The Penny

by Stewert James

During the Great Depression, Elinor Louise “Penny” MacDonald grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. She lived a quiet existence, longing for travel and adventure. At the end of WWII, she meets U.S. Army Air Corp bombardier and pilot, Frank McHenry. They wed, and Penny’s quiet existence changes, dramatically. They travel the United States and around the globe where Frank braves world conflicts. At home, Penny battles loneliness. She meets Marta, June and Sharon, and they embark on a lifetime friendship calming fears as husbands fight overseas. Penny endures her own war with breast cancer and pulmonary fibrosis. She passes, and her companions seize a penny placed near her ashes. Little does anyone know, “The Penny” has a history connecting two families yet to meet.

“The Penny” is a masterful compilation of interwoven lives based on real individuals and real events. This saga creates an epic journey through generations from the Civil War, the Great Depression, through WWII, Korea, the Cold War, and Vietnam. As husbands and fathers survive countless missions, experience the life of wives and mothers on the home front. Live the unnerving moments with incredibly strong-willed women who believe in holding the future of families together. Breathe deep recounting chilling war stories shared by their men, and during a trip to Washington D.C., help massage the long-enduring scars of their PTSD as they visit the monuments built in their honor. And through it all, believe in Sam – Penny’s lost daughter looking for a life of tranquility and happiness after growing up within the tumult and turmoil of a military family. She meets Parker Moore and they wonder if their life had been predestined. Will Sam find true happiness or relive her mother’s illnesses and long endured loneliness?

A sweeping story crossing two generations of family and friends separated and brought together against the backdrop of four horrific wars. As the current generation struggles to make sense of their lives and the legacy of parents consumed by war at home and abroad, we see how the choices and experiences of our parents echo through our lives.

At times violent, touching, vulgar and feisty – you will cheer for these characters as they each dance around the extraordinary power of a single penny.

$ 35.95