Escapees May-June 2023

from the bookshelf

Books for RVers By MARCELLA GAUTHIER #12371

Two Survived: The Timeless WWII Epic of Seventy Days at Sea in an Open Boat GUY PEARCE JONES • THE LYONS PRESS 2008 • ISBN: 978-1-59921-430-6 PAPERBACK: $16.87 • HARDCOVER: $25.59 OLD EDITION FROM RANDOM HOUSE 1941 On August 1940, a Nazi raider torpedoed a British merchant ship and completed the attack by machine gunning all the survivors as they tried to escape. However, seven men escaped but only two survived beyond 70 days. This is the harrowing true story of their escape and rescue 2,300 miles across the open sea. Since the original story was published a year after the event, the style and terminology may be somewhat dated but that doesn’t diminish the dramatic impact of the story. The adventures of these two seamen from two different British backgrounds, as they began their seago ing lives, is also interesting when you discover what sailor’s lives were like in the 1930s. Black and white photos of the two men and their tiny open boat and in the once-current newspaper clippings add details to their story. The Forgotten 500: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All for the Greatest Rescue Mission of World War II Wow! This is an astonishing story of a hidden incident kept secret for almost 50 years. It is a breathtaking story of hundreds of American servicemen shot down in Nazi occupied Yugoslavia. Local farmers and peasants gave refuge to the men, but it was very dangerous and the American bases in Italy were not even sure of the number of survivors, or where they were located. Besides, any rescue would have to take into account the region’s mountainous ranges needing to be crossed for a rescue attempting to avoid the well-armed Nazi forti fi cations. And there were the logistic problems of creating landing fi elds, taking off and returning to safety. Amazon indicates that there are more than 7,000 recent reviews and comments for this book. It is completely understandable when you begin reading it. In addi GREGORY A FREEMAN • DUTTON CALIBER 2017 • ISBN: 978-0-451-22495-8 HARDCOVER: $46.12 • PAPERBACK: $12.30 • KINDLE: $13.99 • AUDIO CD: $27.29 tion, the reason why this rescue adventure was kept secret for so many years is a result of betrayal and political intrigue. The Balkan region has always been an area of unrest until recently. Many unforgettable black-and-white photos make this story seem personal as you gaze at the faces of rescued airmen, Yugoslavian farmers and peasants, and Of fi ceof Strategic Services (OSS) agents. This is an absolutely amazing book, with lots of stories of the bravery and fortitude of resi dents of Yugoslavia, downed airmen and OSS operatives who managed to build landing strips and to rescue the “Forgotten 500” under the watchful Nazi occupiers. Truly a “must read” for anyone with an interest in military stories, World War II memora bilia or almost anyone who loves a well-crafted adventure book. It’s not a book that is easily put down unread.

This issue features two books that are heart-stopping stories of two unique World War II incidents. The fi rst, a survival story of two men at the beginning of the war in 1940 when the Nazis controlled the seas around Europe endangering merchant ships. Usually unarmed and unprotected, these ships found it was a dangerous undertaking to attempt to provide supplies to our allies. The second book is a little known tale of the rescue e ff orts of the American forces in Italy to evacuate over 500 downed Amer ican and allied airmen from the Nazi held territory of Yugoslavia. These airmen had been on bombing runs to the German-held oil fi elds in Romania. This well-written journalistic book and its account of the events that have been hidden for almost 50 years.

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May/June 2023 ESCAPEES Magazine