Talks To" interview with me! I can't wait to hear your thoughts on the book and to answer your questions, so please enter to win. The winners also will be given the option of appearing on camera to share their question with me. Sounds like fun, right? To get full details and to enter, please fill out this form by Monday, December 4th at noon ET.
There’s more to my life than just writing books, of course. So, what else am I doing, you may ask? Recently, I was fortunate enough to join Reese Witherspoon, Hello Sunshine, and the Reese’s Book Club for their conference, Shine Away. Wow!! Talk about female empowerment and girl power! Words are my thing, but even so, it is hard to fully express the absolute magic that this group created for women. They put together a fabulous, feel-good-about-yourself and reach-for-the-stars kind of day. Considering how busy we all are, it’s such a gift to be able to get together and encourage each other. Here’s a video that I was inspired to make after the day.
"What About When You're Not Writing?"
In my last newsletter, I told you all about my construction project. The covered area I’m adding to my back porch. I’m calling it a pergola, even though I don’t think technically that's what it is, but any project that causes so much stress and grief deserves a name, so I’m going with pergola. It makes me think of wisteria and summer afternoons and glasses of wine with a girlfriend. Anyway, after an ENTIRE SUMMER of heaps of dirt and trenches dug up in my back yard, we are finally nearing completion. And I think we are going to LOVE it. Here’s are a few BEFORE and IN-THE-MIDDLE of construction pics. And if you’re thinking to yourself, 10 months is a long time to build a covered area on a patio, I have to agree. But now that we can see it, we
are hopeful. It’s been getting hotter in the summers here in Seattle, so a little cover will be nice. And of course, there are the many months of rain…I love to sit out by the fire, with rain falling from the eaves and read a good book.
Recently, on television, I've loved the latest season of "The Morning Show," as well as "The Gilded Age," "Doc Martin," and the absolutely fabulous adaptation of "Lessons in Chemistry." And I'm looking forward to the final season of "The Crown," and the absolutely charming "Julia" on Max. A few books I loved this year: All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby
Good Night, Irene by Luis Alberto Urrea
Holly by Stephen King
Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See
The Secret Life of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry
Thanks so much to all of you who join me on this book-reading/book-loving journey. Your enthusiasm for my novels is something I never take for granted. In the meantime, you can keep up with me on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news! Be sure and
follow me on Facebook, Instagram, BookBub and Amazon. Sending you all peace, love, and aloha---
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