“Telling His Story: POW #1000” Anchors National Literacy Month and Patriot Day in Reflection, Memory, and Meaningful Learning

In observance of National Literacy Month and Patriot Day, educators, librarians, and institutions across the country are turning to the powerful narrative of “Telling His Story” as a cornerstone for reflective reading and civic remembrance.

As communities pause to honor Patriot Day, Telling His Story: POW #1000 emerges as more than a literary work; it becomes, in fact, a vehicle through which literacy transforms into an act of remembrance. The book invites readers to engage not only with words on a page but also with the enduring human stories that shape national identity, resilience, and collective memory.

At the heart of this initiative is a simple yet profound premise: reading is a form of remembrance. Through careful engagement with narrative, readers, particularly students, are encouraged to reflect on history, empathy, and the personal dimensions of national events. In classrooms and libraries alike, “Telling His Story” is fostering discussions that bridge past and present, allowing literacy to serve as both an intellectual and emotional practice.

Educators note that “Telling His Story” aligns with contemporary pedagogical approaches that emphasize literacy as a multidimensional practice—one that integrates emotional intelligence, historical awareness, and ethical inquiry. By situating reading within the context of remembrance, the book supports a deeper, more enduring form of learning.

“Literacy, at its highest level, is not just comprehension; it is connection,” remarked one academic coordinator. “This work allows students to engage with history in a way that is both intellectually rigorous and profoundly human.”

As National Literacy Month continues, “Telling His Story” stands as a compelling reminder that books can do more than inform; they can honor, preserve, and illuminate. Through its integration into educational and library programs, the text is helping to cultivate a generation of readers who understand that literacy carries responsibility: the responsibility to remember, to reflect, and to respond.

For institutions seeking to enrich their Patriot Day and literacy initiatives, “Telling His Story” and its Educational Guide offer a meaningful, scholarly, and deeply resonant resource.

“Telling His Story: POW #1000 - The Bataan Death March and Japanese POW Camps” by J.C. Pardue and Dr. Janis Pardue Hill is now available on Amazon and for presentations and book talks and can be reached by email janisphill@gmail.com.

About the Author
Janis Pardue Hill, PhD, a retired university professor and lifelong educator, holds a BS in English education, an MA in literature, and a PhD in Curriculum Theory. She has taught in secondary and university classrooms, served as a Program Coordinator in the Louisiana Department of Education, and worked as a Curriculum Coordinator in the Ouachita Parish School System.

Dr. Hill retired from Louisiana Tech University in 2010 to dedicate herself to family, with the publication of her father’s notes and journals her top priority. She spent the last two years of her father’s life talking with him and interviewing him about the plethora of journals and notes about his experiences on the Bataan Death March and in Japanese POW camps which he had recorded after he returned from the war. That memoir, entitled “Telling His Story: POW #1000 The Bataan Death March and Japanese POW Camps,” was published on December 2, 2022; and since that time, Dr. Hill has spoken at numerous events, including the 2023 Louisiana Book Fair where the memoir was one of the featured books. “Telling His Story: POW #1000” is currently in republication. “BUG: The Story of a Special Bug and His Little Boy” is Dr. Hill’s first children’s book.

Dr. Hill and her husband, Charles A. Hill, Jr., have two children, Trey and Amy; three grandchildren, Jack Hill, Harper Bourgeois, and Emma Bourgeois; and a son-in-law, Bartley Bourgeois. Dr. Hill and her husband live in North Louisiana.

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