The Last Escape: The Untold Story of Allied Prisoners of War in Europe 1944-45 by John Nichol

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The story is not untold, just not heard as often as the stories of the American prisoners held by the Japanese during WWII. The Germans treated prisoners awfully, as illustrated by the true stories in this book.



The death marches were unbelievable. Some marched over 400 miles with very little clothing, no food, and the worst winter Germany saw in over 50 years. I found the resolve for these men to survive to be remarkable. The most incredible fact is that more POWs didn't die considering what they went through. I was particularly moved by the description of a POW afraid to go to sleep one night because he was sure he would freeze to death. Truly inspirational and fascinating stories. The sacrifices these men made are hard to fathom.



The only reason I didn't give this book 5 stars is because of the writing style. I'm nit-picky, I know, but the writing didn't flow enough to grip me. The stories were gripping, but the writing could have been more creative.



Still, I strongly recommend this book. It relates facts that we should all be aware of.



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