Book Description
The first personal documentation of life in the North Korean labor camps from a survivor and escapee of the communist regime's prisons.
North Korea is today one of the last bastions of hard-line Communism. Its leaders have kept a tight grasp on their one-party regime, quashing any nascent opposition movements and sending all suspected dissidents to its brutal concentration camps for "re-education." Kang Chol-hwan is the first survivor of one of these camps to escape and tell his story to the world, documenting the extreme conditions in these gulags and providing a personal insight into life in North Korea. Part horror story, part historical document, part memoir, part political tract, this record of one man's suffering gives eyewitness proof to an ongoing sorrowful chapter of modern history.
Customer Reviews:
A Chilling Story, Compellingly Told.......2007-06-16
Abject stories of horror are difficult to take in. We sometimes turn aside when reading the horror because our minds find it hard to digest the bleak facts.
While this book is filled with horrors -- families torn asunder, abuse of pregnant women, torture by prison guards, among many other recountings -- the story is still told with humanity and grace, and ultimately ends with hope, if not happiness.
The story of such regimes as North Korea must be told. And because we are inclined to forget, the story must be told over and over, so that we are not fooled by the lies of the North, the excuses made by the North's apologists, and the occasional public smiles of Kim Jong-il.
This is a well-written, engaging story. I don't easily rate an item with 5 stars, but this deserves the 5 and more.
A sobering reality of North Korean gulag........2007-06-08
A story about how things went from good to bad, and ultimately the worst in North Korea right after their war of independence. A truly evil government is exposed in this book. All governments on earth are evil one way or the other, but the North Korean one is one of those that take home the evilness trophies.
Sometime things are difficult to believe because they are so true.......2007-05-27
This is one of the few books that I was compelled to read through in one sitting. His personal accounts of the life in Yoduk concentration camp are vivid and almost too surreal to believe. Sadly the story didn't end with his release from Yoduk concentration camp or his subsequent flight to South Korea via China. There are still millions people suffering in various prison camps. In fact, the entire state of North Korea is a big prison camp.
The worst part of the reality is that there are still people (though minority) who sympathize with North Korean regime. Unbelievably, there are still some people in the world who either idealize the North Korean government or help sustain the current regime. This book should help dispell any illusions associated with North Korea and compel us to help the suffering people there.
Chilling, but Uplifting.......2007-05-24
I read Mr. Chol-Hwan's story late last year. Recently, I was discussing NK with someone and I recommended this book. President Bush has been pilloried by many on the left for his labeling of this evil regime as part of the "Axis of Evil"---and trust me, when you read Mr. Chol-Hwan's account, you will agree. What I find most curious about those who criticized the president, is their almost universal regard for similar dictatorships in Cuba and Venezuela---dictators cut from the same Leninist-Stalinist cloth.
Mr. Chol-Hwan's suffering, and the suffering of his family should not be ignored, nor should his steadfast determination to desire and ultimately achieve freedom.
A little reality goes a long way---there is evil in this world, much as the left would have us believe otherwise---and Mr. Chol-Hwan's account serves to place an exclamation point on the notion. A must read, highly recommended.
"Aquariums of Pyongyang".......2007-02-09
"Aquariums of Pyongyang" details the experiences of a young man and his family in North Korea's gulag system. It is one of several recent biographies that show the violence and aburdity in North Korea. Considering what Kang Chol-Hwan has been through, it is a wonder that he is adjusting to life outside the prisons.
Book Description
During the course of his military career, Bud Day won every available combat medal, escaped death on no less than seven occasions, and spent 67 months as a POW in the infamous Hanoi Hilton, along with John McCain. Despite sustained torture, Day would not break. He became a hero to POWs everywhere--a man who fought without pause, not a prisoner of war, but a prisoner at war.Upon his return, passed over for promotion to Brigadier General, Day retired. But years later, with his children grown and a lifetime of service to his country behind him, he would engage in another battle, this one against an opponent he never had expected: his own country. On his side would be the hundreds of thousands of veterans who had fought for America only to be betrayed. And what would happen next would make Bud Day an even greater legend.
Customer Reviews:
Heroes, not losers.......2007-10-01
This will help you remember how this country was founded by heroes, not losers. The beginning was a little slow, but the time in Hanoi was just riveting, and I had to stop to cry more than once. It should be required reading for liberals, so that they can remember how the peace movement is seen by enemy nations.
American Patriot Stands Tall.......2007-08-13
As a former Misty FAC I thought I knew Bud Day, but after reading American Patriot I realized I was dead wrong. Robert Coram's book profiles a man with a seemingly inexhaustible reservoir of courage and an unimpeachable sense of honor---all of which he gladly placed at the disposal of his country throughout his life. The book is carefully detailed and written in a manner that even the "great unwashed" who were not fighter pilots can understand. The descriptive scenes involving his torture as a POW are painful to read at times, yet I know that they were not exaggerated---and that's what makes them all the more disturbing.
The words "honor", "integrity" and "heroes" have been trivialized in our society to the extent that few people know or care what they mean any more. In an ideal world these subjects would be addressed in school, or at least discussed at home. But we do not live in a perfect world, therefore, I suggest that American Hero be required reading in every high school and college in America. A profound and moving book.
Viet Nam veteran and book lover.......2007-07-24
This book belongs in a catagory by itself. It confirms what I aready suspected about the main stream media. It introduced me to a new Americian hero. God Bless Colonel Bud Day, his wife, and God Bless America
American Patriot.......2007-07-17
Superb...this book should be required reading for all those in high schools and Military Academies. The book really details the character of this wonderful American and shows how a man ... with God's help...can endure and prevail under the most trying of circumstances.
Thank You Mr. Coram.......2007-07-07
This book should be required reading for all Americans. A copy is ready for my 3 year old son to read when he's able to.
Why didn't I know about Bud Day before this book? The man is a hero and legend and yet I've never seen a glowing profile of this man in our mainstream media. Children in this country should learn about Bud Day and men like him as part of their curriculum.
I hope Mr. Coram is inspiring writers to follow in his footsteps. I also hope Mr. Coram has some books left in his clip. "Boyd" is a tremendous book in its own right and this book just has me wanting to read more about the people who have done far more for their country than ever imagined.
While some may point to the fact that Mr. Coram does not get into macro-political issues that overshadowed Col Day's life I think most readers understand that is not the point of this book. This book is about educating all of us about what a hero looks like, talks like and acts like.
This book will grab you and demand your attention. Thank you Colonel Day. You are an inspiration Sir.
Book Description
One of the most memorable books to come out of the Vietnam War. General Risner's plane was shot down in 1965 on a bombing mission over North Vietnam. Interned in the infamous "Hanoi Hilton", Risner was subjected to brutal tortures and privations. The tactics that he used to survive were not those of a superman, but rather those of a man who knew his own limits and had the courage to face up to them.
What emerges is a story of faith in God and country, of heroism and humanity. This is a vital document for anyone seeking to come to grips with the actuality and legacy of this painful conflict.
Customer Reviews:
Colonel Risner and his seven year imprisonment........2006-06-13
This book was originally written in 1973 and details the violations of the Geneva Convention by the North Vietnamese. Colonel Risner details how he first resisted the North Vietnamese and later signed statements after extreme torture. The North Vietnamese were very cruel to their captured POWs. It is a wonder why we didn't have protesters telling the world of the inhumane practices of the North Vietnamese government.
This is a nice read on how these American patriots resisted the efforts of the North Vietnamese to break their spirit. As Colonel Risner would say, you found God in prison and faith in the American system. It is amazing this man spent 7 and a half years with little food, lots of torture, and still maintained his faith in the American system. This is an inspirational read.
A Man of Great Dignity Who Never Lost the Common Touch.......2006-02-28
I had the privilege and honor of meeting and getting to know General Risner shortly after he was appointed as commander of
the 832nd Air Division at Cannon AFB, New Mexico, in 1973.
He was a humble and gracious gentleman of great dignity. I was
blessed to get to know him personally and to jointly procure a copy of the movie: In The Presence of Mine Enemies, for showing at the base chapel. On the day of my release from active duty I purchased his book and, it being a Saturday, visited him in his office, entering with his permission through his private entrance and he graciously signed the book for me with a personal message for future success. The book is a must read for anyone who considers themself an American, as all Americans should become aware of the sacrifices of people like General Risner in keeping us free. Sadly, I loaned the book to a friend
and never had it returned. But I will never forget General Risner's story, not the man himself. Knowing him was truly one of the best blessing I have experienced in my 54 years of life.
You must read this book!
"The real battlefronts were the capitals of the world and the streets of America.".......2006-02-25
I don't know how I missed this book when it came out in 1973.I lived in the United States from 1963 to 1974 and witnessed first hand the anti war movement that worked so hard to undermine America's efforts in Vietnam.It's often been said that America did not lose the war in Vietnam ,in fact they never even lost a major battle.The only loss that occurred was in the media and on the streets and demonstrations.The real result of the war was that the worldwide march of Communism was halted with Vietnam.
The story of the courage of these prisoners ,their love and loyalty to their country,their refusal to give in to their torturers combined with their faith in God and undying belief of liberty ,freedom and justice are proof that America is not only the world's greatest superpower but deserves to be.As long as people of the character we see in this book continue to come forward ,America ,and all it stands for,will continue to be challenged but will never be defeated or brought to submission.
This book may well be one of the greatest books to come out of the Vietnam War.I remember a movie that came out of WW11 called "The Purple Heart",I believed it starred Dana Andrews. It reminded me of the similar evil that took place and the way Japan treated their prisoners of war.
This book is particularly worth reading now because we see many of the same things at work in The War on Terror.
On page 163 where the "Delegations" were to interview the prisoners.The prisoners were told they would be asked,"How do you think the war should be settled?".They were told to reply,"The United States should should withdraw all troops from South Vietnam,dismantle all bases,and cease all aid to the puppet government of Thieu".
Sounds a lot familiar to what you hear the left wing saying about the War on Terror,doesn't it? Those immortal words,"Lest We Forget" should be kept in mind.
Throughout history,it the courage we have seen in men such as these prisoners of war,that gives us the freedoms we enjoy today,and hopefully in the future.
May God Bless America and the people who love and serve her.
Travis.......2006-01-13
As a member of the United States Air Force, I can say that this book is truly a story of honor and courage. I had the opportunity to meet General Risner before he passed away and he is a true hero. This book talks in great detail of the horrible things that many of the POWs went through in this awful conflict. After reading this book I realized how blessed I am. It is a honor to follow in the footsteps of such brave men. We need more heros and role models like General Risner. I would recommend this book to everyone.
An Unforgettable Memoir!!!.......2004-07-13
I couldn't put this excellent book down. From the first page I was hooked! The author is humble, courageous, and maintained his dignity through some gruesome torture and confinement in a North Vietnamese prison. Exciting and inspiring was his faith in God also which kept his spirit uplifted during his imprisonment. A must read for anyone interested in Vietnam and the harrowing aspects of that awful war.
