Julia A. Maki

Julia A. Maki grew up in Deer River, Minnesota and enlisted in the Navy as an Aviation Warfare Systems Operator aboard P-3Cs. After the Navy, Julia settled in Maryland with her husband where they both ended up working for the Department of Defense as civilians. They have three children together, which initially inspired her to write children’s books about the military.

Julia is now in the DC Air National Guard. When she is not writing, raising a family, or working, she finds her passion in volunteering for organizations supporting veterans.

Her first book, My Mom Hunts Submarines, was Julia’s way of telling her children about what she did while in the Navy with the underlying message, “You can do anything!” Her second book, All Hands on Deck! Dad’s Coming Home!, was inspired by her sister’s job in the Navy aboard the USS Stennis. It is a book for children that have parents that are deployed in the military.

Still My Dad was written for children with parents that are wounded veterans, but can be enjoyed by anyone facing a disability. From the Sky was inspired by the amazing things she saw while flying all over the world. Finally, her memoir, What They Don’t Teach You in Deer River, is a collection of funny stories and life lessons from her time as a young aircrewman in the Navy.

Julia A. Maki’s latest book, Guardians, is a must read for anyone wanting to hear a personal perspective on what it was like to be on duty in the streets of DC during the civil unrest. Unlike what we saw on the news each day there’s no agenda except to tell her story. There was a lot of ugly out there, but Julia also chose to share the many examples of the good.