A grandmother’s diary and news of the day during the war years of 1940-1945 is the impetus for Raines’ depiction of rural South Dakota during World War II. This local military history juxtaposes daily farming responsibilities such as rendering lard, selling eggs, harvesting the crops with local community response to war supply shortages and the inevitable but tragic mourning of the deaths of its sons and daughters. Exhaustive efforts have been made to compile a list of those in the Brown and Day county areas who served and who made the greatest sacrifice. Historical battle narratives, military successes and failures throughout the war, and the impact of the war on local economies, demographics and the families of the area are also explored.