In Child of the Blue, L. Diane Ryan serves up a feast of amazing memories drawn from the happy chaos of her childhood growing up in an Air Force family. She writes with humor and passion about her adventures in far flung places with extraordinary people.
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In Child of the Blue, L. Diane Ryan serves up a feast of amazing memories drawn from the happy chaos of her childhood growing up in an Air Force family. She writes with humor and passion about her adventures in far flung places with extraordinary people. But the book examines things far beyond a simple retelling of a family’s wide military travel. Ryan writes wistfully about the simpler times of her baby boomer youth and the marvelous adventures of her “free range” childhood. She talks of “family” in its many forms and the challenges and triumphs faced over the course of many moves over many years. She brings each place into clear focus and offers insights on the ever-changing times. This is a joyful book that celebrates those places, the times she lived through and the people in her life on her path to maturity. In extolling the unexpected virtues of military family life, she honors and pays tribute to her loving, often raucous, and remarkably resilient family.
Military life can be difficult for any family, especially the children. This is a coming of age story. When you’re young sometimes you don’t remember things as clearly, but the author seems to recall her experiences, short though they may have been, with ease. She was the oldest of seven children. Everyone knows that military life doesn’t leave you in one place for too long. Many friends made and left behind. Many new towns to adjust to along with school after school. Not remaining in one place for too long. The author has described her characters so you almost feel you know them. As she is growing up, her experiences became learning experiences, explained by her parents. The author wrote a compelling story of her experience of growing up military as a Child of the Blue. This book isn’t very long but you will be attached to each page as you turn it. I finished the book in one evening. Living in an Air Force family, her adventures have taken across the land and into Europe. This memoir is from a child’s point of view which is usually a little more accurate at times than an adult. It’s interesting because they see things as they are, not as they want them to be. Since this story only goes through Ms. Ryan’s 16th birthday, will we have the honor of continuing her adventures in another book? Hopefully! You might want to grab a copy and you and your friends can sit around the fire one snowy night and exchange childhood memories.
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