No comments about A War to Petrify the Heart: The Civil War Letters of a Dutchess County, N.Y. Volunteer.

5 comments about One Soldier's Story: A Memoir.

1. great history read; truly inspirational. Should be read by all in the health professions as well as WWII veterans and their family members. Anyone suffering from chronic pain----and their families-----should read this book. I did it in one sitting.



2. I had long known that Bob Dole had been severely wounded during World War II and that he had learned to cope and advance his career despite his injuries. I had never realized that he had been wounded in his first action in Italy; nor did I appreciate the scope of his medical treatments and rehabilitation efforts. This book and Bob Dole's injuries have great relevance for the families of those injured in current wars. Bob's efforts and subsequent achievements should inspire hope in those individuals and families currently affected.



3. What an amazing person with a great story to tell. I was able to track him down and talk with him personnally and he truely is a hero.



4. I knew that Bob Dole was injured in World War II but never knew where or how. I found his Memoir, "One Soldier's Story" interesting to read. Sharing his personal story of his rehabilitation gives one an appreciation for those who are recovering today from injuries that they have received in Iraq or Afghanistan. I'm glad that he didn't give up and took that "longest walk" and later became a U.S. Senator.
   
   My father was stationed not far from where Bob Dole was shot and did not know that Mr. Dole was one of the wounded passing by to the hospital. After my father read this book, his comment was "The 10th Mountain was a Great Division."
   
   Kathleen Thomas
   Author of "Don't Call Me Rosie, the Women who Welded the LSTs and the Men who Sailed on Them". Don't Call Me Rosie: The Women Who Welded the Lsts and the Men Who Sailed on Them



5. This is a nice story about one politician's experience in the war. This story shows his real personality behind all the publicity about his presidential runs. I gained new admiration for Dole. He not only has a sense of humor after his life crippling experience in WWII. Dole is shot and the bullet is lodged near his spine. He has difficulty using his hands and feet. Only his willpower prevented him from living a non productive experience the rest of his life. Dole gets some hand and feet motion, goes on to university and law school and represents his native Kansas in Washington. This is indeed a success story.
   
   The book is easily readable. One gets a new admiration for this politician when you read this book. A good read.

5 comments about I Always Wanted to Fly: America’s Cold War Airmen.

1. Retired aviator Wolfgang Samuel has produced another enjoyable,readable collection of stories by cold war era combat pilots. The stories are uniformly interesting, some covering well-known events, such as the Berlin Airlift, others on topics seldom covered in similar works. The chapters on strategic reconnaissance are very good, and will be an eye opener for younger readers. Overall, a great read for those interested in military aviation history.



2. What exhilarating suspense could I possibly find in a title such as I always Wanted to Fly? I always wanted both of my feet on the ground. So, I played it safe and fastened my seat belt for the trip. I knew from previous readings that a Wolfgang Samuel book is always loaded with hair-raising details that easily bring emotions to the surface. And it did; as in the past, a thoroughly rewarding experience.
   
   All creatures were not created equal. The flyers were brave men by virtue of their wanting to fly while aware of the perils. They were heroes because of what they did while flying under the horrors of battle. And they were brave and heroic again and again. Others, unlike them, although devoted and dedicated, tended to their menial undertakings, other than combat, while having both feet safe on the ground and the mess hall within reach.
   
   I Always Wanted to Fly describe the missions in such vivid details that the reader is flying right along with the crew and experiencing the thrills of victory as well as the agony of all that goes wrong. A reader that always wanted both feet on the ground may be undeserving of either; for even in defeat there is the thrill of having done your best and one can only do that by been there flying the mission in flesh and blood. Oh, but the reader can surely gain a fuller appreciation of the brave and heroic deeds of our airmen in their many war missions, whether COLD or HOT.



3. This book is four stars.
   
   I was sort of expecting Colonel Samuels to write about his flying, kind of like a follow up to his very excellent book, "German Boy". However, Author Samuels only gives a few snippets about his flying for the USAF. Well over 95% of the book is about flyers and a small amount is about the aircrews.
   
   The USAF was born in the late 40s, a result of military reforms by President Truman. The USAF found itself quickly involved in the Korean war. Samuels give a write up to the raids the B-29 bombers made on North Korea. Generally, the day light raids by the B-29 bombers were a debacle. The world war two era B-29 bombers stood little chance against the highly advanced MiG-15 fighters. The raids switched to night time bombings. Author Samuel gives stories from both the pilots and enlisted aircraft gunners point-of-view.
   
