Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission
Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission
“The greatest World War II story never told” (Esquire)—an enthralling account of the heroic mission to rescue the last survivors of the Bataan Death March. On January 28, 1945, 121 hand-selected U.S. troops slipped behind enemy lines in the Philippines. Their mission: March thirty rugged miles to rescue 513 POWs languishing in a hellish camp, among them the last survivors of the infamous Bataan Death March. A recent prison massacre by Japanese soldiers elsewhere in the Philippines made the stakes impossibly high and left little time to plan the complex operation. In Ghost Soldiers Hampton Sides vividly re-creates this daring raid, offering a minute-by-minute narration that unfolds alongside intimate portraits of the prisoners and their lives in the camp. Sides shows how the POWs banded together to survive, defying the Japanese authorities even as they endured starvation, tropical diseases, and torture. Harrowing, poignant, and inspiring, Ghost Soldiers is the mesmerizing story of a remarkable mission. It is also a testament to the human spirit, an account of enormous bravery and self-sacrifice amid the most trying conditions.
- ASIN: 038549565X
- ISBN: 038549565X
- Brand: Anchor
- Manufacturer: Anchor
The Forgotten 500: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All for the Greatest Rescue Mission of World War II: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All ... the GreatestRescue Mission of World War II
The Forgotten 500: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All for the Greatest Rescue Mission of World War II: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All ... the GreatestRescue Mission of World War II
- ASIN: B001UID8DM
- Brand: Dutton Caliber
- Manufacturer: Dutton Caliber
On Desperate Ground: The Marines at The Reservoir, the Korean War's Greatest Battle
On Desperate Ground: The Marines at The Reservoir, the Korean War's Greatest Battle
"Superb...A masterpiece of thorough research, deft pacing and arresting detail...This war story — the fight to break out of a frozen hell near the Chosin Reservoir — has been told many times before. But Sides tells it exceedingly well, with fresh research, gritty scenes and cinematic sweep."—Washington PostFrom the New York Times bestselling author of Ghost Soldiers and In the Kingdom of Ice, a chronicle of the extraordinary feats of heroism by Marines called on to do the impossible during the greatest battle of the Korean WarOn October 15, 1950, General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of UN troops in Korea, convinced President Harry Truman that the Communist forces of Kim Il-sung would be utterly defeated by Thanksgiving. The Chinese, he said with near certainty, would not intervene in the war.As he was speaking, 300,000 Red Chinese soldiers began secretly crossing the Manchurian border. Led by some 20,000 men of the First Marine Division, the Americans moved deep into the snowy mountains of North Korea, toward the trap Mao had set for the vainglorious MacArthur along the frozen shores of the Chosin Reservoir. What followed was one of the most heroic--and harrowing--operations in American military history, and one of the classic battles of all time. Faced with probable annihilation, and temperatures plunging to 20 degrees below zero, the surrounded, and hugely outnumbered, Marines fought through the enemy forces with ferocity, ingenuity, and nearly unimaginable courage as they marched their way to the sea.Hampton Sides' superb account of this epic clash relies on years of archival research, unpublished letters, declassified documents, and interviews with scores of Marines and Koreans who survived the siege. While expertly detailing the follies of the American leaders, On Desperate Ground is an immediate, grunt's-eye view of history, enthralling in its narrative pace and powerful in its portrayal of what ordinary men are capable of in the most extreme ... [Read More]
- ASIN: 0385541155
- ISBN: 0385541155
- Manufacturer: Doubleday
Presidents of War
Presidents of War
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From a preeminent presidential historian comes a “monumental and profoundly important” (Ron Chernow) saga of America’s wartime chief executivesBILL GATES’S SUMMER READING LISTTen years in the research and writing, Presidents of War is a fresh, magisterial, intimate look at a procession of American leaders as they took the nation into conflict and mobilized their country for victory. It brings us into the room as they make the most difficult decisions that face any President, at times sending hundreds of thousands of American men and women to their deaths. From James Madison and the War of 1812 to recent times, we see them struggling with Congress, the courts, the press, their own advisors and antiwar protesters; seeking comfort from their spouses, families and friends; and dropping to their knees in prayer. We come to understand how these Presidents were able to withstand the pressures of war—both physically and emotionally—or were broken by them. Beschloss’s interviews with surviving participants in