While They're At War

Many people in the United States will never face the moment of saying goodbye to a deploying soldier, or the relief of a homecoming. The stretch between those two events is far less visible: the uneasy, ordinary days when a service member is overseas in a combat zone and the family carries on without him.

Kristin Henderson enters those homes to show what that period is like. Her central figures are Marissa Bootes and Beth Pratt, two young wives who had only recently married and were managing on their own at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, while their husbands fought in Iraq. Their stories, along with those of other military spouses, show how separation affects a family: the fear of losing a partner, the pressure of money worries, and questions of trust and faithfulness within the marriage.

The book also looks at the help available to families left behind, both the official programs run by the military and the informal networks spouses rely on. It considers how these systems try to support homefront families and where they come under strain.