Remembering Our Fallen Heroes on Memorial Day: War Novels

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of the United States of America. Celebrated on the last Monday in May many people visit cemeteries and memorials to honor those who have died in military service. Did you know that there are ten national cemeteries in Illinois? Below is a list of  novels organized by war, pick one up for the long holiday weekend.

 American Revolution
Patriot Hearts: A Novel of the Founding Mothers by Barbara Hambly
The Hornet's Nest: A Novel of the Revolutionary War by Jimmy Carter
Rise to Rebellion by Jeff Shaara
Redcoat by Bernard Cornwell

Civil War
Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
North and South by John Jakes
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
March by E.L. Doctorow

World War I
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
To the Last Man by Jeff Shaara
The First of July by Elizabeth Speller

World War II
The Rising Tide: A Novel of World War II by Jeff Shaara
The Winds of War by Herman Wouk
Battle Cry by Leon Uris
Pearl Harbor: A Novel of December 8th by Newt Gingrich

Korean War
War Trash by Ha Jin
The Frozen Hours: A Novel of the Korean War by Jeff Shaara
The Marines of Autumn: A Novel of the Korean War by James Brady
The Hunters by James Salter

Vietnam War
Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War by Karl Marlantes
The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen
The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
Word of Honor: A Novel of Vietnam by Nelson DeMille

Persian Gulf War/Iraq War
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain
Redeployment by Phil Klay
The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers
Fives and Twenty-Fives by Michael Pirtre