A SLOW MOVING TARGET, The LSTs Of World War II, is a historical novel that contains many authentic stories about the turmoil and hardships that the Amphibious Fleet endured during beach invasions in World War II. To enhance the military adversities, the story revolves around the personal lives of five young fictitious sailors who, in 1942, enlisted in the U.S. Navy to defend their country against the Axis. They come from different parts of America and meet in the same boot-camp at Bainbridge, Maryland. As a result of the difficulties they encounter in boot-camp and in the war they become life-long buddies. After boot-camp was completed they were transferred to the dreaded and perilous Amphibious fleet of LSTs (Landing Ship Tank), because the LST is truly a A Slow Moving Target having the reputation of a brief life during an invasion. In this historical novel each principle character in the book presents his own unique and unusual experiences. The main character of the novel is John Maroni, who attempts to keep the group together and to preserve their friendship throughout the war. They call themselves The Five Phibies. The Five Phibies are later split-up and are transferred to different LSTs which compelled them to fight in separate campaigns in both the Pacific and Atlantic theaters. They continued to communicate with one another via one central location in the States. They send their mail to John Maroni's kid sister, Angela, in Queens, New York, who rewrites the letters by relating their war experiences, their health, and anything new about their personal lives, but deliberately leaving out any unpleasant ordeals, then sending the letters on to the Phibies. Phibie No. 1 is John Maroni who was born in Queens, New York. Phibie No. 2 is Dan Bletcher born in Dover, New Jersey. Phibie No. 3 is Andre Robbier born in Chicago, Illinois. Phibie No. 4 is Rich Hienman born in Dallas, Texas. Phibie No. 5 is Bob Olsen born in Boston, Massachusetts. Understandably, most historical World War II novels are written around large fighting vessels such as aircraft carriers, battle ships, cruisers, destroyers, and submarines. Very little is written about the LST and their amphibious operations on beach landings of unloading troops and cargo because it isn't a glamorized fighting ship. The book provides many authentic LST battles which are depicted through the fictional characters presented in this novel. The author tried to encompass the five Phibies in several authentic battles even though their characters and experiences were created by his own imagination. The LST played a very important role in the military operations in the islands in the Pacific, and during the invasions of France, Italy, and Africa. Without the LST and its ramp, the delivery of cargo to the beaches during an assault would have been extremely difficult and time consuming. The LST was not the most elegant looking ship to come out of American shipyards but it was designed for a purpose, to deliver men and cargo to an invading beach as quickly as possible, and to support the Allied troops ashore with ammunition, tanks, jeeps, trucks, artillery, medical supplies, and most critical of all food and water. Without these back-up goods the war may have been extended a year or more which would have cost many more American lives. The LST and the other Amphibious forces must be recognized for their part in the war by being one of the most essential components of World War II, and should be commended for their effort in the invasion of hostile enemies both in the Pacific and in the Atlantic theaters. This author attempts to do just that. The novel does not cover the land struggle after an invasion because the ground assaults have already been covered by other authors, and to repeat them here would serve no other purpose but to reiterate their achievements.

How to Develop Story Line Ideas is a stimulant for the imaginative mind. Designed to help new writers seek and recognize a plethora of ideas for books and other pieces, Book 2 of Jo Ann M. Colton’s “Little Red Writer Book” Series energizes aspiring writers to follow their literary dreams and aim high for success. Story line ideas are everywhere—often right before our very eyes. Colton discusses what she believes to be the fundamental foundation for developing ideas for writing books, short stories and articles, and then expands upon her theories. This seek-and-you-will-find guide provides innovative tips, information and exercises to increase writers’ mental acuity and get their creative juices flowing. From embracing the idea of writing to discovering and gathering story line ideas to getting those ideas down on paper, the book encourages writers to push themselves toward greater accomplishments. As a result, How to Develop Story Line Ideas is an interesting and enjoyable motivational experience for rising writers.

THE FIGHTING AMPHIBIANS, The LST of World War II, is a feature film screenplay taken from the novel, A SLOW MOVING TARGET. The script contains many authentic stories about the turmoil and hardships that the Amphibious Fleet endured during beach invasions in World War II. To enhance the military adversities, the story revolves around the personal lives of five young fictitious sailors who, in 1942, enlist in the U.S. Navy to defend their country against the Axis. They come from different parts of America, meet in boot-camp and become life-long buddies. After boot-camp they were transferred to the dreaded and perilous Amphibious Fleet of LSTs (Landing Ship Tank), because the LST is truly a Large Slow Target having the reputation of a brief life and a sitting duck during an invasion. In this screenplay each principle character presents his/her own unique and unusual experiences. The main character is Johnny Maroni, who attempts to keep the group together and preserve their friendship throughout the war. They call themselves The Five Amphibians. The Five Amphibians are later split-up and are transferred to different LSTs which compelled them to fight in separate campaigns in both the Pacific and Atlantic theaters. They communicate through Johnnys sister, Angela, who rewrites their letters to the different Amphibians. Throughout the war only one Amphibian is killed in action.

During World War II, the city of Evansville manufactured vast amounts of armaments that were vital to the Allied victory. The Evansville Ordnance Plant made 96 percent of all .45-caliber ammunition used in the war, while the Republic Aviation Plant produced more than 6,500 P-47 Thunderbolts--almost half of all P-47s built during the war. At its peak, the local shipyard employed upward of eighteen thousand men and women who forged 167 of the iconic Landing Ship Tank vessels. In this captivating and fast-paced account, University of Evansville historian James Lachlan MacLeod reveals the enormous influence these wartime industries had on the social, economic and cultural life of the city.

The Second Pearl Harbor is the first book to tell the full story of what happened on that fateful day. Military historian Gene Salecker recounts the events and conditions leading up to the explosion, then re-creates the drama directly after: men swimming through flaming oil, small craft desperately trying to rescue the injured, and subsequent explosions throwing flaming debris everywhere.

Beginning with the Marine assault on February 19, 1945, the Battle for Iwo Jima quickly became the bloodiest battle in Marine Corps history. Today this fierce battle remains high in our collective memories, not only for its terrors but for its indelible image of triumph: the raising of the flag on Mt. Suribachi. Much information exists about the Battle for Iwo Jima, but it is scattered and can be difficult to track down. This book draws the information together in two ways. It offers bibliographic listings to lead researchers to useful sources, and provides actual texts of documents related to the battle and its aftermath. Part One, "The Bibliography," offers information on more than 800 books, magazines, official documents, audio-visual materials and online resources about the Battle of Iwo Jima. Each listing is annotated to assist researchers, historians, veterans and others seeking information. Part Two, "The Anthology," offers the texts of hard-to-locate documents; a series of maps showing the day-by-day progression of the battle; and a selection of poetry inspired by the battle. Appendices provide details of the American chain of command and both the American and the Japanese orders of battle; describe some lingering mysteries about the Battle of Iwo Jima; and list Iwo Jima memorial sites around the world.

A MAN OF DESTINY is an Epic about the life of Giuseppe Garibaldi and his struggle to free Italy from outside rulers. Up until 1871 Italy was composed of many rulers: Austria in the North East, a King over Naples and Sicily, a Sardinian King in the North West, a French Emperor who ruled over Rome, and different Princes ruling over Central Italy. Italians spoke many different dialects, but after the unification only one language was spoken. Giuseppe Garibaldi's destiny was to unite Italy as one country. He and his famous Red-Shirts had to fight many rulers in 1870. He first began by conquering Sicily and worked his way north. He was considered a hero especially by European women who adored him.