No Better Time: A Novel of the Spirited Women of the Six Triple Eight Central Postal Directory Battalion

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Just the novel to elevate these unforgettable voices.Shelf Awareness

The acclaimed author of The Secret Women and Things Past Telling returns with an engrossing historical novel about a little known aspect of World War IIthe 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the only Black WACs to serve overseas during the conflict.

In the wake of the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Dorothy Thom, Spelman graduate, librarian and Francophile, joins the Womens Army Corps wanting to do her part for the war effort. Longing for adventure, she has one question for the recruiter: Do you think Ill get to go abroad

As Dorothy and her sister WACs discover, life in the Army is an adventure filled with unexpected deprivations and culture shock. Women from all levels of society, secretaries, teachers, and sharecroppers, work together to navigate a military segregated by race and gender. At boot camp, the colored girls are separated for processing. At Ft. Riley, the womens barracks are rustic and heated by coal-burning pot-bellied stoves while German POWs spend their incarceration in buildings with central heat and hot water.

In early 1945, Dorothy and eight hundred African American WACs cross the turbulent North Atlantic to their post in England. Their orders are to process the mail sent to GIs from their loved ones back home, an estimated 17 million pieces. The women arrive to find mail stockpiled for over two years in warehouses and airplane hangars, many pieces in poor condition, the names illegible.

In England and France, the WACs traverse a landscape of unimagined possibilities. With their outlooks changed forever, they return to the United States as the catalysts for change in America and build lives that transcend anything their ancestors ever dreamed of.

No Better Time illuminates a love of country and duty that has been overlooked until now.

Reviews

"Readers wanting to learn the history of the WACs will find much to enjoy!" Kirkus Reviews "While the focus is on the womens lives and friendships, Williams (Things Past Telling, 2022) doesnt shy away from recounting the pervasive and insidious racism and misogyny faced by the women of the 6888th, including inadequate facilities and housing and harassment from both civilians and fellow service members. This novel will resonate with readers interested in character-driven stories about womens courageous service during WWII." Booklist Sheila Williams celebrates the only Black enlisted women to serve overseas in World War II inNo Better Time . . . Williams draws upon the personal narratives of her cousin who served in the 6888 to create a story full of color and energy. Combined with her significant research, this personal touch enables Williams to shine a light on a part of World War II that has had little prior attention. With an upcoming Tyler Perry film focused on this extraordinary battalion, the women of the 6888 are sure to find their rightful place in history.No Better Timeis just the novel to elevate these unforgettable voices. Shelf Awareness

Author Bio

Sheila Williams is the author of seven novels, including Things Past Telling, The Secret Women, and Dancing on the Edge of the Roof, which was adapted for the Netflix film Juanita. In addition to her published works, she is the librettist for Fierce, an opera commissioned by the Cincinnati Opera. Sheila lives in northern Kentucky.