Customer Reviews:
Still Relevant to the black subculture..........2007-07-20
Fear is a powerful weapon which inspires men to commit terrible acts of savagry. Fear of George L. Jackson led the U.S., Government, the state of California and several agencies of state repression to silence the voice of a great black thinker. This text attests to the fearless nature and level of thought George Jackson was cable of displaying. The courage to formulate and express such thoughts as "the time has come for all of us to stand up and stop trembling, grab the bull by the horns, and ride him till his neck snaps," required courage. In the face of oppossition, repression and incarceration Jackson dared to challenge the authority first of the inmate power structure, the department of corrections, state of California and U.S., government.
This could not be tolerated. So is there any wonder that a man of Jackson's capacity met an early death? Could there be any doubt that a man who could speak on the black subculture of America and its propensity to take "one step forward and three backward," would become a source of contention. When was the last time the black subculture produced a philosopher, warrior, general and poet "It is by words that we convey our thoughts, and bend people to our will."
It would have been more desireable "for some," had George remained stuck in the hopeless cycle of criminality that led to his trapping to begin with but the growth he demonstrated through self-inspired determination, a new kind of black hero was born. He joined the ranks of Malcolm X as a man who could indeed be redemned and accepted, if not by society at large then at least by the black subculture which he sought to influence and organize. So when the day came for George to die on his feet, his enemies undoubtably saw the terror of the dragon which inspired fear in the hearts and minds of their ancestors thousands of years ago when the warriors carrying the dragon as their symbol ruled as conquerers in ancient times.
Riveting, Shocking, Infuriating and Brilliant.......2005-09-30
All the verbs above describe the text and the man. Incarcerated, unjustly at that, at the age of 18, this beautiful Man-Child went on to become a brilliant writer, and also, tragically, a martyr of 20th century oppression. Killed in prison at the age of 29, George Jackson's living body is no longer here with us, still his spirit shines and lives on through his probing literature. Much can be said of prison literare, however to consider George Jackson's writings 'prison literature' would be to minimize its power. George Jackson's writings are revolutionary literature par excellence; his writings stand next to Fanon, Rodney and Trotsky. Let us remember George Jackson by reading him, and let us not forget what was done to him. Long Live George Jackson.
An Essential Text.......2002-09-13
A must read for people of all ages, races, nationalities, genders, classes, et. al. A masterpiece of the form. Gloriously flawed, like all of us. So much more than the sum of its parts. George and Jonathan Live.
Worthwhile but don't get carried away.......2001-09-28
This collection of letters by Jackson is well worth reading for several reasons. First, as several other reviewers point out, it provides a valuable (if by now slightly dated) insight into the American penal system. Second, it illustrates the tragedy of people with Jackson's potential being diverted (whether you believe by racism, socio-economic circumstances, poor judgment, or whatever) into the self-perpetuating criminal/penal complex. However, I think some of the raves are overrated. Jackson clearly was an intelligent man who could have accomplished much if his engergies were otherwise directed. But he lacks perspective; the tone is often stridently self-justifying, and he lacks any real moral insight into the magnitude of the violence and pain he inflicted on others.
Great book, but.............2001-08-16
This is a great collection of the prison letters of the Black Panther prison leader George Jackson. Only problem is that we don't see the letters that George jakcson is responding to, so that we may get a better context of what's going on here. It would also be interesting to see what Bill Cosby had/has to say about Jackson's criticism of him (for Cosby's role as a CIA agent in the "I Spy" show of the 60s).
Book Description
James Hirsch recounts one of the great friendships of the twentieth century forged in one of the most horrific settings that century produced--a North Vietnamese POW camp its inmates called the Zoo. One prisoner, Fred Cherry, was a pioneering air force pilot and the first black officer captured by the North Vietnamese. The other, a young navy flier named Porter Halyburton, was a racist southerner who doubted that a black man could even be a pilot. Their captors threw them into the same fetid cell, believing that their antipathy toward each other would break them both. But Cherry and Halyburton overcame their initial suspicions and saved each other's lives. When Halyburton first saw him, Cherry was a wreck. One arm, damaged in his plane crash, hung uselessly at his side. He hadn't bathed in weeks, and he could barely walk. In his own mind, Cherry was steeling himself for death. Halyburton was also weakening, emotionally battered from the interrogations and isolation that his sheltered life had not prepared him for. He had to learn how to endure, or he would become one of the incoherent wraiths who haunted the Zoo. Halyburton and Cherry became legendary among fellow POWs for the singular friendship that enabled them to overcome prodigious suffering and unspeakable torture. Hirsch weaves through this account a surprising, sometimes shocking view of the toll these men's captivity took on their loved ones. While Cherry's family was sundered by his absence, Halyburton's bond with his wife, Marty, endured and deepened. We see her receive the news of her husband's death, and we share her mingled elation and fear when she later learns that he is in fact alive and imprisoned. We also witness her unlikely rise to a leading role in the battle to bring the POWs home. Often inspiring, sometimes heartbreaking, Two Souls Indivisible shows how trust and hope can cheat death, and how good people can achieve greatness in hellish circumstances.
Customer Reviews:
A "Thanks"giving Day Well Spent.......2006-11-26
I spent the Thanksgiving 2006 Holiday wrapped up in a book that clearly made me appreciate how fortunate we truly are!!! Two Souls Indivisible is one the best written novels I have ever read. James Hirsh is an outstanding writer and does a superb job not only with the development of the two main characters but also captures the torment and hell all of our POW's went thru -- notwithstanding the race relations aspect which is also described in much detail and serves as the underderlying theme. Whether you are a history buff and someone who is looking for a superb book -- this is it. Some of the details are graphic but it is truly necessary so that the reader appreciates the chaos and sheer brutality that these men were faced with. Five stars doesn't do justice -- make it 10 out of 10.