   Author Samuels covers stories on the F-51 (ex WWII P-51) ground support and B-26 attack missions in Korea. Note, the stories on the F-51 are rather lacking in detail. A big problem of the F-51 was it had a water cooled engine and many were brought down in the ground support role by simple bullet holes in their radiators. This does not make the book and the excellent WWII fighter ended its days as only a fair ground support aircraft in Korea. The A-1 Skyraider was a better aircraft for ground support but was not assigned to the USAF at that time.
   
   Author Samuels does give a bit of writing to the RB-47, RB-45, and the interwar period of 1954 to 1964, before heavy involvement in Vietnam. This is during the hard cold war era. Space craft really had not been invented yet and so it was left to the crews of the RB-47 to fly spy missions in Russian air space. More than a few RB-47s come back with cannon holes.
   
   Samuels does write about Thule (pronounced Thew-Lee) AFB in Greenland. There are prisons in the USA that had better conditions than Thule. The grim living conditions and unsanitary conditions were most unpleasant.
   
   Samuels does not write about the conditions of the USAF at their normal bases during the 1950s to 1960s period. This is a little strange. There is no comment on the lives of the officers in USAFE (Europe) nor of the fairly laid back life style of SAC before Vietnam.
   
   Samuels does give chapters of his writings to Vietnam. Basically, the USAF needed follow up aircraft for the type of fighting it saw in Korea. Instead the USAF had some of the worst aircraft for the mission it ever had. The F-4 Phantom was an outsized aircraft that left a smoke trail that could be seen from 50 miles away. The F-104C could not turn. The F-105 neither could turn nor fly faster than a MiG.
   
   Vietnam was a borderline debacle for the USAF. It was reduced to using ex-Navy A-1 Skyraiders and surplus B-26 bombers for some close support missions. The new generation AC-130 gunships are mentioned in passing.
   
   "I always wanted to fly" is a book about the first generation USAF, the USAF of 1947 to 1973, the end of Vietnam. The book is about the pilots, some is written on the aircraft, and little background is given on the enlisted crews nor of the typical living conditions they enjoyed at the typical USAF bases.
   
   A much better book on the Cold War is "Blind Man's Bluff", the story of the US Navy submarines during the Cold War. While RB-47s were being chased by MiGs and F-51s were having holes punched through their radiators the US Navy nuclear submarines were pushing around the Russian Navy like a 600 pound gorilla knocks around a 5 pound monkey. The cold fact of life was the US Navy was much better than the Soviet Navy and the Soviets knew it. Conversely, the MiGs knocked around the USAF recon aircraft on a regular basis.
   
   Still, "I always wanted to fly" is a very good book on the people who helped keep this nation free from 1947 until 1973. These people used what is often second rate equipment to the best of their ability.
   
   Author Samuels writes in a fast and flowing style that is never boring. This book is a four star work.



4. Wolfgang Samuel does it again... After penning German Boy, a book relating his own experiences as a German youth fighting for survival at the end of WWII, Samuel examines the post-World War II Cold War through the eyes of American air force flyers. As a reader, I found it refreshing that throughout the book Samuel allowed military aviators to tell their own stories. But more importantly, he puts the events and activities into historical context so that readers who are not steeped in the history of the time understand the critical importance of the Cold War air effort documented by him. Early on, we hear American flyers saying "I Always Wanted to Fly" but I found the stories to be about commitment, motivation, dedication and the determined fight for the very freedoms we enjoy everyday. This book is a must read for history buffs and an adventurous, exciting and engaging work for any reader interested in the Cold War.



5. In this extraordinary book you learn what it cost America to maintain our freedom - the many lives lost of airmen who flew what they called reconnaissance against the Soviet Union and Communist China. I never knew much about this secret war. Well, I Always Wanted to Fly, tells you all about those brave men who flew the RB-45 and the RB-47 in the coldest years of the Cold War. It tells you about the picture takers and those who gathered the electronic intelligence. At times their cold war flights got pretty hot. Samuel takes you along on one of those missions high over the Barents Sea, lets you experience what Hal Austin and his crew felt when they turned south, heading for Archangelsk. I admire those men and Samuel told their story beautifully. This is a book you don't want to miss if you have any interest in Cold War reconnaissance. I call them spy flights.

