Norma Kent of the WACS

Among the earliest novels to chronicle the Women's Army Corps, this 1943 novel captures a remarkable moment in American history when women traded civilian life for uniforms and a taste of real war. Norma Kent, a recent college graduate, chooses enlistment over the expected path, finding herself at Fort Des Moines learning to be a soldier alongside a colorful cast of recruits. There's Rosa, the diminutive Italian girl with spirit, and Lena, the towering newcomer who becomes an unlikely friend. But as Norma adapts to military life, she begins noticing odd behaviors among her fellow recruits that don't sit right. Someone in the barracks is not what they seem. Suspicion of espionage turns this coming-of-age story into something more sinister, and Norma must decide whether to focus on her own training or investigate a threat that could affect them all. It's a fascinating artifact of wartime America, showing women discovering capabilities they weren't supposed to have, all while a mystery unfolds in the most unlikely of places.