Memorial Day is tomorrow, and these are the perfect reads that will help commemorate our fallen soldiers and veterans. This list is a combination of nonfiction and fictional books that gives you front-row seats to the pain, bravery, and heroism that shaped the United States as it is today. 

1. "Unbroken" by Lauren Hillenbrand (nonfiction)

This biography follows the story of Louis Zamperini who is a WWII Army Air Corps bombardier. Read about his experience when his plane went down in the Pacific and his perilous journey at sea and ultimately being captured by the Japanese.

2. "Thank You For Your Service" by David Finkel (nonfiction)

After ten years following their battalion returns from Baghdad, Iraq, Finkel opens up a window to the lives of American veterans who continuously struggle to adjust to civilization.

3. "Johnny Got His Gun" by Dalton Trumbo (fiction)

This is an antiwar novel that follows a severely disabled veteran. Interestingly, this book was published on the eve of WWII. Due to timing, the book was not slated to republish until after Hitler's defeat.

4. "Generation Kill" by Evan Wright (nonfiction)

Wright captured and lived the stories of the Marines whose impacting personalities helped champion our fighting force as America invaded Iraq in 2003.

5. "The Thin Red Line" by James Jones (fiction)

This novel tells a prolonged battle between Japanese and American troops for an atoll called Guadalcanal in the Pacific.

6. "Plenty of Time When We Get Home" by Kayla Williams (nonfiction)

Written by Williams who is a veteran of the Iraqi war, tells a story of difficulties as well as romance in her marriage with Brian McGough who is another veteran, suffering from PTSD and brain injury. 

7. "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien (fiction)

This novel is told from a foot soldier's point of view as he raises questions about imagination, narrative, and interplay of memory.   

PIN: