War Letters

Based on Andrew Carroll's War Letters: Extraordinary Correspondence from American Wars, this addition to PBS's American Experience series compiles a rich, moving collection of letters home from American military men and women fighting over the past two centuries-plus--from the Revolutionary to the Gulf War. From exhaustion and homesickness to bravery and humor, War Letters runs the gamut of human emotion and experience, with break-ups, the questioning of God, and the yearning for victory emerging as common themes. Standout vignettes include the story of a nurse who honored a wounded man's request for a kiss like his mom used to give him (and got the rest of the infirmary chanting "Mommy, Mommy!") and the account of a black soldier on a layover who watched (relegated to the kitchen thanks to Jim Crow laws) as German POWs enjoyed themselves at a restaurant. Read by Joan Allen, Edward Norton, Kevin Spacey, and Courtney B. Vance, among others, these heartfelt, honest, achingly powerful letters are accompanied by compelling dramatic reenactments. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: H, C, P. (J. Williams)