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Children of the Promise #4
When We Meet Again
The Thomas family members face ongoing challenges in the dark years at the close of WW2. Alex's values are tested as he works to complete an intelligence assignment in Germany while wondering if he'll ever see his beloved Anna and their son again. Wally struggles to survive the torture he endures as a POW, and Bobbi has to make a difficult choice between the men in her life. Back home in Utah, LaRue and her father, President Alexander Thomas, have drawn their own battle lines.
482 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 2001
20 people are currently reading
1128 people want to read
About the author
Dean Hughes
167 books345 followersDean Hughes is the author of more than eighty books for young readers, including the popular sports series Angel Park All-Stars, the Scrappers series, the Nutty series, the widely acclaimed companion novels Family Pose and Team Picture, and Search and Destroy. Soldier Boys was selected for the 2001 New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age list. Dean Hughes and his wife, Kathleen, have three children and six grandchildren. They live in Midway, Utah.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 206 reviews
January 30, 2014
I really like this series and this was probably my favorite book in the series so far. Again, it's interesting and heartbreaking to learn the history, but I think the author does a good job of helping us picture what life really would have been like for these characters and the cultural challenges and moral dilemmas they faced, as well as the struggles of faith and endurance. Many of the stories and examples are very inspiring for us to apply in our lives.
I am inspired by the examples of endurance (one day at a time), encouragement, and forgiveness in POW camps. I'm inspired by the selfless examples of soldiers, medical teams, and peasants putting their lives in danger to help save someone else. The selflessness in the midst of the horrible despair and destruction is incredible. It's interesting to think about all the ways that the war changed the individuals and society as a whole. Life really would never be the same. Many had grown and changed for the better and others longed for the purity of life before the war. The circumstances are different today, but we still face challenges and moral dilemmas and trials that we can also choose to face with faith and love.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book:
"I do believe that what we're doing is right and necessary. I hesitate to say that the war is a struggle of good against evil, there's too much evil in all of us to make that kind of claim....American troops are mostly a bunch of civilians who got pulled into this thing, not trained warriors, but what we believe turns out to run pretty deep in us.....What I'm thinking about tonight is the cost of everything we have gone through. I know I'm not the same man I was, and I don't like some of the changes" (p. 167).
"When this war is over, evil will still be with us. It will be forever, no matter how many wars we fight. I want to find a place where we can make a family and we can try not to be evil ourselves. That's the only war we have a chance to win" (p. 169).
"He had never seen courage manifested so tangibly on such a grand scale" (p. 193).
"So what do you believe in? Really?" (p. 195)
"She had felt her own lack of spirituality and longed to have the Lord touch her, maybe shake her shoulder when she needed it. But today, the idea took on a new perspective. She was so far from home and the things she found comfort in, and she was about to do something sacred: offer her healing touch. She wanted to bring her spirit to this act, so that these boys, some taking their final breaths, would know that life wasn't only ugliness and hatred. She wanted them to know that nobility also existed--goodness and kindness. She didn't want to get caught up in all the bandaging and tugging bodies here and there and forget that it was Easter" (p. 214).
"She knew the Lord would restore the boy's vision, that in the next life this young face would be made whole, and the boy would be as handsome as he ever had been. But right now his skin was gone, his nose and ears. What mercy he would receive would come later, but for a long time now, he was going to suffer. She told herself that life was a learning experience, and that suffering was actually a kind of sacrament, a holy experience to lift a person to a higher plane, but when she looked at the boy, she could only wonder what he would think when he finally saw himself" (p. 215).
"What if they had fought this battle without an Easter, without any promise at all?" (p. 221)
"The German people knew how to endure...He loved their dogged determination to survive....He had felt like a man without a country for quite some time, but this loss seemed to teach him the truth. Every German was an orphan now--with the country so devastated--but the fact was, the homeland wasn't in the buildings. It was in that little girl's spirit--the one who had clung to her little brother. And in the people's will. He felt more hope tonight than he had in a long time" (p. 257).
"He couldn't help them all...but he would help this family" (p. 298).
"There were lots of different kinds of victims of this war. When you're out there in the battle, you don't realize how many of them are back at home" (p. 314).
"We need you. Some of what you say sounds like self-pity, and there's no time for that. We have to put things behind us and get the Church going again" (p. 329).