the drama and his findings in original letters, diaries, once-classified national security documents, and other sources help him to tell this story in a way it has not been told before. Presidents of War combines the sense of being there with the overarching context of two centuries of American history. This important book shows how far we have traveled from the time of our Founders, who tried to constrain presidential power, to our modern day, when a single leader has the potential to launch nuclear weapons that can destroy much of the human race.Praise for Presidents of War"A marvelous narrative. . . . As Beschloss explains, the greatest wartime presidents successfully leaven military action with moral concerns. . . . Beschloss’s writing is clean and concise, and he admirably draws upon new documents. Some of the more titillating tidbits in the book are in the footnotes. . . . There are fascinating nuggets on vir... [Read More]
- ASIN: 0307409600
- ISBN: 9780307409607
- Manufacturer: Crown
The Secret History of World War II: Spies, Code Breakers, and Covert Operations
The Secret History of World War II: Spies, Code Breakers, and Covert Operations
From top secret spy missions to recently declassified WWII documents, this richly illustrated account of the covert espionage operations of World War II takes readers behind the battle lines and into the undercover war effort. National Geographic’s landmark book includes recently released never-before-seen photographs, coded messages, classified maps, and more than 700 rare artifacts that shed light on the war's darkest secrets. This is the shocking story behind the covert activity that shaped the outcome of one of the world’s greatest conflicts—and the destiny of millions of people. Illuminating World War II as never before, this fascinating book takes you inside the secret lives of spies and spy masters; secret agents and secret armies; Enigma machines and code breakers; psychological warfare and black propaganda; secret weapons and secret battle strategies. Six heavily illustrated narrative chapters reveal the truth behind the lies and deception that shaped the secret war; six pictorial essays showcase hundreds of rare photos and artifacts (many never before seen); more than 45 specially created sidebars tell the stories of spies and secret operations. Renowned historian and top-selling author Stephen Hyslop reveals this little-known side of the war in captivating detail, weaving in extraordinary eyewitness accounts and information only recently declassified. Rare photographs, artifacts, and illuminating graphics enrich this absorbing reference book.
- ASIN: 1426217013
- ISBN: 1426217013
- Brand: National Geographic Society
- Manufacturer: National Geographic
Surviving The Forest: A WW2 Historical Novel, Based on a True Story of a Jewish Holocaust Survivor
Surviving The Forest: A WW2 Historical Novel, Based on a True Story of a Jewish Holocaust Survivor
Five shots on Saturday morning changed their fate …She was a beautiful and happy young woman who lived a fairytale life. Shurka, her beloved husband and their two small children lived in a pretty house in a village in Poland, surrounded by a little garden with lilies. This was their life and nothing could harm it, or so they thought…WWII broke out and though the happy family thought the Germans would never reach their idyllic village, they quickly understood they were wrong and their happiness came to a brutal end. The family had to flee their house and find shelter in a neighboring Ghetto where they realized that the Gestapo was taking Jews away on trucks every night, and they were never seen again.The family decided to escape into the deep dark forest. There, surrounded by animals, they knew that this was their only chance to get away from the real beasts. They had no idea what would await them, but they knew that doing nothing was not an option if they wanted to survive.
- ASIN: B07NDYGQ45
An Orphan's War: One of the best historical fiction books you will read this year
An Orphan's War: One of the best historical fiction books you will read this year
War rages, but the women and children of Liverpool’s Dr Barnardo’s Home cannot give up hope. An Orphan’s War is a gripping saga about love and loss on the Home Front.LIVERPOOL, 1940When her childhood sweetheart Johnny is killed in action, Maxine Grey loses more than her husband – she loses her best friend. Desperate to make a difference in this awful war, Maxine takes a nursing job at London’s St Thomas’s Hospital.A BROKEN HEARTMaxine takes comfort in the attentions of a handsome surgeon, but Edwin Blake might not be all he seems. And as the Blitz descends on the capital, Maxine returns to Liverpool heartbroken and surrounded by the threat of scandal.A BRAVE SPIRITWhen offered a job at a Dr Barnardo’s orphanage, Maxine hopes this is the second chance she has been looking for. And one little boy in particular helps her to realise that she needs the orphans just as much as they need her…A gripping story of love, friendship and hope in the darkest of places. Molly Green is an exciting new voice in saga fiction, perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries and Katie Flynn.
