Author Laurel Downing Bill continues to bring Alaska history alive in "Aunt Phil's Trunk Volume Four." Following in the fast-paced and entertaining footsteps of the previous three volumes, Volume Four captures the essence of life in Alaska between 1935 and 1960. It's easy-to-read nonfiction short stories and more-than 350 historical photographs highlight major events of World War II, the Cold War era and Alaska's struggle for statehood. When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, the military presence in Alaska was woefully inadequate. And within six months, the Japanese bombed Alaska's Dutch Harbor, occupied two islands in the Aleutian Chain and had eyes toward an invasion of America. As the U.S. military began building bases across Alaska, it also organized Alaska's Native people into a territorial guard that became known as the "Eskimo Scouts." These men and women routinely patrolled more than 2,000 miles of coastline and 200,000 square miles of tundra to make sure the enemy did not advance. World War II brought big defense dollars north, which helped bolster Alaska's economy. It also brought a secret Russian mission to Fairbanks, interment of Aleut people in the foreign landscape of Southeast Alaska and a wide proliferation of tuberculosis. During the Cold War era, Alaska saw another increase of money and people into the Last Frontier. This period of its colorful past also generated stories of heroic Alaska Airlines flights for freedom, Alaska Natives' battles against discrimination and the blossoming of Anchorage into a jewel on the tundra. The last section of this action-packed volume features Alaska's 91-year-old struggle for statehood. Tales of tenacity, hope and determination fill these pages. They also showcase many of the movers and shakers of days gone by, Alaska's first elected governor and the discovery of crude oil that tipped the balance toward statehood. Critics and readers alike are saying "Aunt Phil's Trunk" is outstandingly well produced, exceptionally informative and heaps of fun to read.