5 comments about The Fool Lieutenant; a Personal Account of D-Day and WWII.

1. Outstanding first-person account of experiences in World War II. Amazing, hard to believe its true. Reads quickly and easily. I give it two thumbs up, plus the big toes, too.



2. Personal narratives of World War 2 are pretty common, but this one was more personal to me since I knew the guy. Bob Edlin ran Edlin's Auction House here in Corpus Christi. A small kindly old man who probably didn't weigh 120 pounds soaking wet, you would never dream he captured 800 Germans single handedly. I never knew anything about him until I looked at the certificates on one wall of the auction house. A purple heart on June 6 1944! He was at D-day? I always wanted to ask him his story, but didn't want to pry. He didn't brag about his exploits, didn't even mention them. I wish I would've talked to him some more, he passed away a few years ago. But at any rate he, with the help of Marcia Moen and Margo Heinen, put his story down in paper, and it makes for fine reading. There were millions of Bob Edlins in the war, and we can never thank them enough. Pass the history on to the future generations, we owe it to them.



3. The Fool Lieutenant is one of several WWII 1st person accounts of veteran's memories of combat in Europe and the Italian campaigns. These stories need to be told and read to let younger generations know what their fathers did to make the world safer for them today. My father never talked about the war to me except in generalities I know most were the same way around their children.



4. I happened on to this book by chance and am glad I did. I served with the 2nd Ranger Bn in the 80's and consider myself pretty good on Ranger History but, I had never heard of "The Fool Lieutenant". Bob Edlin is truely an American hero and anyone who is interested in WWII or the Rangers should definitely read this story. Mr. Edlin captures the essence of the dedication, the selflessness and the comaraderie that is embodied in the American Ranger both past and present.



5. Excellent personal account of an elite Ranger. Edlin has been credited for almost single-handedly capturing 800 german soldiers and is a decorated soldier. This book shows the heart in soul of the volunteer Rangers. A real page turner.

5 comments about Unknown Soldiers: The Story of the Missing of the First World War.

1. This is an excellent non-fiction account of three soldiers who are buried in no known graves. The three men are brought back to life through their letters home and their accounts of the war. The author has put a human face on the many thousands of men whose bodies were never recovered from the battlefields of France. The story of the German soldier is of particular interest because we are not exposed to many such stories from the other side of the front line. The book also contains a great deal of information on the conduct of the war, much of it new to me. I highly recommend this book. Bill Miller



2. The beginning epitaph is strong enough but Mr. Hanson never falters throughout. I have read many military books...often with slight sense of guilt. Should I even try to be recreating this in my mind? Understanding this? The horror of WW1 is transcendent. Mr. Hanson does an outstanding job of making that known to any reader who dares venture there. It should be required reading as another reviewer has said. It seems like WW1 made all things possible that followed. Civilized nations that could send millions into that and for what? The war aims were so pitifully small and deceitful. The aftermath is beautifully handled. I thought I would get bored with the details of the ceremonies to the Unknowns...but it was ultimately more meaningful and made the book great. The tableau from France and then in London on 11 November 1920 is amazing...he recreates every hymn and the incredible impact on the populace. Truly it should have ended all wars. I only wish we could have seen what the defeated did...of course by then Austria-Hungary was gone and Russia Bolshevik. Did they ever create an Unknown Soldier for those suffering peoples?



3. This is a fascinating book. It is by turns sad, gross, uplifting, and a constant reminder of what can go wrong. While some may find the details a bit overwhelming, they are part of the whole, and for me, could not be left aside. The author crafted a memorial to this era, and to this war.



4. This was an excellent book , well researched and beautifully written. I felt I knew each of the soldiers , Paul, Alec and George and I grieved at their deaths and the waste of their young lives as though they were my own sons and not just men who died over ninety years ago.
   I was fascinated by the History surronding the burial of the unknown soldier , the building of the Cenotaph and indeed the story of the first Rememberance Day.
   I highly recommend this book to any who want to learn more about this period in history.



5. `The Unknown Soldiers' revealed how a brilliant and simple idea gave the families of those killed in WWI, but not located or identified, an opportunity to center their grief at a tangible location and get a measure of closure. Thousands of families suffered even the loss of the fallen bodies of their loved ones; then after the War, someone's mother had the idea of an unknown grave to symbolize ALL the missing. Though it was a little slow to catch on with the hierarchy, once it did, there was a ground swell of support and ceremony that was unprecedented in England, and the idea spread as well to their allies. The outpouring of the general population of the warring countries toward their `unknowns' was amazing and very moving. It was apparently an idea just waiting to happen. It reminded me of our experience of visiting the Vietnam War Memorial a couple of years ago on Memorial Day; it felt like being in church as families left notes and some cried at the wall, even though the Vietnam War had been over for more than 30 years!
   