- ASIN: B076KFQTQD
- Manufacturer: Avon
World War II: The Definitive Visual History from Blitzkrieg to the Atom Bomb
World War II: The Definitive Visual History from Blitzkrieg to the Atom Bomb
World War II: The Definitive Visual History is a comprehensive, authoritative, yet accessible guide to the people, politics, events, and lasting effects of World War II. Perhaps the most complex, frightening, and destructive event in global history, the Second World War saw the heights of human courage and the depth of human degradation. World War II presents a complete overview of the war, including the rise of Hitler and the Nazi party, fascism, Pearl Harbor, Hiroshima, and the D-Day landings. This book also looks at the enduring effects of World War II during succeeding decades. Expanded with an all-new guide to battlefield and memorial sites and repackaged to honor the 70th anniversary of the end of the war, World War II: The Definitive Visual History covers key military figures, pivotal battles, political profiles, and strategies, as well as features on everyday life on the Home Front as ordinary citizens did their best to aid the war effort. Gallery spreads feature collections of uniforms, weapons, and other equipment. Maps, timelines, and side panels offer an inviting variety of entry point to the huge wealth of information.
- UPC: 790778036027
- ASIN: 1465436022
- ISBN: 1465436022
- Brand: Dorling Kindersley Publishing Staff
- Manufacturer: DK
The Things Our Fathers Saw-The Untold Stories of the World War II Generation-Volume II: War in the Air-From the Great Depression to Combat
The Things Our Fathers Saw-The Untold Stories of the World War II Generation-Volume II: War in the Air-From the Great Depression to Combat
"For all of us to be free, a few of us must be brave, and that is the history of America." But dying for freedom isn’t the worst that could happen. Being forgotten is. — “You flew with what I would call ‘controlled fear’. You were scared stiff, but it was controlled. My ball turret gunner—he couldn’t take it anymore… I guess he was right. He’s dead now. But he had lost control of the fear. He never got out of that ball turret; he died in that ball turret.” —B-24 bombardier ~THE LONG-AWAITED SEQUEL IN THE BEST SELLING ‘The Things Our Fathers Saw’ SERIES~How soon we forget. Or perhaps, we were never told. That is understandable, given what they saw. — “I spent a lot of time in hospitals. I had a lot of trouble reconciling how my mother died [of a cerebral hemorrhage] from the telegram she opened, saying I was [shot down and] “missing in action”. I didn’t explain to her the fact that ‘missing in action’ is not necessarily ‘killed in action’. You know? I didn’t even think about that. How do you think you feel when you find out you killed your mother?” —B-24 bombardier At the height of World War II, LOOK Magazine profiled a small upstate New York community for a series of articles portraying it as the wholesome, patriotic model of life on the home front. Seventy years later, a history teacher tracks down the veterans with a connection to “Hometown, USA” who fought the war in the air over Europe, men who were tempered in the tough times of the Great Depression and forged in battle. He rescues and resurrects firsthand accounts of combat and brotherhood, of captivity and redemption, and the aftermath of a war that left no American community unscathed. Here are the stories that the magazine could not tell, from a vanishing generation speaking to America today. — “I was in the hospital with a flak wound. The next mission, the entire crew was killed. The thing that haunts me is that I can’t put a face to the guy... [Read More]
- ASIN: B0737M5NDQ
We Were the Lucky Ones: A Novel
We Were the Lucky Ones: A Novel
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERInspired by the incredible true story of one Jewish family separated at the start of World War II, determined to survive—and to reunite—We Were the Lucky Ones is a tribute to the triumph of hope and love against all odds. “Love in the face of global adversity? It couldn't be more timely.” —Glamour It is the spring of 1939 and three generations of the Kurc family are doing their best to live normal lives, even as the shadow of war grows closer. The talk around the family Seder table is of new babies and budding romance, not of the increasing hardships threatening Jews in their hometown of Radom, Poland. But soon the horrors overtaking Europe will become inescapable and the Kurcs will be flung to the far corners of the world, each desperately trying to navigate his or her own path to safety. As one sibling is forced into exile, another attempts to flee the continent, while others struggle to escape certain death, either by working grueling hours on empty stomachs in the factories of the ghetto or by hiding as gentiles in plain sight. Driven by an unwavering will to survive and by the fear that they may never see one another again, the Kurcs must rely on hope, ingenuity, and inner strength to persevere. An extraordinary, propulsive novel, We Were the Lucky Ones demonstrates how in the face of the twentieth century’s darkest moment, the human spirit can endure and even thrive.
- ASIN: 0399563091
- ISBN: 0399563091
- Manufacturer: Penguin Books