Fleeting Dreams: Love Letters from World War I – The Architect and the Librarian, by Joan Fowle Miles is a celebration of love. It celebrates the love between a man and a woman even in the midst of the hardships of separation, the devotion of a son to his father, the admiration for the wonders of this world that not even the fear of war can diminish, and the loyalty that you feel your country. Through a series of real letters written by his parents during World War I, Miles allows readers to discover the thoughts, ideals, and fears of the nation during this harrowing period of history.
There is much to admire in this collection of cards. The first is the sheer amount of work that must have gone into transcribing this long series of letters spanning years and his devotion to keeping them as close to their original, raw form as possible. This is an honest work and no attempt has been made to embellish the events that transpired. This is refreshing in an age where explosions, intrigue, danger, and sex are often exploited to create a more riveting form of entertainment. Miles instead allows the natural emotions of the card to tell the story, thereby creating a truer tale.
As admirable as these qualities are, there is much editing work that needs to be done before this book is released to the public. Structurally, the book is relatively solid except for several instances of entire sections of text being repeated. I’m guessing this is due to copying and pasting text without deleting the old text. There are also instances of possible missing text and misused font, which can confuse the reader since the author has chosen to use the font as a way to distinguish whose writing is being read. These issues could be easily resolved with a good copyeditor, but the author also needs to make some creative editing decisions. While it’s understandable that Miles clung to his parents’ every word, there is much in these letters that the average reader with no ties to the themes would find quite boring. Accounts of food eaten or vague descriptions of buildings are simply not interesting to most readers. It would be to Miles’ benefit to decide what story he hopes to convey from this set and remove anything on these cards that isn’t necessary for the story. The same can be said for the historical anecdotes he provides with letters. While some are quite interesting, many simply distract from the lyrics instead of providing clarity. Some historical background is necessary, but it should be carefully chosen and researched so that it complements the cards rather than overshadows them.
I really think that fleeting dreams it has the potential to be an entertaining and educational read, but it just isn’t ready in its current form. I think readers who are interested in the WWI time period in its entirety will find this an interesting volume to peruse, but the average reader may want to wait for a more condensed and modified history. I hope that Joan Fowle Miles will continue to work on this book and that she will have the opportunity to read a new edition in the future.