Air Force Ace: A Children’s Book About Deployment

Every so often in life, you get to a duty station and you find a tribe that makes your time there so, so easy. You support each other through life’s hard moments and cheer them on when life gives them good news. Kadena AFB has been a base that has brought me so many friends that I am honored to call my tribe.

One of those women in my tribe is Katie Marcucci. 

Katie handles motherhood so elegantly. Having a husband that is gone frequently would make any mother short-tempered or moody. Not Katie! She keeps her kids active and their hearts full, one of the many reasons I look up to her.

But she is more than just a military spouse – she is now an author too!

Katie wrote a book called Air Force Ace. This book will help so many children understand deployment and why their parent sometimes has to leave. Air Force Ace is the perfect mix of logical, magical and silly. I think you will love it!

Below is my recent chat with Katie. As you read through these questions and hopefully one day soon read through her brand new children’s book, I hope you get a glimpse into how wonderful of a human being she is! 

Tell us about yourself:

I am, above all, fortunate enough to call myself mom to Levi, age 5, and Quinn, age 2. I am originally from Southern Oregon and met my husband, Logan, during our final year at Oregon State University.

In my almost 35 years, I have seen much of the world thanks to my unexpected journey as an Air Force spouse for over a decade. Like most military wives, I’m a jack-of-all-trades! But most recently, I’m reinventing myself as a yoga instructor, teaching classes at Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, CA – and, of course, authoring and publishing children’s books.

What inspired Air Force Ace?

Air Force Ace was born out of necessity! When my husband deployed two years ago, I found myself in a foreign country and far from family. I had a new baby and a young son who, for the first time, was old enough to feel his dad’s absence, I used our beloved dog to help my kids understand why he was away and what he was doing.

What do you think is the most important takeaway from the book?

I want children of service members to know that their loved ones are doing important work on our behalf.  They can miss us, just as we miss them, but they can also want to accomplish the missions for which they are trained simultaneously. And as the last line of the book says, it is our duty while we await their return, “to all take care of each other”.

What piece of advice would you give to someone wanting to write a children’s book?

I wish I had more specific advice, but I do know the motivation to publish must come from a place of passion and belief in the story because it is a lot of work! Be brave and go for it! I’ve loved every step of seeing Air Force Ace come to life, but knowing it would eventually land in the hands of some very deserving kids kept me driven to get it done.

Where do you see Air Force Ace in a year’s time?

My main goal with Air Force Ace is to get it on a shelf at every Airmen & Family Readiness Center in the Air Force – making it a free, available resource to all our families experiencing the deployment of a loved one. And we are headed in the right direction; Travis AFB will be distributing 50 books at a Hearts Apart event on March 18th.

My personal review of Air Force Ace is that is a beautifully written book that does an amazing job of letting kids know what deployment is like and that daddy or mommy is safe wherever they are. Last night, as I read the book to my 7 year old for the first time, both of us ended up crying throughout. He kept saying this makes him remember all the times daddy was gone and we didn’t know what he was doing.

But, friends, the best part was that it opened up a conversation between him and my husband. My son couldn’t believe that they have ice cream where my husband goes. They shared many funny chow hall stories and were laughing about them. The book did exactly what it was meant to do! It was so magical to see. I know this will be in our arsenal the next time my husband has to leave; it will make the time so much easier to understand for my kids! Thank you, Katie! 

You can purchase Air Force Ace here, and follow along all of the exciting adventures this book will go on by visiting the book’s Instagram and Facebook accounts!