Compelling story of friendship and survival.......2005-04-26
Hirsch recounts the friendship that developed between two aviators who were shot down in North Vietnam and endured seven years of imprisonment and torture. Fred Cherry was the first black pilot captured by the Vietnamese, a hot fighter jock and a pioneer in integrating the Air Force. Porter Halyburton was a southern gentleman, steeped in the racial relationships of the old South. Cherry was a Major with combat tours in Korea; Halyburton a young Lieutenant j.g. Although they spent only seven months in the same cell, each credits the other with saving his life as their captors slowly bled the will to live from them. The author also recounts the travails of the two wives, of whom one became a leader in the POW movement and the other declared her husband dead and refused to accept his return. The author skillfully avoids both treacly sentimentalism and excessive gore and concentrates on the leadership and mutual support that kept the survivors alive through years of isolation, abuse, and starvation. Certainly worth reading.
From A Family Member.......2004-12-28
I read this book on the advise of a cousin in Montana. And when I finished, I remembered sitting with my mother and crying as we saw Uncle Fred's name on the list of released POW's. I was in my junior year in college at the time. I have kept an article from Jet Magazine of an interview that he gave just after he was released. Much of what he said in that article is in this book; just fleshed out to the full, long, seven years. I knew some of it then; I know a lot more now. I am very proud that this book was written about these two men, my Uncle and Mr. Halyburton. They are living history. And Mr. Hirsch does a wonderful job of presenting them as just that-real history-real people.
Absolutely Awesome.......2004-08-06
I read this book expecting a lot of "war" data. But what I received was far beyond what I expected. It was fantastic. It did just what it set out to do, which was capture the comradry and the "Two Souls Indivisible" and their plights together. I have the pleasure of knowing Fred Cherry and he is a wonderful man. After reading the book, I have another level of respect for him and what he has accomplished.
Torture and POWs.......2004-07-07
James Hirsch has written an inspirational account of two American POWs, Fred Cherry, an African-American fighter-bomber pilot, and Porter Halyburton, a southern white jet navigator. Both were shot down flying missions over North Vietnam and spent seven-plus years in prison camps. The author weaves considerable biographical material on the two servicemen into descriptions of their capture, interrogations, torture and harsh prison conditions. The book draws on extensive interviews with the two flyers, their families, fellow POWs, other military colleagues and close friends.
The narrative depicts how POWs struggled to maintain dignity, sense of honor to the U.S. military and mutual support in the face of cruel treatment by North Vietnamese captors. This reader has for years wondered what POWs endured while imprisoned. No longer, for this book presents graphic descriptions of horrible prison conditions and physical and psychological torture. Anyone with strong views on the Vietnam War, pro or con, would find this book engaging.
The discussions of Vietnamese torture and abuse of American servicemen make distressing reading in light of revelations about U.S. mistreatment of prisoners in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantánamo and the legal justifications for it offered by some U.S. government officials. At times the Vietnamese denied POW status to captured Americans. When Major Cherry refused to answer questions in his first interrogation and showed his Geneva Convention card outlining his rights as a prisoner, his Vietnamese interrogator barked, "Forget about it. You're a criminal." (p.33)
People have tortured each other for thousands of years. Sometimes torturers sought military advantage; other times, enforcement of religious beliefs; or they simply needed to dominate. Gravensteen Castle's torture museum (Ghent, Belgium) contains an array of medieval Europe's crueler torture instruments, a sober reminder of how deeply ingrained human cruelty is.
This long history of torture might easily engender cynicism about the Geneva Conventions or any other rules attempting to restrain human cruelty. The drafters of the U.S. Constitution, however, displayed optimism, banning "cruel and unusual punishment."
According to Hirsch, U.S. POWs evinced similar optimism. Major Cherry recounts his relief that a uniformed Vietnamese was in charge of his capture, for "he assumed that a soldier, even a Communist, was more likely to respect a prisoner of war. According to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 - which North Vietnam had signed - POWs were to be treated humanely." (p.30) Halyburton's wife, a POW activist, optimistically declared: "All we ask is that North Vietnam adhere to the conditions of the Geneva Conventions, that they identify the prisoners they hold, and they protect them from abuse. That's all we ask." (p.210)
Hirsch cautiously avoids raising any "coulda shoulda wouldas" of the Vietnam War. That's not his story. Yet, the narrative makes clear that support for the Vietnam War was an important psychological need of the POWs and many other combatants. How else to make it through still another day of torture or fighting thousands of miles from home? That psychological need, however, can hardly become the justification for any war. The U.S. political system demands extreme prudence of its leadership when engaging troops and a thorough debate of the issues. Hirsch's book poignantly reminds readers how U.S. troops ultimately bear the consequences of war-making decisions.
The issue of race figures prominently in the book. Porter Halyburton, a southern white officer, must confront the views he absorbed from a racially segregated society when he cares for Major Fred Cherry, an African-American POW and his cellmate. Major Cherry, in turn, must bury years of racial insults and slights. The account of how both men ultimately bridge this racial divide is truly a message of hope.
This reader winced, however, at the description of Halyburton's overcoming his segregationist upbringing as being the moment when "Cherry had ceased being black." (p.133) It's not clear if this is Halyburton's or Hirsch's expression. Perhaps the words didn't come out right. Still, it would have been more satisfying in this reader's mind to hear Halyburton exclaim that he, Halyburton, had ceased being white.