"I'm certain that no one here got through this war without wondering at times whether God had given up on us. But we created the war, not God, and now I know that he is waiting to welcome us back to him. I have seen horrifying things in these last two years. You have seen far more, and I know you are suffering now. But God is waiting for us to return to him. We must give him back our hearts" (p. 331).
"Wally fought the impulse. He didn't want to let Hisitake off the hook that easily. What he had done to them men--to Wally personally--was inexcusable. But then Wally saw that Hisitake was crying...A kind of tingling passed through Wally's body, and he hardly knew what to make of it. It was a spiritual feeling, a change coming over him. Some weight seemed to lift from inside his chest. Wally actually fought it, told himself he didn't want this. He wanted to hate this man, always. But what had started as a hint, an idea, began to build into a powerful emotion, as though his spirit were being altered. He felt calm and right, and the thought that began to fill his head was that he never wanted to hate anyone again" (p. 397).
"You're the best man I've ever known...I figure I'll never again have a friend as good as you guys" (p. 418).
"He would never be thankful for the things that had been done to him, but he was thankful for the result. He hoped he would cling to what he had gained" (p. 426).
"Most of the faith she had possessed, she had learned here at this navy base, or in her ward in Honolulu. She would always be thankful for that. So she said a prayer. She thanked the Lord for the things she had learned, and she prayed that she might not ever lose what she had gained during the war" (p. 437).
"All these years, all we talked about was the war ending. We didn't take into account all the ways the war would come home with the warriors" (p. 440).
"How long are we going to feel this way--like everything we get is just too great to believe? I don't want to complain about anything, ever again....He hadn't slept on a bed yet, with sheets, and he hadn't seen his family, but he was almost sure he would always appreciate such simple pleasures for the rest of his life" (p. 451).
"Through all of these years he had been too intent on surviving to devote much of his mental energy to grieving" (p. 473).
I am inspired by the examples of endurance (one day at a time), encouragement, and forgiveness in POW camps. I'm inspired by the selfless examples of soldiers, medical teams, and peasants putting their lives in danger to help save someone else. The selflessness in the midst of the horrible despair and destruction is incredible. It's interesting to think about all the ways that the war changed the individuals and society as a whole. Life really would never be the same. Many had grown and changed for the better and others longed for the purity of life before the war. The circumstances are different today, but we still face challenges and moral dilemmas and trials that we can also choose to face with faith and love.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book:
"I do believe that what we're doing is right and necessary. I hesitate to say that the war is a struggle of good against evil, there's too much evil in all of us to make that kind of claim....American troops are mostly a bunch of civilians who got pulled into this thing, not trained warriors, but what we believe turns out to run pretty deep in us.....What I'm thinking about tonight is the cost of everything we have gone through. I know I'm not the same man I was, and I don't like some of the changes" (p. 167).
"When this war is over, evil will still be with us. It will be forever, no matter how many wars we fight. I want to find a place where we can make a family and we can try not to be evil ourselves. That's the only war we have a chance to win" (p. 169).
"He had never seen courage manifested so tangibly on such a grand scale" (p. 193).
"So what do you believe in? Really?" (p. 195)
"She had felt her own lack of spirituality and longed to have the Lord touch her, maybe shake her shoulder when she needed it. But today, the idea took on a new perspective. She was so far from home and the things she found comfort in, and she was about to do something sacred: offer her healing touch. She wanted to bring her spirit to this act, so that these boys, some taking their final breaths, would know that life wasn't only ugliness and hatred. She wanted them to know that nobility also existed--goodness and kindness. She didn't want to get caught up in all the bandaging and tugging bodies here and there and forget that it was Easter" (p. 214).
"She knew the Lord would restore the boy's vision, that in the next life this young face would be made whole, and the boy would be as handsome as he ever had been. But right now his skin was gone, his nose and ears. What mercy he would receive would come later, but for a long time now, he was going to suffer. She told herself that life was a learning experience, and that suffering was actually a kind of sacrament, a holy experience to lift a person to a higher plane, but when she looked at the boy, she could only wonder what he would think when he finally saw himself" (p. 215).