   The book follows three very brave and articulate soldiers through the War until their deaths. An American, a Brit, and a German corresponded with their love ones about the hell that they were in, and gave some detail of what they were going through. It frankly made me angry when I read of the commanders well behind the lines feeding thousands of men in some cases to almost sure death for territory that could be measured in yards. Sometimes, the territory that thousands died for switched hands several times during the War so that their deaths were for naught. At some point for each of the three soldiers, the letters stopped, and the families knew that the worst had happened. It was heart-breaking to read about. It is hard to imagine what the vets went through, and for so long; and the vets were often very young, late teens or early 20's.
   
   This was a good, sobering book about a noble idea that came out of a terrible time in our modern history.
   
   
   

5 comments about In Love and War: The Story of a Family's Ordeal and Sacrifice During the Vietnam Years.

1. I first read this when first release and just purchased another copy. If you want to read about two real heros, James Stockdale and his wife Sybil Stockdale read this book. They write side by side in spirit, him in a Vietnames prison, the Hanoi Hilton, and she home with thier children. One of the best love, war and a story that you will remember.



2. The late Vice Admiral Jim Stockdale was the highest ranking POW to return from captivity in North Vietnam. His wife Sybil kept the family focused and hope alive all throughout his long imprisonment.
   
   
   
   They present alternating chapters that chronicle their personal challenges which are a microcosm of the nation's challenges at that time.
   
   
   
   This should be required reading for all Americans.
   
   
   
   For more on the plight of the families of those who were MIA in Vietnam, read Louis Stockstill's epoch-making article:
   
   
   
   "The Forgotten Americans of the Vietnam War" By Louis R. Stockstill, at:
   
   
   
   http://www.afa.org/magazine/perspectives/Vietnam/1069vietnam.asp



3. The BEST book I have ever read. His recount of what he went through is outstanding. I cannot believe the personal, physical, emotional and spiritual strength it took to endure 8 years as a prisoner of War... and the ways in which he communicated with other POW's, his wife and the US government is unbelievable... brilliant. I read this book 2 years ago and gave it to a friend who gave it to another couple friends cross country... eventually I got it back and gave it to my brother who gave it to his buddy... I think either my dad or my uncle has it now. The best book I have read. I reccommend it to anyone. and I can't wait to read it again.



4. Buyer beware of bookin2002@yahoo.com. I paid $60.00 for a book that was supposed to be in very good condition. When it arrived, the front cover was water damaged and the book was a third edition. $60.00 for a third edition? Not a very good deal.



5. Remember James Stockdale running for Vice President in the early 90's under the third party? He was perhaps the candidate with the greatest personal integrity in ages.

   This book is just as genuine and is a vivid examination of what it's like to be a POW in brutal captivity for years. The book also has his reflections on the present-day U.S.. Here, he is refreshing, and can be brutally candid on such institutions as the South's best-known anachronistic walled military place.

   Mostly though, it's the love story between what he and his wife have been though these years. No candy coating: A rare American hero with the straight story.

3 comments about Emiliano Zapata: el amor a la tierra.

1. This book explores the aspects of the life of Emiliano Zapata, one of my heroes and inspirations. It covers everything about the man, with plenty of pictures that give a great view into the life of the people of the Revolution and of Zapata himself. The book also talks about the alleged legend that Zapata did not die, but in fact survived the attack at Chinameca. This book vividly explains his life and that in fact Emiliano Zapata did not die, but lives on today, in the people who are still fighting for the government to return the land that was illegally taken (The Zapatistas in Chiapas are an example of those still fighting). There was a small quote under a picture of an army that said: "Why was it that they followed him?" and after completing this book, i understood why so many people respected the man enough to not question his actions and his generosity and follow him to fight against a great injustice. Honestly, this is a great book and a worthwhile read for anyone interested in the man and legacy that is Zapata.



2. This book is part on a series of books about Mexican who participated in the Mexican Revolution. It has a great mix of photographs and tales that help you better understand that piece of history.



