In Their Own Words

When Wars Were Won is less a novel about World War II and more a tribute to the men and women who endured that war. It is about friendship, love, heartbreak and the triumph of the spirit. Set amidst the last two years of the Pacific war, this story follows a young, navy Seabee (U.S. Naval Construction Battalions) from California to the harsh, tropical jungles of New Guinea and the Philippines. The war provides 20-year-old Hal Arnold with his first venture into real life, where his youth and naïveté are dashed and where reality and maturity emerge. Surrounded by colorful, oddball navy buddies, Hal learns more about himself and his fellow man than he ever thought possible. Hal's innocence quickly fades as he becomes friends with Seabee Barry Fortune, a slick, manipulative wartime profiteer whose cold-blooded eye is always looking for the next deal. "Billiard Ball," another Seabee, is a former college professor whose intellect is mildly out of place in the mess hall, but who provides Hal with a unique perspective on life. Best of all is kindly, solid Chief Winter who breaks through Hal's wartime despair with this sound advice: "Don't be sore at the world. Choose what good you can find, no matter how small, and focus on it." Hal struggles with his feelings for his friends, his own emotions regarding war and its inhumanity, as well as his developing love for a young Filipino girl. The joy, pain, and sacrifice of wartime survival all contribute to Hal's emergence as a man and guide him through adult life until his return to the Philippines 40 years after the war for a tragic reunion.