This addition to the Battlefields & Blessings(R) series brings America's most controversial war into sharp focus. In a new collection of true stories from the Vietnam War, respected military historian and writer Larkin Spivey reveals the violence and danger faced by a generation of young Americans that answered their nation's call and rose to the challenge. Many stories show the power of faith under the stress of combat and separation from loved ones, while others show the complex spiritual journey of men forced to confront the dark side of human nature for the first time. Ultimately, the power of God to redeem every human life and event shines forth in this amazing collection.

50 years ago, the POWs who endured Vietnam's most famous prison came home. A powerful story of survival and triumph. Alvin Townley's Defiant will inspire anyone wondering how courage, faith, and brotherhood can endure even in the darkest of situations. “A riveting tribute to true American heroes.”—Senator John McCain, POW (1967-73) "Defiant is Unbroken meets Band of Brothers—and then some." —Congressman Pete Sessions During the Vietnam War, hundreds of American prisoners-of-war faced years of brutal conditions and horrific torture at the hands of North Vietnamese guards and interrogators who ruthlessly plied them for military intelligence and propaganda. Determined to maintain their Code of Conduct, the POWs developed a powerful underground resistance. To quash it, their captors singled out its eleven leaders, Vietnam's own "dirty dozen," and banished them to an isolated jail that would become known as Alcatraz. None would leave its solitary cells and interrogation rooms unscathed; one would never return. As these eleven men suffered in Hanoi, their wives at home launched an extraordinary campaign that would ultimately spark the nationwide POW/MIA movement. The members of these military families banded together and showed the courage not only to endure years of doubt about the fate of their husbands and fathers, but to bravely fight for their safe return. When the survivors of Alcatraz finally came home in 1973, one veteran would go on to receive the Medal of Honor, another would become a U.S. Senator, and a third served in the U.S. Congress.

In the spring of 1968, a group of Catholic antiwar activists barged into a draft board in suburban Baltimore, stole hundreds of Selective Service records, and burned the documents in a fire fueled by homemade napalm. The bold actions of the ''Catonsville Nine'' quickly became international news, and they remained in the headlines throughout the summer and fall of 1968, when the activists were tried in federal court. Shawn Francis Peters tells the fascinating story of this singular witness for peace and social justice.

Readers are introduced to courageous women and girls who risked their lives through their involvement in the conflict in Vietnam. These women served in dangerous roles as medics, journalists, resisters, and revolutionaries. Through their varied experiences and perspectives, young readers gain insight into the many facets of this tragic and complex conflict.

Born in a demilitarized zone during the Vietnam War to a Vietnamese mother and American soldier, Sau Le arrived in the United States as a young woman with only twenty dollars in her pocket. Though bullied and abused since childhood, she nevertheless came to her new homeland armed with a commitment to build a decent life for herself, her infant son, and her traumatized mother. This is the story of how she overcame every conceivable hurdle—including significant culture shock, a language barrier, serious illness, heartbreak, and betrayal—to become a landlord, successful business owner, joyous wife and mom and a woman blessed with generous, loyal friends. She describes an arduous journey, both literal and figurative, from a place of terror and utter despair to a life she created that’s overflowing with prosperity, patriotism, and love. And ultimately, it’s the story of hope, something Sau thought she’d lost long ago in the minefields of Vietnam. In telling her story, Sau Le aims to uplift those who worry that their dreams cannot be realized. Her goal is also to remind everyone born on American soil that this is the greatest country on earth, and that anything in this land is possible for those willing to put dedication, faith, and passion to work.

Stories of Faith and Courage from the War in Iraq & Afghanistan is a 365-day collection of inspiring stories of courage, perseverance, and faith based on first-hand accounts of more than seventy who have served in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.