3. Enrique Krauze is well known for his series of books about the political power in Mexico since the last century to our days. In the Zapata's book, Krauze makes a very serious analysis of the life of this "caudillo" of the Mexican Revolution that nowadays is a symbol of social justice and in general: mexican socialism. Do you want to know more about the current "guerrilla" of the Liberation Army of Zapata (EZLN) in Chiapas? You need to read this book to know the true and imparcial phylosophy of Zapata, a person that shaped and still shapes the Mexican History in the last century. More than a simple biography, an excellent way to understand why the Mexicans love and will love forever their land.

No comments about Courage and Fear: A Primer.

5 comments about Cast A Giant Shadow: The Story of Mickey Marcus Who Died to Save Jerusalem.

1. A fast reading biography of a truly unusual and remarkable man. I recommend the book highly.
   
   Every year, during May, The United States Military Academy (West Point) has a memorial service commemorating Col. David "Mickey" Marcus. If you are anywhere near West Point, you owe it to yourself to attend the service.



2. I was surprised at how good this book is, and how much work must have gone into writing it. Berkman who for most of his professional life was a screenwriter did a tremendous amount of research to tell this story. As a screenwriter he increases its readability by casting a great deal of it in dialogue, though this raises questions about his 'fictionalizing' at certain points.
   Nonetheless there is a strong sense of the overall reliability and authenticity of the narrative. The story is a fascinating one. Marcus was a true hero , a person of tremendous personal courage and ability. He was a fighter and a man of many accomplishments. Born to a poor Jewish family, and orphaned of his father in his early years he worked hard to win entry to West Point where he was intercollegiate welterweight boxing champion. He had a successful Army career including a stretch as head of phystical training for the Army's elite Ranger unit, and was mustered out only to become Corrections Comissioner of the City of New York. But when the Second World War began he returned to the Army .He did important administrative work but eager to contribute to the battle on the ground, parachuted into the Normandy battlefield where his sense of command and battlefield savvy were vital . For his actions he won the Distinguished Service Medal, and the Bronze Star. . At the end of the war he was with Patton's forces and was among those who visited liberated Dachau. The horrors of the concentration camp deeply effected him, and were part of his decision when later called upon by emissaries from Israel, to go and volunteer and help the Jews in their fight for a homeland.
   Marcus made important contributions to the disorganized and beleaguered Jewish forces. He aided Ben- Gurion , and argued for the building of conventional forces and not simply guerilla units. He urged thus that the units of the Palmach lose their independent decision- making power and become part of the overall force of the Haganah. Marcus also made a great contribution to the Israeli forces in the battle for Jerusalem by pushing for the building of an alternative route, the Burma road to Jerusalem. It was while doing this that he was killed when a guard mistook him for an enemy soldier.
   Marcus was a character of great energy, imagination, and flair. Berkman tells how he too was a person of great humanistic ideals, a fighter for freedom and human dignity.
   One other central theme of the story is his relation to his wife Emma who suffered his long absences but remained the anchor of his existence. The book is filled with moving excerpts of his letters to her.
   Berkman's tone in this work is upbeat and promotional. He tells the story in an exciting way. Here it is possible to wonder whether he might have done more in exposing the critical opposition to Marcus.
   But the book is an overwhelmingly positive and convincing one. In the course of it not only is Marcus' story told, but we have the sense of a different time, a different world and different values. This is most apparent in Marcus description of and feeling about the Israelis he serves with. He finds them to be energetic, idealistic, youthful , innovative , and above all courageous.
   Marcus himself came to beleaguered Yishuv, an underdog in its war against five Arab Armies, and made a major contribution to its victory.



3. A well written story of one of the most unusual American war heroes as well as a stirring account of the birth of Israel.



4. This book is a fantastic biography of an amazing man. He is a man who should be loved by those who love freedom, and hated by those who despise freedom. This book intimately details the sacrifices of this war hero in both WWII and the Israeli War of Independence. Ted Berkman does a superb job in documenting the feats of this man, enabling David Mickey Marcus to serve as a role model for future generations.



5. An unusual, rather bold title; however, 'Mickey' Marcus was an unusual, incredibly bold man. The author keeps you turning each page with disbelief that this book is covering the shortened lifetime of ONE man! His list of accomplishments would look like a who's who list, only they were all accomplished by ONLY him. No matter how avid a reader, you will find yourself saying "How could one guy pull ALL this off and How come I've never heard of him before" I usually read a biography a day. This is by all means the most unforgettable and without a doubt my highest recommendation for anyone interested in the flame within man. And once you have heard of him (for this is not a book that you could put down without finishing) you will find there are thousands of web pages honoring multitudes of his individual achievements; but, this is THE book about ALL his achievements and his biographer is a GREAT writer allowing us an intimate look at an amazing person.

