Ghost Soldiers
The Forgotten Epic Story
of World War II’s Most Dramatic Mission.
Hampton Sides.
Doubleday, 2001.
Although, I must admit, that I was a bit
skeptical that yet “another” POW camp liberation
book could unearth fresh material, I was
pleasantly surprised by the overall demeanor of
Hampton Side’s accounting. By far, it is one of
the most balanced accounts of the Bataan siege
I’ve ever read. Most importantly, it gives a
here-to-fore unacknowledged aspect, the Japanese
explanation for this catastrophe, clearly
indicating that both sides of the military
leadership (American and Japanese) could take
blame for staging the Death March.
Most of the dialogue is a skillful recreation of
the incidents that led toward the liberation of
the infamous Cabanatuan POW camp in the
Philippines. The author deftly switches between
various voices engaged in the liberation,
including those of the POWs, underground
citizenry, American soldiers, Filipino
guerrillas and the Japanese command. Toward the
latter, we finally get an inkling of the
Japanese mind-set (one that goes beyond a 2-D,
evil-empire profile) that sets the wheels in
motion as well as a thorough look of some of the
idiosyncratic personalities who were caught-up
in the campaign.
I recommend this book, without any hesitation,
for any level of readership (of course, not at
the youngest juvenile level). It has the right
formula that doesn't overly romanticize, glorify
nor sensationalize this campaign. Instead, you
get a compelling picture of the circumstances as
they unfolded, event-by-event. By the time all
the pieces of the puzzle are laid out, you go
away with a gutsy rendition of a human landscape
created out of wartime adversity and challenge.
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