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There was, first of all, a book she was given to help her
learn the rules she’d be expected to follow. Says Lee, “a
pilot needed the right wife” if he wanted a career in the
military; her actions in dress and public decorum impacted
his chances for promotion, and her social standing “mirrored
her husband’s rank.”
By this reckoning, Sybil Stockdale was the highest-ranking
wife at her husband’s naval base in California in 1964.
Highly-esteemed by other Navy wives, she was married to
Commander James Stockdale and “had grown proficient at the
military game.”
That familiarity helped her in months to come.
In September, 1965, Jim Stockdale was shot down over the
Gulf of Tonkin and captured. He wasn’t the first U.S. pilot
to be taken as Prisoner of War, and Sybil wasn’t the first
wife of a Vietnam POW, but her rank conferred leadership and
as the war continued, she reached out to other POW wives in
what became a “reluctant sorority.”
By latter 1966, those wives began to realize that “they were
low priority on the Johnson administration agenda.” Johnson
wouldn’t meet with them; “the State Department all but
ignored” them, even as their numbers grew. They were told
that speaking out could jeopardize their husbands’ survival.
They began to think that government officials wished they’d
go away.
The one exception: the liaison assigned to them, a man who
later was lauded for his help. He seemed to understand that
there was one way for the women to get their husbands home,
and he told them: “Organize.”
And so they did…
Somewhere on a shelf in your home, you might have a stack of
thrillers you’ve read and loved and will read again. Add
The League of Wives to that pile; it’s is as thrilling
as any novel, but it’s all true.
Yes, you know how this story ends, but the getting-there’s
the appeal. Author Heath Hardage Lee brings readers a
real-life account of politics, espionage, and secrets,
inside a tale of a changing world and an unpopular war,
inside a story of one small corner of the history of women’s
rights. While that might seem like a lot to take (and Lee
may appear to lean a bit), it’s a comfortable read with
urgent surprises – the kind you’d get if you discovered a
pile of old women’s magazines in your grandmother’s attic,
with espionage codes stuck among the pages.
That adds up to a tale that’s just-right-told, especially if
you’re a politico, history buff, veteran, military wife, or
feminist. For you, and you love a good thriller, The
League of Wives could become a cherished story.
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