Average customer rating:
- Integrity of a Hero and the Grace of God
- An Engaging and Inspirational Book
- a book you can't put down- Unchained Eagle
- From Hanoi to Palm Desert
- Lessons from an Everyman's Hero
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Unchained Eagle: From Prisoner of War to Prisoner of Christ
Robert G. Certain
Manufacturer: ETC Publications
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Binding: Hardcover
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Customer Reviews:
Integrity of a Hero and the Grace of God .......2007-02-13
This dynamic memoir is written with much candor,humor,and passion. The author allows us to see deep inside his heart to experience the pain, the joys,the thoughts and the emotions as this living account of God's mercy and grace come alive.
The author responded to his own internal compass that was instilled in him by his parents as a child. This was a faith that held steadfast in the face of evil and death. This revealing biography will take you through the fog and friction of war,the deprivation of a prison camp,his calling of God to the priesthood;balancing married life,children,ministry and Air Force responsibilities that will transform you in unexpected ways.
An Engaging and Inspirational Book.......2007-01-30
From the time that I started reading the first page of Unchained Eagle until I finished reading the last page, I was completely absorbed in the account of Father Certain's life as a military officer and church leader. His story is an inspiration to those of us who lived through the Vietnam era and who are also engaged in our churches. He has provided special insights into the trama that the war experience caused for many military personnel, especially whose who were prisioners of war, and has described a strategy for addressing our personal and spiritual problems through our faith in God and support from God's servants. I highly recommend Unchained Eagle as a must-read autobiographical work.
a book you can't put down- Unchained Eagle.......2007-01-10
A well done account of the authors feeling and thoughts from being shot down in a B-52 to becoming and being an Episcopal priest. He gives detail but he makes it so readable that I found it a real page turner. A very interesting look at how the author deals with his Post Traumatic Stress from his ordeal. I recommend it.
From Hanoi to Palm Desert.......2006-12-28
It is very rare for me to take a book of this nature.I was glued to it from cover to cover. Unchained Eagle is not just a re-count of events made only for vietnam veterans or for episcopelians,has been written for all who want to keep his/her believes against all obstacles in life.
Unchained Eagle shows us the true price of freedom.
Lessons from an Everyman's Hero.......2004-03-31
Robert Certain's biographical sketch is more than the story of one Vietnam POW who survived his ordeal with strength, honor and integrity. It is truly the story of one man wrestling with his call to serve, first as a Navigator over targets in Vietnam and then over flocks of Christians seeking God through the Church. Fr. Certain's tale cuts to the core of what it means to serve and serve faithfully. Beyond the loyalty to his oath as an officer Certain presents a compelling story of his loyalty to his devoted wife who stands by him during his time in the Hanoi Hilton and then, how his faith in God made him give himself over to Christ.
For those who knew the times and appreciated what our Veterans did for their nation it is a compelling tale. For those born after the Vietnam War Robert Certain's book will help you capture the times and trials of this troubled period through the eyes of one who lived it vividly. Every veteran can share in his fears, hopes, joys, adventures and ultimate victory over his captors. Every Christian can find their own path to redemption by accompanying Fr. Certain on his journey from Prisoner of War to Prisoner of Christ.
Book Description
Shot down on his fiftieth mission over North Vietnam, Major Larry Guarino was the eleventh American to be captured during the Vietnam War. Through eight years of humiliation and imprisonment which included physical and mental torture, and through the bleakest periods of suffering and despair, Guarino never lost his courage, his patriotism, or his will to live. His riveting tale of survival is truly a triumph of the human spirit.
Customer Reviews:
Fine Writing, Egotistical POW.......2006-08-07
The writing and story seemed fine. It certainly had personality and flair. After a while though, the stories seemed a bit of a stretch. Guarino was the only one who could schmooze his captors into better treatment. Guarino was the one who reprimanded and instructed the more well-known POW's (Kasler, etc.) Guarino was wiser than other SRO's who advocated detrimental behaviors (Denton and fasting). Guarino was the one who had his hand on moving events (Denton speech at Clark AFB).
I'm sure the guy went through hell and more than I could ever take but the story really started to smack of someone trying to justify and prove his heroics. His heroics stood for themselves -- they didn't need to be built off the backs of others.
Fine writing and overall a fine story but starts to stretch credulity.
The Hell My Grandfather went thru!.......2006-02-02
This book is a true story that My Grandfather went thru after being shot down in the Vietnam War. He was Bound Tied and Tortured almost daily. They did not break him. I applaud you Grandpa for writing this book. You are my Hero!
David
A Book That Made Me Ill.......2000-06-22
This book takes a harsh look at the truth of life of an American POW in Vietnam. Reading the horrid things done to our POW's would make me ill at times but it also gave me an even greater respect for the people who served in the Vietnam War. Our POW's went through a lot and if you'd like to experience that first hand, read this book!
A more personal perspective.......1999-12-06
As the young son of an Air Force officer, I was close to the family during the period of captivity. I only wish there was more in the book of the incredible courage of the entire family. The oldest son went to Vietnam and flew as a Forward Air Controller. The wife was deeply involved in the grass-roots effort to free the POWs and I was deeply touched by her courage, devotion and faith. I once saw the middle son save a young boy after the boy was attacked by a shark. It is often difficult to identify true courage, but here is an entire family. This is a great book of courage from the courageous father of a courageous family.
painfully heartbreaking...wonderful.......1999-10-14
I have read several accounts of the Vietnam POW's and this one was the most emotional for me. I am glad that he had the courage to point out the traitorous and despicable behavior of people like Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden. What these men had to go through is in the face of such cowardice by these traitors is incomprehensible to me. God bless you Col. Guarino... your efforts are profoundly appreciated!
Average customer rating:
- Stupendous, Profound, Brilliant, Disturbing, Beautiful
- Not great, but still good
- A diverse account of life in a Vietnam POW camp.
