The Women by Kristin Hannah

Kristin Hannah’s new book is a powerful look at the contributions of thousands of women in the Vietnam war. Frances “Frankie” McGrath is a nurse and in 1968 applies for active duty as an ER nurse in Vietnam. But nothing can prepare for the horror she will encounter while taking care of the dead and dying soldiers, who are mostly kids.

After two tours, she returns to a world that refuses to recognize her contributions to the war effort. She constantly is confronted by “There were no women in Vietnam.” Even her parents refuse to accept that she did her duty for her country. Set in the hostile anti-war protests of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, Frankie struggles to come to terms with her place in society.

As with all Hannah’s books, the writing is phenomenal and gut wrenching. This is a story that needed to be told and the author created a moving, worthy tribute to the women who gave so much to an unappreciated and uncaring country.