In Alex Kershaw’s non-fiction piece, The Bedford Boys, there is a certain essence about it which makes the story come to life around you. Kershaw depicts World War II and the soldiers that fought during it. The reason why this book was written was to showcase the actuality of the war. The war was a gruesome, terrible struggle. People believed and still believe that it was the “best” war. Others disagree completely. This book shows both positives and negatives of the war. There are also many strengths of the book. Every strength adds a feel to the book that makes it a completely awesome piece. Throughout the book there is a lot of information presented and a certain connection with the characters.
Alex Kershaw wrote The Bedford Boys to explain…show more content… The information was shared in an interest way too. This keeps the audience focused. When reading non-fiction books, it is often hard to stay focused and read the story until the end, but with The Bedford Boys, this was not the case. By putting characters in there it made it so much easier to want to read. While learning about a group of men, the audience can also learn all about D-Day and many things about World War II. After reading the book, listening to the information taught in class it was fun to hear about all the things mentioned in the book. Some Bedford boys joined the National Guard to make the extra dollar to support their families during the Great Depression. One guy, Earl Newcomb, worked with the CCC, Civilian Conservation Corps, in his time before the war. Another thing that paralleled the class and book was that during World War II, women’s roles changed. Women were now expected to get a job to do their part for America during its time of need. Places like Rubatex opened in Bedford to assist in the war on the home front. They made rubber gas masks for soldiers. Another place that converted their products to war products was Hampton Looms, which made wool uniforms. There were other informational parts about how the invasion is announced in Bedford, the church bells ring, the town is silent, and it was “Bedford’s longest day.” The saddest truth in the book is finding out which boys died and