In Child of the Blue, L. Diane Ryan serves up a feast of amazing memories drawn from the happy chaos of her childhood growing up in an Air Force family. She writes with humor and passion about her adventures in far flung places with extraordinary people. But the book examines things far beyond a simple retelling of a family's wide military travel. Ryan writes wistfully about the simpler times of her baby boomer youth and the marvelous adventures of her "free range" childhood. She talks of "family" in its many forms and the challenges and triumphs faced over the course of many moves over many years. She brings each place into clear focus and offers insights on the ever-changing times. This is a joyful book that celebrates those places, the times she lived through and the people in her life on her path to maturity. In extolling the unexpected virtues of military family life, she honors and pays tribute to her loving, often raucous, and remarkably resilient family.