I've used HAProxy in a similar setup and I highly recommend it. It can run very well on a single server and you only need two servers for load balancing in case you want high availability.
I just yesterday created a configuration where NGINX server as a load balancer, behind which there are 2 PHP-FPM servers, 1 Memcache server and 1 MySQL server. NGINX was configured using Upstreaming feature and the related configuration lines are something like this.
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.