Bestselling author Kristin Hannah graduated from law school in Washington State and practiced law in Seattle before becoming a full-time writer. She lives with her husband and their son in the Pacific Northwest. Her many novels have explored relationships between and among women--sisters, mothers, daughters and friends--in a way that resonates with her readers. Her latest book, Home Front, is an ambitious departure; once again, Hannah covers a sensitive topic--the impact of war on a family with a member in the military, and a marriage in trouble-- but this time, the military member is a wife and mother, complicating ordinary notions of honor, duty and love.
What drew you to this subject?
I often wonder where my ideas come from. This one was inspired by the nightly news. I continually saw such sad stories of wounded soldiers and their families and realized that so many of the soldiers were my son's age. That realization hit me very hard. As an American, I am constantly grateful to our men and women in the military. Then, as a woman, I began to wonder what it would be like for a woman to go off to war. In my story, Jolene, 41 years old and a Black Hawk helicopter pilot in the National Guard, is deployed to Iraq, leaving Michael to care for their two daughters. The marriage is already shaky. Michael deplores America's entry into the war, one of their daughters is a typical teenager, and the other just a little girl; everything conspires against this being a natural and easy thing to do. Michael is also suffering through the loss of his father, and Jolene hasn't helped him. Her insistence on keeping everything bright and gay is a way to mask her own feelings of abandonment and her inability to process her own grief. All of this becomes background for the immediate reality of a mother leaving home to go into dangerous territory from which she might never return. I knew that I had never read this story, so I had to tell it. What is the cost of the conflict between honor and love? One of the first things I learned is that women who choose this career are soldiers as much as they are wives and mothers.
Did you do much research for this book?
I had to do a ton of technical research. I am not from a military background so I started with very little information. Some of the greatest help I had was from Chief Warrant Officer 5 Teresa Burgess. Her help and friendship made the story better and more honest. She is a Black Hawk pilot, a wife and mother, so she kept the story grounded in reality. When you're a mom and you go to war, your teenager is still a teenager--wanting to be invisible, embarrassed by everything, especially parents, self-centered and narcissistic--the whole package. Children of warriors don't necessarily become perfect little angels. Teresa helped me on the technical side and on the personal side.
Michael's court case contributes so much to the story. Without revealing too much, was it your plan to make that the crucial turning point in the story?
That was a lucky bit for the story. I devised the court case because of so much information to impart about serving in today's wars and about PTSD. I'm not qualified to answer whether or not veterans' hospitals and programs are well enough funded, equipped and qualified to do the best job for our vets. What I know to be true is that it is part of a soldier's mentality not to ask for help. It would help returning warriors immensely if we took really good care of them when they came home--in every way possible, without them having to ask for it. The court case also provided me with the venue for my favorite scene in the book--when Michael speaks directly to Jolene.
Why is there more PTSD after recent wars than after World War II? Is it another case of under-reporting in the past?
It's always been there, but it's just been called by different names: "shell-shock," for one. So many families of World War II vets say that they never talked about their wartime experiences. They just pushed it aside and moved on, sometimes with disastrous results. It's also a different situation psychologically when there is a front line and an opponent across from you, someone you can demonize. In recent wars, the one with the IED could be the kid standing next to you or the nice lady with the baby. Witnessing atrocities every day with no safety zone to retreat to and decompress takes an enormous toll. Also, there was almost unanimous approval of World War II because we were attacked; not true of subsequent wars.
Tell us about the Greek influence in the story.
In writing my books I like to take a look at different cultures, especially their food. While I'm writing, I try ethnic recipes, learn a few words of the language. It adds another dimension. Showcasing Greek culture gave me a loving grandmother who could step in and defuse the situation at home when necessary.
What do you want people to take away from this novel?
For me, this has been the most moving of my books. I was consistently moved by the shifting heroisms in the story. The battle that was going on at home was as potentially damaging as the war. While it has a strong military theme, at its core it's about two ordinary people who have lost their way and whose marriage is in trouble. We all know that, over time, love comes and goes. The trick is to hang on when your love feels farther away, learning to fall back in love with each other and make your family whole again. Michael had to learn to be a loving and attentive parent and then cope with Jolene's homecoming. I hope that the story might start a dialogue about soldiers and military families and the heroic sacrifices they make. --Valerie Ryan
To listen to a conversation between Kristin Hannah and Teresa Burgess, the female pilot who partially inspired and served as a prototype for Jolene, click here.