- Dying Was Easy; Surviving in the Jungle Was a Daily Struggle
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Survivors
Zalin Grant
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
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Binding: Paperback
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Prisoners of War
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Southeast Asia
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ASIN: 0306805618 |
Book Description
A classic of war reportage: The true story of five dreadful years in a Viet Cong prison.
In plainspoken first-person reports from nine American POWs, Survivors recounts five grueling years in a Viet Cong jungle prison. This is war as only prisoners could experience it, recounted with gripping immediacy and a courage that triumphed over despair.
Customer Reviews:
Stupendous, Profound, Brilliant, Disturbing, Beautiful.......2003-07-20
This is one of the greatest books that I have read on the Vietnam War subject, and I have read many; its limited scope notwithstanding. Ostensibly, this book is the graphic of the experiences of a discrete number of men kept captive by the VC/NVA command. However, due to the complex subtleties of the book's structure, it becomes a bit more than this, especially because it encompasses a wider array of U.S. prisoners, and also Europeans, and South Vietnamese soldiers and mercenaries. The author has chosen to extract excerpts of interviews that he must have given to those men who volunteered to speak with him. The largest part of the book is given over to a group held in high mountain jungle camps in South Vietnam, and then of their march North to Hanoi and finally of theirs and others experiences in the so-called Hanoi Hilton. We are privileged to experience the lives of these men through their own eyes. We witness brutality, humiliation, bravery, cowardice, fear, humour, death, disease, insanity, depravity and, yes, love and friendship; both internecine and between the prisoners and their 'enemies.' The Vietnam War was, for the United States, a complex situation to say the least. The POW experience there does a wonderful job of conveying the complexities and difficulties this war posed for our society. Suffice it to say that one is left with a sense of awe for the strength and forbearance of these 'survivors' (but for one of the men, Theodore Guy, whose understandably disturbing and distorted views are explored a bit later in the book). One of the most beautiful aspects of this book is the testimonials that various POW's give to explain and ameliorate the weaknesses and 'failings' of their fellow prisoners. I was also struck by the underlying humility with which the prisoners spoke of their own experiences, some of which involved personal valor and heroism that all but one of the prisoners left unsaid, only to have their secrets unveiled by a different prisoner. I say that there is one stand out voice here that is filled with anger, hatred and braggadocio and that voice is Mr. Guy's. It stands in stark contrast to the testimony of the other prisoners, and one can't help but think that the author intentionally included this point of view. Guy was the senior officer in the so-called Hanoi Hilton for much of the time he was imprisoned and was unrepentantly gung ho during his tenure there. He set up lines of communication between the prisoners in order to help give strength to his fellow Americans and to enforce his policies of resistance to the enemy and to maintain this united front. He is embittered by the fact that a small contingent of the Americans there, members of the so-called Peace Committee, were cooperating with the enemy by making tapes and writing letters that condemned the American participation in the war. He even went so far as to attempt to stir up a firestorm after he returned home by going to the press with allegations of treason against some of these now-returned prisoners. Oh, and he also gets a few kicks in against his wife's activities while he was held prisoner. What makes this unadulterated venom such a bad reflection upon Guy's character is that, while he despises these men for their weaknesses, he admits himself that he was guilty of doing very similar things, but of course he only does them after he has reached the end of his mental and physical limits. It is an unfortunate truth that self-centered people are simply incapable of comprehending that different people are well, different. To wit, every man has his breaking point, his was simply different than those he condemns. Furthermore, he alone, in the telling of his initial capture incident tells of gung ho die hard heroic battle in the face of overwhelming odds. It strikes one as darned odd that nobody else, even men who describe fighting to the end, try to make themselves look like heroes. Anyway, you as the reader will be the judge of whether Guy's contrapuntal account strikes you as being somehow self-serving and inappropriate. Oh, there are two other accounts in the book that are equally disturbing. The first is of an American fellow who went over to the Vietcong. One wonders what that guy was thinking, tellingly, the prisoners who knew him best offer very interesting insights into his motivations and character without being accusatory. There is another account from one of the fellows that Guy hated most, John Young who was the 'chief' collaborator in the 'Hanoi Hilton.' He activities seem to have been disliked by every one, even those who were sympathetic to the so-called Peace Committee. I suppose that it goes to show that there just may be one in every crowd, and also that it is precisely for this that we should avoid placing our fellow countrymen into situations that can expose these fatal character flaws if at all possible. Our nation lost a lot of currency in waging war in Southeast Asia, let us hope that we are not on the brink of doing the same now in the Middle East.
Not great, but still good.......2000-01-12
An interesting book in that it gives a number of diverse viewpoints. The POWs come from a variety of backgrounds and have different strengths, weaknesses, faults, and redeeming qualities. The number of POWs giving accounts makes it a little difficult to follow until you are well into the book. Human nature, good and bad, manifests itself not only in the treatment meted out by the captors, but in the actions and reactions of the POWs. Some handle themselves admirably and unselfishly while others who were unable to handle the oppressive conditions fall apart and go so far as to betray their fellow POWs and attempt to join the NVA. These individuals attempt to justify their actions through intellectualization but one gets the impression that they know, at some level, that they have betrayed the other POWs and their country. I would give this book 3 1/2 stars. The main drawback is that the individual stories are necessarily limited in scope and we do not delve deeply enough into each man's thoughts.
A diverse account of life in a Vietnam POW camp........1998-09-24
Zalin Grant does a masterful job of merging the interviews of the different POW's. The reader is able to take advantage of a wide array of viewpoints on their situation as prisoners. I found myself trying to decide which prisoner was the good guy and which was the bad guy. There was more animosity between some of the prisoners than their was between them and their captors! Anyone who drools over the prospect of learning more about POW life needs to add this tale to their respective library and enjoy!
