The Things Our Fathers Saw, Volume II
War in the Air
Pilots, bombardiers, and airmen from the cockpit and the bomb bay.
About this book
Please see FAQs page for *SIGNED BY AUTHOR* details.
Featuring eight American veterans of the heavy bombers in the air war over Europe during World War II, explaining what it was like to grow up during the Great Depression as the clouds of war gathered, going off to the service, and into the skies over Europe, sharing stories of both funny and heartbreaking, and all riveting and intense. Includes photos and never before seen portraits.
316 PAGES.
Volume 2 in the series deal with the Air War in the European Theater of the war. I had a lot of friends in the heavy bombers; they tell you all about what it was like to grow up during the Great Depression as the clouds of war gathered, going off to the service, and into the skies over Europe, sharing stories of both funny and heartbreaking, and all riveting and intense. It actually begins with my quest to learn more about a 20-year-old relative's death in the skies over Germany. I was told the entire crew perished on July 29, 1944. I could not be more wrong...
From the Book:
— “I spent a lot of time in hospitals. I had a lot of trouble reconciling how my mother died [of a cerebral hemorrhage] from the telegram she opened, announcing I was [shot down and] ‘missing in action.’ I didn’t explain to her the fact that ‘missing in action’ is not necessarily ‘killed in action.’ You know? I didn’t even think about that. How do you think you feel when you find out you killed your mother?” —B-24 bombardier, PoW
— “I was in the hospital with a flak wound. The next mission, the entire crew was killed. The thing that haunts me is that I can’t put a face to the guy who was a replacement. He was an eighteen-year-old Jewish kid named Henry Vogelstein from Brooklyn. It was his first and last mission. He made his only mission with a crew of strangers.” —B-24 navigator
— “The German fighters picked us. I told the guys, ‘Keep your eyes open, we are about to be hit!’ I saw about six or eight feet go off my left wing. I rang the ‘bail-out’ signal, and I reached out and grabbed the co-pilot out of his seat. I felt the airplane climbing, and I thought to myself, ‘If this thing stalls out, and starts falling down backwards, no one is going to get out...’” —B-17 pilot
— "I’ll be 93 on February 11. I don’t get around good like I used to; fell three years ago and broke my pelvis and hip. But it was just me and the co-pilot who survived that day.’
"I was burned in the eyelid by flak a couple days before. I was in the hospital and didn’t go on the last mission."
Because of a snafu, his mother got a telegram stating that he was missing in action.—"The Army didn’t know I was in the hospital. It took three months to clear up; she thought I was missing for two weeks before I was able to get word to the family that I was not on the plane."
The plane went down on July 29, 1944. This weekend, the 73rd anniversary is upon us as we speak on the phone. "The name of the plane was Pugnacious Ball. Flak got it. Blew it up. But I think they recovered a body bag to send home to his mother."
"I watched for the planes coming back; you always do when they are out on a mission. You count them. We waited and waited. They didn’t come back."
"It was the worst day of my life. Still is." —Sgt. John Swarts, tailgunner on the Pugnacious Ball
Shipping and returns
We usually ship within a few days by USPS Ground Advantage, which carries insurance. No same or next day delivery, and no international shipping.
Returns have a two week window to begin. We send a label and deduct its cost from your refund, less the 3 percent bank fee and up to 10 percent restocking once the books are recovered and inspected. Gift orders never include the price on the packing slip.
One of eleven books. Each one stands on its own.
Every volume covers a different part of the war. Most people start with the one closest to where their own family served.
Matthew signs every bookplate himself.
- Signed personally, by hand
- Adhered inside the front cover
- Never autopen
Matthew Rozell spent thirty years making sure their words were written down.
Matthew taught history in his hometown of Hudson Falls, New York. He and his students began sitting down with World War II veterans and recording what they said, and he kept going long after the classroom. The Things Our Fathers Saw is that record, in the veterans' own words.
See the coverage of Matthew's work.
News outlets have followed the veterans, survivors and stories behind these books for years. Watch and read a few of them here.
A Train Near Magdeburg trailer
Holocaust survivors reunite with WWII liberators
Persons of the Week, September 2009Hudson Falls teacher uncovers video of Holocaust rescue
September 2023What readers say about the series.
Over 2,500 five star reviews across the series
My husband is a WW2 buff and has seen about every documentary ever made on the subject. What got him interested was his father and uncles' WW2 war stories. He was pulled into this book right away.
I bought the series because I hoped to find answers to questions I had about my dad. Some of them have been answered along with things I didn't understand about my six uncles.
My Dad served in the 3rd Armored Division, Normandy to Germany. He did not talk about it, it is nice to sit down and read about it. Thank you very much. My Dad, Eugene Harper.
Could not put this book down. Tears fell as I read pages and I smiled through others. I wish I could articulate the emotions that accompanied me through the stories of these beautiful people.
I feel like I am sitting in the room with the veteran as he speaks. Very nice series. 3 down, several to go.
By and large, they're all interesting and capture the experiences of young men thrown into the horrors of a vicious war, but this one is different. It should be required reading for every high school and college age student.
Questions people actually ask.
Do I have to read the series in order?
No. Each volume stands on its own and covers a different theater of the war. Most people start with the one closest to where their own family served.
What exactly does signed mean here?
Matthew signs a decorative bookplate for each volume personally, by hand, and it is adhered inside the front cover. Never autopen. Only available through this store.
Is this a good gift?
It is the most common reason people buy these books. We never print the price on the packing slip.
Are these appropriate for a teenager?
There is no sexualised content, but there is discussion of the violence of war and some swearing in the more emotional passages. Matthew did not censor the veterans. He suggests fourteen and up, high school age, maybe thirteen depending on maturity.
How long does shipping take?
We usually ship within a few days by USPS Ground Advantage, which carries insurance. No same or next day delivery, and no international shipping. Full details on the FAQ page.
Dying for freedom isn't the worst that could happen. Being forgotten is.
Susie Stephens-Harvey, remembering her brother, Stephen J. Geist, missing in action in Vietnam in 1967.
Explore all the booksEvery purchase helps ensure these stories are remembered, and supports veteran outreach and Holocaust education non-profits on a monthly basis.
Books ship from New York or Florida, usually within a few days, USPS Ground Advantage, insured.