{"product_id":"no-average-day-the-24-hours-of-october-24-1944-9780826223173","title":"No Average Day: The 24 Hours of October 24, 1944","description":"\u003cp\u003e On Tuesday, October 24, 1944, nearly three years after the United States entered World War II, over 2,600 Americans perished--more than on any other single day of the conflict--yet the day remains overshadowed by more widely remembered dates in WWII history. Drawing from the accounts of men from diverse backgrounds who served in the U.S. Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Corps, Rona Simmons offers a gripping retelling of the fateful day, hour by hour and incident by incident. The book begins with Army Private First Class Paul Miller's demise in a prisoner of war camp and ends with the death of Navy Seaman Second Class Wanza E. Matthews after the Japanese submarine \u003ci\u003eI-56\u003c\/i\u003e attacked his ship off New Guinea. The sinking of the Japanese \"hellship\" \u003ci\u003eArisan Maru\u003c\/i\u003e--a lesser-known tragedy of the war--looms large, deftly interwoven through each part of the narrative. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Perhaps the most compelling aspect of \u003ci\u003eNo Average Day\u003c\/i\u003e is its attention to the human side of conflict, telling the stories of ordinary individuals--clerks, radio operators, cooks, sailors, machinist mates, riflemen, and pilots and their air crews--as they grapple with the horrors of the war. Despite its narrow focus, or perhaps because of it, \u003ci\u003eNo Average Day\u003c\/i\u003e reveals the vastness of World War II through a consideration of the largely overlooked events that unfolded on what, for members of the US Armed Forces, was its deadliest day. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRona Simmons \u003c\/b\u003eis an author of historical fiction and nonfiction focusing on the period from World War I to the Great Depression to World War II. Her books include \u003ci\u003eThe Other Veterans of World War II\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eA Gathering of Men\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"University of Missouri Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50893163495698,"sku":"9780826223173","price":25.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_0afe3f13-b208-4043-807d-f4cc714635b2.jpg?v=1738224640","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/no-average-day-the-24-hours-of-october-24-1944-9780826223173","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}