"What if they had fought this battle without an Easter, without any promise at all?" (p. 221)
"The German people knew how to endure...He loved their dogged determination to survive....He had felt like a man without a country for quite some time, but this loss seemed to teach him the truth. Every German was an orphan now--with the country so devastated--but the fact was, the homeland wasn't in the buildings. It was in that little girl's spirit--the one who had clung to her little brother. And in the people's will. He felt more hope tonight than he had in a long time" (p. 257).
"He couldn't help them all...but he would help this family" (p. 298).
"There were lots of different kinds of victims of this war. When you're out there in the battle, you don't realize how many of them are back at home" (p. 314).
"We need you. Some of what you say sounds like self-pity, and there's no time for that. We have to put things behind us and get the Church going again" (p. 329).
"I'm certain that no one here got through this war without wondering at times whether God had given up on us. But we created the war, not God, and now I know that he is waiting to welcome us back to him. I have seen horrifying things in these last two years. You have seen far more, and I know you are suffering now. But God is waiting for us to return to him. We must give him back our hearts" (p. 331).
"Wally fought the impulse. He didn't want to let Hisitake off the hook that easily. What he had done to them men--to Wally personally--was inexcusable. But then Wally saw that Hisitake was crying...A kind of tingling passed through Wally's body, and he hardly knew what to make of it. It was a spiritual feeling, a change coming over him. Some weight seemed to lift from inside his chest. Wally actually fought it, told himself he didn't want this. He wanted to hate this man, always. But what had started as a hint, an idea, began to build into a powerful emotion, as though his spirit were being altered. He felt calm and right, and the thought that began to fill his head was that he never wanted to hate anyone again" (p. 397).
"You're the best man I've ever known...I figure I'll never again have a friend as good as you guys" (p. 418).
"He would never be thankful for the things that had been done to him, but he was thankful for the result. He hoped he would cling to what he had gained" (p. 426).
"Most of the faith she had possessed, she had learned here at this navy base, or in her ward in Honolulu. She would always be thankful for that. So she said a prayer. She thanked the Lord for the things she had learned, and she prayed that she might not ever lose what she had gained during the war" (p. 437).
"All these years, all we talked about was the war ending. We didn't take into account all the ways the war would come home with the warriors" (p. 440).
"How long are we going to feel this way--like everything we get is just too great to believe? I don't want to complain about anything, ever again....He hadn't slept on a bed yet, with sheets, and he hadn't seen his family, but he was almost sure he would always appreciate such simple pleasures for the rest of his life" (p. 451).
"Through all of these years he had been too intent on surviving to devote much of his mental energy to grieving" (p. 473).
July 14, 2024
I just love this series so much! Dean Hughes is such a thoughtful researcher and writer.
May 6, 2023
The action is good, the writing is adequate, but what really sets these books apart is the characters. They are so fully realized, consistent, and unique, that they just feel like my friends. There are a lot of viewpoint characters, and each is written differently and written well. Hughes is not afraid to make them imperfect and to show their weaknesses, from LaRue feeling guilty about manipulating those around her to Wally fighting his hatred to President Thomas struggling with his role as patriarch in a changing society. A great book
January 18, 2025
The war is finally over!! The characters get to experience true love! The Lord keeps providing miracles! I just love this series overall because of how the story is told from different perspectives and makes WWII feel more real for those of us who have no idea what it was actually like. But now what? (That’s what the next book is for)
July 22, 2021
Finally some relief! I mean I knew the war would end…but it was so good to finally be able to read about it. This series has opened my perspective so much. I’m excited to finish it all and see how it all turns out.
May 20, 2010
American history is my absolute favorite school subject! This is the reason Historical Fiction is my favorite book genre. WWII, however, has always been the part of our history that I only learned what was needed to "pass the tests" this being because of all the things that happened to the Jews. It was always a very hard thing for me to think about. I have owned the Children of the Promise book series for over 5 years now and finally brought myself to read them THANKS to my father in law. This book series was absolutely profound to me. I cannot really put into words all the feelings I had while reading these books. There was so many spiritual feelings throughout. So many times I cried for good and for bad. Dean Hughes touches on so many areas of the war all around the world. He stayed as close to the "real thing" as I think was possible. So many movies romantisize this war, the biggest war in history but Hughes told it like it was. But at the same time it is not a series that was to hard to read as far as the gore of it all. He gives a very real look into a fictional family and all that they experienced during "the duration". I could go on and on. This book series is now and will always be my favorite book series. I would recommend this series to all.
