“Masters of the Air,” based on actual people and incidents, is realistic without the usual clichés.

The miniseries, which tells the story of the 100th Bomb Group of the American Eighth Air Force in World War II, is based on the book, “Masters of the Air: America’s Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany” (707 pages; Simon & Schuster; paperback $23; audiobook $32.81; ebook $14.99; 2007) by Donald L. Miller, the John Henry MacCracken Emeritus Professor of History at Lafayette College.

“Masters of the Air” describes the strategy behind the bombing of the Nazis, while focusing on the individuals involved, especially the pilots who were based in England during the World War II.

Miller cohosts the “Making of the Masters of the Air” Apple podcast along with Kirk Saduski, co-producer of the series, presented by the National WWII Museum.

“I base all my books on primary sources,” says Miller in a phone interview.

Miller lives in Easton, where he moved after becoming a Lafayette professor in 1978.

He interviewed more than 250 veterans of the Eighth Air Force, as well as many people in England where the pilots were stationed.

Often, veterans do not want to talk about their war experiences. Miller says he began interviewing people who had already publicly opened up. He also attended reunions, where many vets were willing to talk.

Miller taught at Oxford University, where he was resident scholar at All Souls College, near East Anglia, the region for the Eighth Air Force bases.

He spoke with people who hung around the bases when they were children. He also spent a great deal of time researching archives, where the stories of airmen are preserved in audio, video and written records.

The book contains first-hand experiences, describing the courage of men who could not expect to live very long. The attrition rate earned the bomb group the nickname “the Bloody Hundredth.”

“It started as an all-volunteer outfit,” says Miller. “Being part of the Army, the Air Force could get the cream of the crop. Those who did not want to fly could be persuaded. It was the age of aviation.”

The Air Force became a separate military service in 1947.

At times, morale was low. The book’s latter chapters describe the saturation bombing of German cities. Civilians were targeted along with industrial and military sites.

“There was nothing said about morals in official Air Force circles. It was all about winning. The men talked about it, however,” says Miller.

The justification for the bombing was that it sapped the morale of the enemy and saved American lives by ending the war earlier.

The Germans did not have resources at the end of the World War II. “Germany did not have an industrial base. They literally ran out of gas.”

“Masters of the Air” is Miller’s 10th book. In 2001, he wrote “The Story of World War II.”

“I taught myself about the war. I thought, ‘Why not write about the whole thing?’

“My Dad was in the Air Force in World War II. When I was growing up in Reading [Berks County], the war was all around us. Guys would march on parade.”

The “Masters of the Air” miniseries is the third of a trilogy that includes “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific.” Miller was a consultant for the latter series and wrote the book, “D-Days in the Pacific.”

Miller met “Masters of the Air” producers Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg at the opening of the National War Museum in New Orleans, where he lectured.

“Tom [Hanks] read ‘Masters.’ He liked it and talked a lot about it,” Miller says.

The nine-part “Masters of the Air,” which stars Austin Butler and Barry Keoghan, premiered January through March on Apple TV+, where it can be streamed.

Rebecca Nicholson of The Guardian, gave the series “five out of five,” describing it as “truly fantastic television,” portraying the experience of the pilots “as thrilling as it is terrible.”

Miller has been involved in more than 30 television documentaries. He has written about a variety of subjects.

“I go where my interest lies,” he says. They include books about New York City and Chicago, coal mining in Northeast Pennsylvania, a biography of historian and sociologist Lewis Mumford, and the Civil War battle of Vicksburg.

Miller is working on a book about Ulysses S. Grant after Vicksburg.

“Literary Scene” is a column about authors, books and publishing. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com