It only takes a few pages to impress the reader with the fact this is an expertly crafted novel. His use of dialog is excellent, and he flows in and out of multiple viewpoints easily.
He is also in it for the long haul. There is nothing hastily written here. It is also over 200k words. The reader needs to be in the right frame of mind - settle in and relax. I had to make a little note card to keep track of the characters.
Don't let anyone tell you it is about Black flyers in World War II. It's not. There are Black flyers, but they serve only as a source of conflict and problems for the major characters, who are all white. None of the Black characters are used as viewpoint characters.
It's a World War II novel, but it is not about a great battle or even about life on the front. It is concerned with those who are left behind, those in the States who are carrying on with training, resting after being at the front, providing support and public relations. In that sense, the "Guard of Honor" is really those military who serve behind the scenes. That is what the novel is about, how these average people cope with the difficulties and hazards of leadership in the Army Air Force.
An outstanding read, I highly recommend it.
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