James Berrall

James Berrall feels that he was hugely fortunate to have grown up when and where he did. It was a time when history-making events were happening almost daily, and his location was such that he could see New York City and the Atlantic Ocean in one direction and climb cliffs and run through the woods in the other. The war years worked vast and permanent changes on the pattern of life in America, but just about the only thing children at the time (the author included) were aware of was that life was often very exciting.

The Jack Armstrong Dragon’s Eye ring still shines in the dark with its eerie green glow, but no coded messages for the Captain Midnight decoder badge have been received for a long, long time.

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Books

Fighting Hitler from the North Jersey Suburbs

$15.95

A portrait of the American homefront during World War II, as remembered from childhood.​

by James C. Berrall

For children residing an ocean apart from the imminent dangers of World War II, the war’s effects were nonetheless felt in a way that shaped a generation. In Fighting Hitler from the North Jersey Suburbs, author James C. Berrall focuses a nostalgic lens on the American home front during the second great war, offering a child’s-eye view of the commotion and peculiarities of wartime. Drawing on his boyhood experiences, Berrall recalls everything from popular contemporary songs and radio programs to the looming anticipation of air raids and military invasions. A true portrait of an era, Fighting Hitler from the North Jersey Suburbs chronicles the formative years of both a young man and an emerging superpower.

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