Today marks the 68^th anniversary of D-Day, the Allied forces landing in France during World War II.  It was an important turning point during the Second World War.  In remembrance of the courage and sacrifice of the soldiers who fought in that war, we found a few books that show both the struggle of war from those who fought it as well as those who were back home.

The story of his historic day is compellingly chronicled in Walter Dean Myers’ historical fiction novel We Were Heroes: The Journal of Scott Pendleton Collins, a World War II Soldier.  On the night of June 5, 1944 Scott Collins is in a boat approaching Normandy, France.  Having spent weeks stationed in England, Scott and his fellow soldiers were excited to finally get to go into combat, but war wasn’t everything that they had expected.  Told in journal form, Myers’ story is both compelling and personal.  One certainly not to be missed.

Did you know that Alaska was invaded by the Japanese?  Known as Forgotten War, the invasion and occupation of the Aleutian Islands is beautifully told in the narrative non-fiction book Ghosts in the Fog: The Untold Story of Alaska’s WWII Invasion by Samantha Seiple.  If you didn’t know that the United States was ever invaded during World War II, then I suggest Seiple’s beautiful and compelling book to learn about and remember the Forgotten War.

Lauren Tarshis’ exciting I Survived series takes readers to Hawaii in the book I Survived: The Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941.  This historical fiction novel tells the story of eleven-year-old Danny Crane who was just enjoying a day on his favorite Hawaiian beach when Pearl Harbor was bombed.  Could you have survived?  Find out if Danny did in this thrilling novel.

Find biographies of the major influences of the war more your speed?  Profiles: World War II by Aaron Rosenberg is the book for you.  This informative biography tells the story of six people who arguably had the most influence over the Second World War: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Dwight Eisenhower, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Hirohito.

Those are some of our favorite books on World War II.  Did we forget any?  Leave us a comment and tell us which World War II books we should be reading.