Six years ago, Dr. Rob Currie began drafting a story. Like Hunger Winter, his first novel for young readers, it is set in the Netherlands during World War II as a tribute to lesser-known war events, his father鈥檚 service during World War II, and his wife鈥檚 Dutch heritage. Now completed, Time for Courage is set to release in January of 2026. With gravity, Currie sums up his newest book in one sentence. 鈥淲hen the Nazis target Jewish children for the concentration camp, the Dutch resistance in Holland is their only hope.鈥�
As a full-time psychology professor at 抖阴漫画, famous for his dynamic teaching strategies, Currie didn鈥檛 aspire to be a writer, even though writing has always had a place in his heart. 鈥淗ere I am doing something that you wouldn鈥檛 think a psychology professor would do,鈥� Dr. Currie says, 鈥淏ut life is a God thing.鈥� Looking back, he believes his sons were the catalyst of his writing journey.
Many years ago, Currie鈥檚 son brought home a short story that he had written in study hall, and they began writing the story together. While his son lost interest after a while, Currie did not. That short story became Hunger Winter. In retrospect, Currie feels that God had been preparing him to write these books for years. 鈥淢y older son loved to be read to, so I read to him every night. I read a lot of historical fiction during that time.鈥� It was no surprise then, that historical fiction became Currie鈥檚 passion.
For Currie, creating the storyline for his novels has never been difficult. 鈥淚magine you鈥檙e building a stone fence that will outline your pasture,鈥� Currie says. 鈥淵ou look for the most beautiful stones that you can find, and you put them together. That鈥檚 what I do. I find the most interesting pieces of history, and I fit them together,鈥� he explains.
Currie shares a heartbreaking story that took place during the real Hunger Winter the Dutch endured during the Nazi occupation. In true writer fashion, Currie sets the scene. 鈥淗e鈥檚 starving, and he goes to a farm,鈥� he begins. 鈥淗e trades valuables. He gets soup. He鈥檚 eating his soup. He passes away right afterward.鈥� Even in Currie鈥檚 brief retelling, the emotion and heartache are tangibly haunting. Currie shares another account of the Dutch resistance rescuing slave laborers from a camp by dressing in German uniforms to march them to safety, right under the enemy鈥檚 nose. It鈥檚 stories like these that are at the core of Currie鈥檚 writing strategy. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have to make it up,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 just have to do it justice.鈥�
Ultimately, Dr. Currie writes to see God鈥攊n the research, in the writing process, and in the stories he crafts along the way. Writing about historical events that took place in a foreign country many years ago is never an easy task. But it鈥檚 through these characters in that particular point in time that Currie feels he can bring God glory. 鈥淚 wrote聽Time for Courage聽to explore the quiet heroism that exists within us all,鈥� Currie states. Indeed, it鈥檚 the stories about the bravery of ordinary people that remind us that the darkness can be kept at bay. As the release date for聽Time for Courage聽approaches, Dr. Currie anticipates inspiring another generation of kids to be heroes. After all, the power to be courageous rests in each of us.聽
To purchase Time for Courage, please click the link below!