August 7, 2019
V. 4 - Alex Thomas is still in Belgium in the Battle of the Bulge. Wally is still in a Japanese prison camp working in a mine and gets beaten and tortured but survives. Richard has been wounded - burned hands - and is going home, but Bobbi has volunteered for a hospital ship. Things get shaky between them. Her previous love - Professor gets severely wounded.
Alex gets sent behind the lines in Germany to scout landing sites. When the war ends, he's still there as German speakers are hard to find. Anna has a baby boy Gene in England. Alex finds his father-in-law and sends him to be with Anna and mom in England. He continues to look for Peter who's hooked up with a German family and is working to help support them. LaRue is still being a pain in SLC and the family is getting richer. The war in Japan also ends and Wally if finally freed and makes is back to San Francisco.
Alex gets sent behind the lines in Germany to scout landing sites. When the war ends, he's still there as German speakers are hard to find. Anna has a baby boy Gene in England. Alex finds his father-in-law and sends him to be with Anna and mom in England. He continues to look for Peter who's hooked up with a German family and is working to help support them. LaRue is still being a pain in SLC and the family is getting richer. The war in Japan also ends and Wally if finally freed and makes is back to San Francisco.
March 2, 2009
I have now finished the entire series and loved all of the books. The parts I liked the most was the historical detail on the war. I learned alot from the descriptions of what each character went through in the war. I really felt like I was there. The other part I liked was that each of the characters were fully developed and I saw myself in some of them or I saw people I knew. I could really relate to their personalities. Great series, I highly recommend.
May 28, 2009
I love this series. When I think of WWII, I think of the Jews and the concentration camps. I love this series because it focuses on a whole different aspect of the war. It gives great detail to fighting on the front line as well as the POW camps in Japan. I'm amazed at some of the conditions the American Soldiers dealt with when fighting in Europe. I'm excited to see how the series ends!
October 10, 2009
I loved this series - couldn't put it down! I love the way the chapters weave through the different family members' lives. It's like reading several novels in one. Despite the length of these books, I was captivated from the start and just kept reading.
I really love the author's writing style.
I really love the author's writing style.
March 17, 2010
Oh my goodness. I seriously can't stop with this series. and they are all 300+ books. Tim tries to hide them whenever he is home because he knows I'm only half paying any attention to him. I love the characters in these books. I seriously get so wrapped up in their lives. It's a powerful story and I love the history that comes in the book too. How little I knew/know.
September 24, 2014
Such a great series! I'm grateful to have discovered it after all the books have been released. It would have been hard to wait for books to come out because each book ends in such a way that I want to hear more. The war comes to an end in this book and I'm anxious to hear about the reuniting of the Thomas family. The war has obviously changed their lives forever.
July 25, 2016
Loved this book! I put 4 stars though because I briefly read the synopsis in the jacket cover inside and felt it gave away a huge spoiler so as I was reading, I would hesitantly read if I thought that moment was coming. Again, joy and heartache. I cried multiple times at this because I have come to care so much for these characters.
January 6, 2018
Wally's experiences bring tears to my eyes-and I've read this book about 4 times now. I am so grateful for my freedom!
October 12, 2018
The final stages of World War Two impacted people all over the world. Near the end of 1944, the Allied troops were beginning to invade Germany, but German troops responded with a vicious, unexpected counterattack. People in America and other countries soon realized that the war was far from over. The following months included more battles, but eventually the Allies got ahead and Germany unconditionally surrendered. Not too long afterwards, the atomic bomb was developed and Japan surrendered as well. But this did not solve all the problems caused by the war. Even at the end of the war, there were many difficulties as families and individuals adjusted to a changed world. The end of World War Two was a stressful and emotional time for those both on the battlefields and the home front.
This book, When We Meet Again, gave an excellent view of the end of World War Two from the point of view of a family from Salt Lake City, Utah. It also showed the war from the viewpoint of a soldier in Germany, a prisoner of war in Japan, a nurse in Hawaii, and a family split between England and Germany. I thought it gave a lot of historical information about World War Two. It helped me to see how the people involved in the war felt and what they might have gone through. I thought it did a great job of blending relatable characters with history and an understanding of World War Two. There was a lot of character development throughout the story and it was written in a very personal style. Overall, I thought it was a great unique WWII historical fiction book, and it was relatively well written. I rate it 4 stars out of 5.