Dying Was Easy; Surviving in the Jungle Was a Daily Struggle.......1997-06-22
Zalin Grant did a masterful job weaving together oral interviews of seven of the twelve survivors of one of the worst death camps run by the Viet Cong in South Vietnam. There were 11 deaths from disease and starvation, plus one killed attempting escape during the time period covered by Grant's book. After the unsuccessful Son Toy raid on an empty POW camp in North Vietnam, the Viet Cong moved their southern prisoners by walking them to Hanoi. The journey took six months, but ultimately all of Grant's survivors were released in Operation Homecoming in 1973. This book is must reading for the serious researcher on POWs, or anyone who wants to know how difficult it was to survive jungle captivity. Also recommended is a brand new book by survivor interviewee Frank Anton "Why Didn't You Get Me Out?," which includes most of his experiences covered in Grant's book, but adds Anton's observations about MIAs seen in Laos on his way to Hanoi, plus Anton's concerns about the plight of MIAs written off by the US government many years ago
Amazon.com
Forty years after Kenyan independence from Britain, the words "Mau Mau" still conjure images of crazed savages hacking up hapless white settlers with machetes. The British Colonial Office, struggling to preserve its far-flung empire of dependencies after World War II, spread hysteria about Kenya's Mau Mau independence movement by depicting its supporters among the Kikuyu people as irrational terrorists and monsters. Caroline Elkins, a historian at Harvard University, has done a masterful job setting the record straight in her epic investigation, Imperial Reckoning. After years of research in London and Kenya, including interviews with hundreds of Kenyans, settlers, and former British officials, Elkins has written the first book about the eight-year British war against the Mau Mau.
She concludes that the war, one of the bloodiest and most protracted decolonization struggles of the past century, was anything but the "civilizing mission" portrayed by British propagandists and settlers. Instead, Britain engaged in an amazingly brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing that seemed to border on outright genocide. While only 32 white settlers were killed by Mau Mau insurgents, Elkins reports that tens of thousands of Kenyans were slaughtered, perhaps up to 300,000. The British also interned the entire 1.5 million population of Kikuyu, the colony's largest ethnic group, in barbed-wire villages, forced-labour reserves where famine and disease ran rampant, and prison camps that Elkins describes as the Kenyan "Gulag." The Kikuyu were subjected to unimaginable torture, or "screening," as British officials called it, which included being whipped, beaten, sodomized, castrated, burned, and forced to eat feces and drink urine. British officials later destroyed almost all official records of the campaign. Elkins infuses her account with the riveting stories of individual Kikuyu detainees, settlers, British officials, and soldiers. This is a stunning narrative that finally sheds light on a misunderstood war for which no one has yet been held officially accountable. --Alex Roslin
Book Description
A major work of history that for the first time reveals the violence and terror at the heart of Britain's civilizing mission in KenyaAs part of the Allied forces, thousands of Kenyans fought alongside the British in World War II. But just a few years after the defeat of Hitler, the British colonial government detained nearly the entire population of Kenya's largest ethnic minority, the Kikuyu-some one and a half million people.The compelling story of the system of prisons and work camps where thousands met their deaths has remained largely untold-the victim of a determined effort by the British to destroy all official records of their attempts to stop the Mau Mau uprising, the Kikuyu people's ultimately successful bid for Kenyan independence. Caroline Elkins, an assistant professor of history at Harvard University, spent a decade in London, Nairobi, and the Kenyan countryside interviewing hundreds of Kikuyu men and women who survived the British camps, as well as the British and African loyalists who detained them. The result is an unforgettable account of the unraveling of the British colonial empire in Kenya-a pivotal moment in twentieth- century history with chilling parallels to America's own imperial project.
Customer Reviews:
Interesting and worth reading but clearly not objective at all........2007-05-14
An earlier reviewer mentions Ruark's books, "Something of Value," and "Uhuru." "Horn of the Hunter," is another good East Africa piece, although it does not go so much into the Mau Mau Emergency. I would definitely recommend reading Ruark's works to get the other extreme of the East Africa/Mau Mau issue.
Clearly, Elkins is biased in favor of Mau Mau & the Kikuyus in general, probably with reasons of her own. There clearly was some outrageous stuff going on in Kenya during the 1950s-60s, and still probably is.
There can be little doubt the British were out of line, to put it mildy and so were the Mau Mau, also to put it mildly.
This book has a great footnote section where anyone who is really interested in the facts can go for further reading. In all, this is an interesting book, though written in a very dry & tawdry style. It is certainly biased far in favor of Mau Mau and against the British and should be looked on as such.
Elkins would have made a far more powerful impression on this reader if she had at least attempted some journalistic objectivity.
Take with several LARGE pinches of salt.......2007-01-18
The book is very biased towards the Mau Mau side first of all.
Second she has relied heavily on oral textimonies which she fails to question the validity of. Some of these testimonies are laugh out loud ridiculous. She may have noted that testimonies like this have been through out of African and European courts for being made up in order to secure financial compensation. Elkins rubbishes similar statements made by European and Black loyalists.
Elkins also ignores or defends Mau Mau atrocities.
Lastly she asserts that 300,000 people died during the course of the emergency, the only evidence for this is the difference between two censuses. Colonial census were notoriously inaccurate and the main reason the British managed to hide any atrocities they did commit was because they were comitted small scale. 300,000 deaths would have been impossible to keep a secret. Anderson claims around 30,000 Mau Mau died during the course of the rebellion which is closer to the truth.
Good and Depressing.......2007-01-04
This book is very well researched and written. It's also very depressing. The story needs to be told. Excellent for understanding post WWII British imperialism.
