Although watching the filming of the movie was fun, most of my time in the past year was devoted to finishing the writing of a new book,

So Close To Home: The True Story of an American Family's Fight for Survival in WWII.

I co-authored the book with journalist Alison O'Leary, and we loved researching this amazing story that took place in 1942. At the heart of this survival story is The Downs family, who were on a merchant ship not far from the mouth of the Mississippi when they were torpedoed by a German U-boat. All four family members were blown into the ocean in different directions and we chronicle their harrowing ordeal. But because we had access to the War Diary of the U-boat Commander that sank their ship, we also follow events that were happening on the submarine.

Readers will experience this WWII forgotten drama from two different perspectives. And best of all, eight-year old Sonny Downs, who survived the U-boat attack, is now 81 years old and has worked with us every step of the way.