President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a five-star general and commander of the Allied Forces in Europe during World War II, established a committee in 1954 to plan a Veterans Day observance. This day honors all veterans of the United States and is held each year on November 11 with a somber ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. A wreath is placed on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and followed by a parade of colors. In 2015, the United States and the world will mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. Victory in Europe occurred on May 8, 1945, but the official end of the war came when Japan surrendered to the United States on August 15, 1945. Some students may have family members who remember World War II, but most only know the hardships both at home and in foreign war zones through books they read. The novels presented in this guide give them a glimpse of the events on the home front in the United States after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and what was happening in Europe and Asia before and after the United States entered the war.
