Author shares her father’s war story ‘In the Hands of Strangers’
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (PRWEB) January 28, 2017 -- Author Kim Moretto Niemeier knew little about her father’s experiences as a U.S. Army Air Forces pilot when she was growing up. Nearly 50 years after World War II, her father finally opens up and shares stories of his flying and combat missions over Germany and France and tells of the French families that saved him. That revelation fuels her desire to learn more about her father’s past experiences and culminates in her book “In the Hands of Strangers: A World War II Story of Courage, Heroism, and Enduring Friendship” (published by Xlibris).
Niemeier’s father, Fred Moretto, is a U.S. fighter pilot flying single-engine P-47 Thunderbolts while posted at the Royal Air Force station at Raydon, England in the spring of 1944. On June 6th, her father is a part of the air cover for the D-Day invasion of Normandy, flying three missions that day. Six exhausting days later, on a fateful mission on June 12, 1944, he and his squadron of 11 are ambushed by an overwhelming number of German Messerschmitt 109s. Lt. Moretto, himself on fire, barely escapes his burning aircraft to parachute into the French countryside. Villagers working for the Resistance find him and vow to conceal him and help heal his wounds. For two months, several French families hide Kim’s father in a bread oven, a secret perch in an attic and a hayloft as Germans desperately search for him.
In 1993, nearly 50 years later, Kim convinces her father to return to France. Reuniting with the people and the places where he survived against all odds, re-invigorates his French connection and launches Kim’s 20-year odyssey to uncover the dramatic details of her father’s inspiring story. By reliving the experiences of her father while he was “In the Hands of Strangers,” Niemeier hopes readers will see that this tale is one of true courage and heroism — all resulting in multi-decade and multi-generational friendships.
“It is my great pleasure to share my father and the brave Desmares and Goimbault families (and others) with readers,” Niemeier says. “I want readers to never forget the cost of war on countries and their people and to get a sense that courage, love and human decency can overcome even the most difficult of situations. We also need to never forget that truly great generation.”
“In the Hands of Strangers”
By Kim Moretto Niemeier
Hardcover | 6 x 9in | 188 pages | ISBN 9781524544713
Softcover | 6 x 9in | 188 pages | ISBN 9781524544720
E-Book | 188 pages | ISBN 9781524544706
Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble
About the Author
A realtor for 32 years, Kim Moretto Niemeier lives in Huntsville with her husband Charles.
Xlibris Publishing, an Author Solutions, LLC imprint, is a self-publishing services provider created in 1997 by authors, for authors. By focusing on the needs of creative writers and artists and adopting the latest print-on-demand publishing technology and strategies, we provide expert publishing services with direct and personal access to quality publication in hardcover, trade paperback, custom leather-bound and full-color formats. To date, Xlibris has helped to publish more than 60,000 titles. For more information, visit xlibris.com or call 1-888-795-4274 to receive a free publishing guide. Follow us @XlibrisPub on Twitter for the latest news.
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