An important story interred in academic prose.......2006-08-21
Imperial Reckoning is a curiously disappointing book. It exposes us to a shockingly brutal and little known side of late empire British imperialism with overwhelming documentation, but in such flat prose that the horror and indignation proper to such events is leached away in a numbingly endless drizzzle of facts. This book seems a huge body of tragic facts in search of an organizing narrative. So much so that its chapters could be read in any random order without changing the book's overall readability. Historical tragedies, as much as heroic triumphs turn on random quirks of fortune and clashes of strong personalities, but in academic literature they seem to float on a sluggish tide of inevitable events, usually seen in retrospect and shrouded in a sanctified flotsam of documentation.
Professor Elkins gives some capsule vignettes of the principal colonial administrators, but the central player of this historical drama, Jomo Kenyatta--the colony's most famous political prisoner and later to become Kenya's first president, is presumed so familiar to the reader as to warrant almost no further space. Though he is mentioned repeatedly, we learn only enough about him (16 years in Britain, studied at the London School of Economics, wrote a controversial book, organized a pan-African conference) to make us wonder why he's barely a footnote participant in the story. Little of the temper of the colonial times seems to surface except allegations of an extreme and virtually universal British racism. The Mau Mau terror which inspired this ghastly holocaust seems in this account have been a mere handful of assassinations--so wildly disproportionate to the response that one feels uneasily suspicious. Were the colonials really that murderously bigoted or is Ms. Elkins reluctant to portray a real threat of native terror?
It's a book one wishes had been written by Adam Hochschild (King Leopold's Ghost, Bury the Chains). There's a shocking story buried here that needs to get out. My curiosity is aroused, I want to know more, but I'll have to read a different book. I haven't the tolerance for tedium to finish this one.
Compelling.......2006-07-25
This magnificent book shows how the Brits, using methods of immense savagery, broke the Mau Mau terrorist movement in the 1950s, only to lose the entire colony of Kenya partly in response to the brutishness of their own counterterrorism.
Even though the author is an academic, and doesn't write with the verve and polish of a William Manchester, this book is gripping reading. Elkins lets the facts tell the story, and she certainly has the facts. She seems to have read every relevant document and talked with practically everybody still living who participated in the Kenyan gulag as either a victim or a perpetrator. In her acknowledgements she notes that she learned both Kiswahil and the rudiments of Kikuyu to help her with her interviews (she also had an African translator). Indeed, her book would have been impossible without the Africans' contributions.
One of the other reviewers here complains that Elkins didn't read Robert Ruark's pro-settler "Something of Value" or "Uhuru." But Ruark, an American who probably didn't talk to any Africans in Kenya except his askaris and houseboys, was a naive sucker for the settlers' racist world view. Far more tough-minded than Ruark, Elkins talked to plenty of settlers as well as Africans. The sheer accretion of facts and anecdotes, with almost every sentence footnoted, makes for an overwhelmingly persuasive case.
It is a horrific story of a system that Stalin outdid in duration and magnitude, but not in relative cruelty. Pound for pound the Brits' imprisonment of the Kikuyus, rife as it was with mutilating torture, random executions, systematic rape, enforced relocations and treachery, and massacres, was about as brutal as it gets.
And we owe it to Elkins for bringing these facts, only occasionally referenced in journalism and earlier history books, fully into the light. This is a groundbreaking, iconoclastic work that sheds a new, highly unflattering light on British imperialism. It's tough to think of Manchester's hero biographee, Churchill, in quite the same way.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent.......2005-08-13
I read the book and I thought: "Wow, how did he manage to find his way within this insanity?" I was tryly impressed by the stubborness and courage and at the same time note of humour the author brought into the story. I loved it and I think it's a must read teaching how a character can survive and become stronger in such a hard time.
I can't wait for Spike Nasmyth's next books!
excellent.......2005-08-13
I read the book and I thought: "Wow, how did he manage to find his way within this insanity?" I was tryly impressed by the stubborness and courage and at the same time note of humour the author brought into the story. I loved it and I think it's a must read teaching how a character can survive and become stronger in such a hard time.
I can't wait for Spike Nasmyth's next books!
A Much Needed Perspective on the POW Experience.......2002-12-11
I read this book and was really impressed with the Authors take on his experience as a POW. It is a one of a kind. As a Vietnam Vet of two tours and an Author of my own experiences there this one hit home. Its honest, different, and refreshing. Not to take anything away from anyone who was a prisoner but this guy had an approach and as they say today a paradigm that we would all do well to learn from. Im surprised the book is not more widely distributed but then its not politically correct or down trodden. Its unique as Im sure the Author was and is today. Great book!
i know spike, spike is a friend of mine,...........2002-11-13
i met spike on the north end of vancouver island,...what a guy, what a book,...if you want to read an interesting story of survival from a guys guy ex jet fighter jock there isn't many better than this.
i have read many vietnam POW books, this one of few that does not wallow in the darkness that was the North Vietnam POW's life,...you will laugh, you will cry,...you might have a hard time putting it down.
i could and should write the book on this guy's life since he wrote this one,...this guy is a real character that lives it on the "outside of the performance envelope",...with panache'. for me and because i know the man non fiction does'nt get much better than this.
Excellent Book.......2001-03-03
I just wanted to add another viewpoint than the previous reviewer. The language is appropriate for the context of the book. This is explained in the beginning by the Author. His point of view is first person. It is an interesting account of this man's experiences. I found it to be an excellent book. As an afterthought. If you liked the movie Good Will Hunting and the language did not bother you. Then this book is right for you. If you did not like Good Will Hunting because of the language then move on. This is real life in Vietnam and the language is appropriate.
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