Author and UWG Alumna Kaia Alderson Visits Campus

Author Kaia Alderson, an alumna of UWG, visited UWG on Nov. 7 to conduct a book signing event for her new release, Sisters in Arms, in the Campus Ballroom Center.

After speaking for the American Library Association last summer, Alderson received an invitation to return to the university from Professor and Head of Outreach & Assessment Anne Barnhart.

“Bless Anne and her patience because, during the time I was promoting my book, I was getting started on writing a second book, and getting back to her was difficult,” said Alderson. “It was her persistence that got me here earlier this week.”

Alderson’s book, Sister in Arms, was released on Aug 3, 2021. The book has since then garnered much attention and critical reviews, with a rating of 4.4 on Amazon from over 400 people. Aside from the good reviews, the story of Sisters in Arms was not the original idea for Alderson’s book.

“It was initially meant to be a romance, but then I saw a picture of this 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion marching in Europe, and I’d never seen that before,” said Alderson “I was looking at the picture like that’s Europe, those look like WWII uniforms, and those are black women, so I googled them, and I immediately knew that I had to do soldier girl’s night in town before she ships off to war and to leave a guy behind story.

“This book is about black women giving everybody hell during a time and a situation that we usually would not hear about or wouldn’t expect,” continued Alderson.

Alderson did plenty of research on the women who served in the 6888th, finding every soldier’s experience in the process. After looking further into each woman’s life, she found herself inspired tremendously by their actions.

“Hopefully, people have the same experience reading the book that I had when I first saw that picture,” said Alderson. “It was inspiring for me to learn that these women with more restrictions in their workplace were able to demand respect, do their work, and look past people who doubted them.”

Overall, Alderson hopes to impact the lives of people from younger generations who may be looking for confidence as she did once before.

“Their story is something that I wish I had known about back when I was just entering the workforce when I got out of college,” said Alderson. “I hope this story gives confidence, creativity, and resilience to someone else who might need that.”