PERCY AUGUSTUS COLE

Book Four, The USS Arizona Series

What would you sacrifice to survive? And how much of yourself would be left?

Percy Augustus Cole knows the answer cost him everything.

Chicago, 1920s. Percy's grandmother raises him with three rules: Stand tall. Use all three names. Never compromise your dignity.

But dignity doesn't pay rent during the Depression.

When the Navy offers steady wages, Percy enlists as a mess attendant aboard the USS Arizona. The work is simple: serve breakfast, pour coffee, stay invisible. Six years of making himself smaller. Six years of perfecting the dangerous art of disappearing.

He becomes so good at being invisible, the officers forget he's human.

They discuss classified intelligence while he pours their coffee. Share marital problems while he clears their plates. Plan military operations as if he isn't standing three feet away.

Percy learns that excellence is its own trap. The better he serves, the less they see him. The more invisible he becomes, the more valuable he is. Until invisibility isn't a strategy anymore—it's his identity.

Sunday, December 7, 1941. 0755 hours.

Percy is serving breakfast in the officers' wardroom. Everything is routine. The coffee is perfect. The tables are set. His uniform is pressed.

In five minutes, none of it will matter.

"A devastating masterwork of moral complexity. Percy Cole is an unforgettable voice in American literature."

For readers who loved THE NICKEL BOYS, BELOVED, and THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD—a Pulitzer-caliber debut that refuses easy answers and will haunt you long after the final page.