{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Middle Grade Meets Mental Health: K G Mach\u2019s Powerful WWII Story","description":"In this moving episode of the Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast, Jed sits down with K.G. Mach (pen name of author Kimberly Mach), creator of the middle grade novel Present, Still Missing, to talk about war\u2019s invisible wounds and the power of stories to open hard conversations at home. K.G. Mach introduces us to Irene, a baseball\u2011and\u2011football loving girl growing up just after World War II. Irene\u2019s dad returns from the war physically safe but emotionally distant, living with what we now call PTSD. K.G. explains that while PTSD wasn\u2019t officially recognized until 1980, its impact on families has been with us throughout history. She shares fascinating research about Mason General Hospital on Long Island, where doctors were successfully using talk therapy and outdoor activities with veterans in the 1940s\u2014only to see that work sidelined as the Cold War began. Jed and K.G. Mach explore how the book looks at PTSD through a child\u2019s eyes, and why it was important to her that the story remain honest but ultimately hopeful. They talk about Irene\u2019s fierce, sporty spirit (inspired in part by K.G.\u2019s sister\u2011in\u2011law), gender expectations in the 1940s, and how friendships and empathy grow over the course of a middle school year. K.G. also shares powerful moments from school visits and book signings, including a veteran father who opened up to his daughters after seeing the book. The conversation branches into intergenerational stories, listening to our elders, and how reading together can spark life\u2011changing family discussions about trauma, resilience, and mental health. ","author_name":"Connecticut Book Festivals Podcast","author_url":"https:\/\/sites.libsyn.com\/558800","html":"