About this item

The true story of one of the greatest military rescues of all time. In February 1945, as the U.S. victory in the Pacific drew nearer, the Japanese army grew desperate, and its soldiers guarding U.S. and Allied POWs more sadistic. Starved, shot and beaten, many of the 2,146 prisoners of the Los Ban'os prison camp in the Philippines--most of them American men, women and children--would not survive much longer. Deeply concerned about the half-starved and ill-treated prisoners, General Douglas MacArthur assigned to the 11th Airborne Division a dangerous rescue mission deep behind enemy lines. General Colin Powell has called the raid "a textbook operation for all ages and all armies." Combining personal interviews, diaries, correspondence, memoirs, and archival research, this book tells the story of a remarkable group of prisoners--whose courage and fortitude helped them overcome hardship, deprivation, and cruelty--and of the young American soldiers and Filipino guerrillas who risked their lives to save them.



About the Author

Bruce Henderson

Bruce Henderson is the author of more than twenty nonfiction books, including the #1 New York Times bestseller AND THE SEA WILL TELL, which was made into a highly-rated TV miniseries. His latest book, SONS AND SOLDIERS: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE JEWS WHO ESCAPED THE NAZIS AND RETURNED WITH THE U.S. ARMY TO FIGHT HITLER, hit the New York Times Bestseller List in 2018, and is currently being adapted for a limited series for television. Henderson's previous books include RESCUE AT LOS BANOS: THE MOST DARING PRISON CAMP RAID OF WORLD WAR II, and HERO FOUND: THE GREATEST POW ESCAPE OF THE VIETNAM WAR, a national bestseller which told the true story of U.S. Navy pilot Dieter Dengler, with whom Henderson served aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ranger (CVA-61) during Vietnam. Henderson is also the author of TRACE EVIDENCE: THE HUNT FOR THE I-5 SERIAL KILLER and FATAL NORTH: MURDER AND SURVIVAL ON THE FIRST NORTH POLE EXPEDITION. An award-winning journalist and author, he has taught reporting and writing courses at USC School of Journalism and Stanford University. Visit his website: www.BruceHendersonBooks.com.



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