• 5-7pm, Thurs, June 16, 2022  |  Deseret Book @ City Creek Center, with special guests Camron Wright & Heather B. Moore  | 
    45 W S Temple  Salt Lake City, UT 84101 - Google Maps Link




REVIEWS & PRAISES

“Mesmerizing story. Collis instantly establishes himself as a literary force in historical fiction. A remarkably fresh voice to wartime inspiration.” --Booklist starred review




Book Description

Based on the true story of an American POW during the Korean War and a North Korean soldier who become unlikely allies united in their shared faith in God during a daring escape to freedom.

When pilot Captain Ward Millar is forced to eject over enemy territory in North Korea, the ejection explosion snaps both of his ankles. Unable to walk, he is easily captured by North Korean and Chinese soldiers who interrogate, threaten, and starve him for strategic wartime information. He feeds the enemy false information while plotting his escape. But it’s only a matter of time before they discover his lies. He knows it will take a miracle to gain his freedom, but his previous self-reliance on his own capabilities has never included appealing to a higher power. If only he had faith like his wife, Barbara, whose firm belief in God can move mountains.

North Korean soldier Kim Jae Pil was raised to believe in the power of prayer, but, knowing the Communist Party’s views on religious groups, Kim and his family must keep their Christian faith secret. He is desperate to escape the army, return to his family, and then flee to South Korea.

With Millar imprisoned and unable to walk, and the North Korean army increasingly suspicious of Kim’s actions, it seems impossible that either man will find the freedom they so desperately desire. But when these wartime foes cross paths, they find in each other an unlikely ally. Despite speaking different languages, Millar and Kim find common ground in their fragile faith and must rely on each other to undertake a daring escape.

Praying with the Enemy is a story of courage, determination, unlikely friendship, and enduring faith.






REVIEWS & PRAISES

“Meticulous. Deep understanding. Writing with passion and insight. Truly moving book infuses the tale of the Immortals with new and elevating importance.” --Booklist







Watch a recorded version of the entire event!







Book Description

During World War II, four chaplains were assigned to the SS Dorchester with more than 900 men on board. Alexander Goode, a Jewish rabbi; John Washington, a Catholic priest; George Fox, a Methodist minister; and Clark Poling, a Baptist minister, all offered comfort, reassurances, and prayers along with a warning from the captain that a German submarine was hunting their convoy.

Thoroughly researched and told in an engrossing nonfiction narrative, this true story alternates between accounts told from the perspective of the Nazi U-boat captain and his crew (as found in their journals and later interviews) and survivors from the Dorchester who credit the four chaplains with saving their lives after their ship was torpedoed.

The celebrated story of the men who became known as the Immortal Chaplains is now joined for the first time in print by the largely untold story of another hero: Charles Walter David Jr. A young Black petty officer aboard a coast guard cutter traveling with the Dorchester, Charles bravely dived into the glacial water over and over again, even with hypothermia setting in, to try to rescue those the chaplains had inspired to never give up.

Page-turning and inspiring, The Immortals explores the power of both faith and sacrifice and powerfully narrates the lives of five heroic men who believed in something greater than themselves, giving their all for people of vastly different beliefs and backgrounds.


Steven T. Collis is also the author of Deep Conviction.