This book, When We Meet Again, gave an excellent view of the end of World War Two from the point of view of a family from Salt Lake City, Utah. It also showed the war from the viewpoint of a soldier in Germany, a prisoner of war in Japan, a nurse in Hawaii, and a family split between England and Germany. I thought it gave a lot of historical information about World War Two. It helped me to see how the people involved in the war felt and what they might have gone through. I thought it did a great job of blending relatable characters with history and an understanding of World War Two. There was a lot of character development throughout the story and it was written in a very personal style. Overall, I thought it was a great unique WWII historical fiction book, and it was relatively well written. I rate it 4 stars out of 5.
October 29, 2017
Every book in this series is so amazing. Because of the scope of the project, the author does give some exposition (this is especially common when he transitions from one character to another, he'll take a few paragraphs and tell you what is happening both with the character and the war). I understand why he did it and I often skimmed this but it didn't take away from the books in any real way. The character development in this book is so amazing, I have absolutely fallen in love with the Thomas family. The problems the characters face are real life problems that I often didn't have an answer to right away. I love how diverse the cast is and I love the way Hughes has his characters face social problems that really made me think about our world today and how I feel and act. Reading this series has been life changing for me.
June 8, 2017
No words. I loved every second. I've grown to know and love these characters so much that it's hard to think that they are not real. I cried. Again. I've even grown to enjoy LaRue.
Sometimes these characters frustrate me, but that's because I want them to be happy. Yes, I want this fictional family to be happy. Snigger and move on.
Favorite in the series so far. So, so amazing. Thank you Dean Hughes for helping me understand the war better, and creating a series that I can learn from and grow.
Sometimes these characters frustrate me, but that's because I want them to be happy. Yes, I want this fictional family to be happy. Snigger and move on.
Favorite in the series so far. So, so amazing. Thank you Dean Hughes for helping me understand the war better, and creating a series that I can learn from and grow.
February 17, 2019
I like the story but it seems like I am just reading the same things over and over. The book rotates between several characters and each time it comes back around to a character the story seems to be the same as the last time around with that character. It’s probably how it was in the war - the same awful, difficult things being experienced over and over for days and weeks and years.
August 18, 2019
This was excellent. Dean Hughes has written such a terrific series. The main characters sons have all gone off to war. His oldest daughter is a nurse and serves in the Navy. So four of his children are off serving their Country during WWll. Readers share in the joy and heartaches the family go through.
May 20, 2019
I have really been enjoying these last 4 books. I will start #5 soon and that will be the end of the series. The people seem like real people to me, although they are based on other real people.
So much for me to ponder about WW ll and think about how grateful my Dad came home alright.
So much for me to ponder about WW ll and think about how grateful my Dad came home alright.
July 11, 2021
Now that I'm reading the series for the second time, I've been anxiously waiting for Wally to be freed, and when he did, I was so happy I almost cried(and I can count on one hand the times a book has made me cry).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 14, 2021
I feel like this could have wrapped up the series. I loved how each of the characters gave us a different perspective of the war. This series has really grown and evolved and I have enjoyed that a lot. I flew through this book and had such a hard time putting it down.
April 12, 2022
This book was good, the ending was excellent. It just wasn’t as enthralling or fast moving as the previous books. I love some of the ways it wrapped up with different characters in this book though, and I’m excited to finish this series with book #5.
March 13, 2025
Another great book in the series! It does talk a little about rape and of course there are sad bits about the war. So be cautious with younger kids reading this. Definitely not as violent as other battle based books though. I totally cried at the end of the book. I can’t wait to read the last one!
October 26, 2017
This was good, as it tied up some loose ends and took you through the end of the war. Left enough conflict open that it made me want to dive right in to the next book!
July 10, 2018
This series has really drawn me in.
March 8, 2019
Getting tired of the war and ready for a resolution. I can’t imagine living through all of this.
March 25, 2019
The whole family has faith that all will work out well.
May 30, 2019
Such a beautiful book. Very well researched and emotionally compelling from all sides. The various POV shifts were at times a little frustrating, but overall it was very well done.
October 7, 2019
4.5/5 angel stars
Displaying 1 - 30 of 206 reviews