"This is a love story and a war story, woven through a beautifully wrought, heart-stopping, spirit-lifting novel of how we survive and grow through crises, and find our way. What Rusty Allen mined was a narrative gold mine, largely undiscovered, of German POWs who toiled during World War II on farms and in factories whose workers were fighting overseas. What a human brew! Young men, grateful to be alive, providing much-needed, war-time labor and getting a taste of America, in all of its complexity - many ended up staying - while Americans met the enemy, up close, teaching them, working with them, relying on them. To this, Allen brings a seamless marriage of research and imagination, mixing worlds together while keeping his eye, ever, on the aching human heart, seeking what it wants. The characters in this book-their travails, their desires, their discoveries-will stay with you. Through them, all is revealed." Ron Suskind, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Hope in the Unseen and Life, Animated
"Rusty Allen's Ella's War takes us back to a well-known time, World War II, but not a well-known place for the events of that time, the East Coast of the United States, where a conflict an ocean away pairs the strangest of bedfellows, women farmers, with German POWs assigned to help keep the farms from failing. A dramatic, beautiful time and place the likes and sentiment of which this country may never see again, in full display by Mr. Allen's excellent literary prose and revealing storytelling. An extraordinary, rewarding read." Chris Bauer, author of Jane's Baby
"Rusty Allen's unique perspective in Ella's War sets it apart from other World War Two novels. The story unfolds on the home front, not the battlefield, and a German soldier is a helpmeet, not a feared enemy. In Allen's sensitive narrative, passion wrestles with patriotism while love confronts loyalty. Like the best historical fiction, harsh facts are softened with tender moments. In a conflict without good guys and bad guys, Ella's War is ultimately a battle of the heart." Ann S. Epstein, Author, One Person's Loss
"With meticulous research and literary skill, Rusty Allen's novel takes us back to the American home front during WWII with this exciting and romantic novel. Few Americans realize the impact of that war's Atlantic battles on the eastern seaboard, nor could they imagine that a German U-Boat actually surrendered to a small-town population in Delaware. Yet Allen's Ella's War brings it all vividly to life again with deeply sympathetic characters, emotional challenges, and high-risk mortal consequences that still impact those sleepy seaside towns to this day. As the dramas of WWII are beginning to fade from memory, Allen returns us to yesteryear with this superb and compelling tale." Steven Hartov, NYT bestselling author of The Last of the Seven and The Soul of a Thief
"Gritty and sensitive-a story that is thought-provoking and will satisfy." Stacy Creamer, editor, publishing veteran
