Book excerpt: My manuscript is a historical fiction novel. The story line follows a young Minnesota farm boy into the army after the outbreak of the war. It follows him through basic training, jump school, and then on into the war. The book covers the Normandy Invasionthe battle known as The Bridgeto far up into Holland and finally, the Battle of the Bulge. Throughout the book, I take the reader back to Minnesota so they may see how war affects family and friends on the home front. All the characters are fictional. However, all the military bases in the US and Europe are factual. Each battle my characters are involved in are accurate by timeline and locations. Anyone who is a student of the war or readers who love this genre should appreciate those facts. However, as the novel is a fictional work, I have taken literary license to add drama and hold-your-breath scenes throughout the story.