Audie Murphy was small for a soldier—5’5”, 112 pounds when he enlisted. Too young to buy a drink, not too young to fight. Born in rural Texas in 1925, he grew up dirt-poor, hunting to feed his family. When WWII came, he lied about his age to enlist. By 19, he was the most decorated American combat soldier of the war. The boy who was too small, too young, became a giant. Leland Blakeslee—whose story is told in LELAND (launching July 2, 2025 at Lelandthebook.com)—was cut from the same cloth. He stood just 5’6”, 120 pounds when he shipped out for Korea. The Army called him “the kid.” He would not come home. Both were slight in frame but outsized in courage. Both came from rural towns—Audie from Farmersville, TX; Leland from Bolivar, NY. Both found themselves in wars they didn’t start, fighting battles they didn’t choose. And both left legacies far larger than their size. Audie Murphy lived to tell his story. He became a movie star and national hero. Leland Blakeslee did not. LELAND imagines the life he might have had—an innovator, a builder, a husband, a father—if war had not stolen it. Why compare them? Because history forgets that boys fight our wars. Small boys. Skinny boys. Boys with lives ahead of them. Audie Murphy got a second chapter. Leland did not. LELAND is that second chapter. — LELAND “It would have been a wonderful life.” Coming July 2, 2025 Lelandthebook.com