4 comments about Masquerade: Dancing Around Death in Nazi Occupied Hungary.

1. This book has it all: drama, humor, philosophy, and history. The author is an unprepossessing, very clever, unsung hero, who makes humane, practical, difficult decisions daily and keeps his nerve under the Nazi occupation of Hungary. The number of lives he saves can never be properly tallied. You will find yourself alternately holding your breath and then cheering.



2. I lived in Budapest for several years and became fascinated by the stories of those brave souls who survived there through the trials of the last century. This recently translated memoire is one of the best. Mr. Soros is able to convey convincingly his experiences in Budapest during the last years of WWII. Like the best memoires, it offers a window into the mind and thoughts of the author in a way which rings true and resonates with the reader. For those who are interested by the human experience in this period of history, this is a must read.



3. "Life is beautiful - and full of variety and adventure. But luck must be on your side." So begins a remarkable memoir of Jewish life under the Nazis in Hungary, _Masquerade: Dancing Around Death in Nazi-Occupied Hungary_ (Arcade) by Tivadar Soros. Soros was a thoroughly remarkable man who certainly had variety and adventure in his life, and his share of luck. There are many accounts of the horrors of the Holocaust, and Soros certainly does not minimize the death and terror that he witnessed. Unlike many such accounts, however, this is a story of optimism and triumph. Soros and all his family survived.

   His memoir begins in 1944 when the Nazis occupied Germany. Soros realized that "Since we can't stand up to Hitler's fury, we must hide from it." He and his family hid, but since they had to be seen in order to take care of daily needs, they took on the aspects of Christians. This involved his forming close relationships with a series of forgers, and once he took care of his immediate family's documents, he took care of other relatives, and then friends, and clients. "If anyone asked for my help, one of my principles in life was never to say no - if only to avoid diminishing their faith in human beings." Amidst narrow escapes and harrowing close calls, Soros kept a sense of humor which frequently emerges on these pages. As a "Christian," Soros was able to obtain cigarettes when those were denied to Jews, and since he didn't smoke, he would leave them at a watchmaker's, so that people with stars could get some. He went to the watchmaker to get his watch fixed, and asked the price. "How can you ask such a thing? It's on the house," the watchmaker said, and then whispered to the woman working beside him, "This is the Christian gentleman who brings us the cigarettes, you know." Soros says, "At least the Jews got to see that there were still a few decent Christians." Much of the humor is tinged with humane sadness; according to one of his sons, Soros used to say, "It is amazing how well people can bear the suffering of others."

   This wonderful memoir has been in print before. Soros, that practical idealist, as an Esperantist wrote the original in Esperanto in 1965, three years before his death. In libraries of Esperantists the book has been an outstanding volume from the literature the planned language has produced. It is here translated by Humphrey Tonkin, a linguist whose name is familiar to all American Esperantists. It includes brief, loving memoirs by his sons, one of whom, George, has become one of the world's richest and most influential people. If there is room on your shelves for history with hope, written by a thoroughly humane and lovable man, this book is perfect.




4. This book will add another view of the Holocaust that few have seen before. When I told my wife I was reading the book, she said, "Isn't it depressing?" Naturally, any book that comes close to so much unnecessary loss of life will make the reader sad, and that is appropriate. On balance, though, this book will probably leave you feeling more optimistic than you were about what can be accomplished by well-meaning people.

   Tivadar Soros was a Jewish lawyer in Budapest when the second world war began. Hungary had been an ally of Austria, so the Nazis did not occupy the country until March 19, 1944 as they began to fear betrayal behind their retreating forces in the Soviet Union and the Balkens. The country was liberated by the Soviets in January 1945. Unfortunately, the Nazis used this ten-month period to murder as many Hungarian Jews as possible.

   But Mr. Soros also had had an unusual experience earlier. He had been a prison of war in Siberia during World War I. From that experience, he had learned that those who are prominent are in danger from totalitarianism, after seeing the prisoners' represenative shot to terrify the prisoners. Mr. Soros had been offered that "honor" just recently and had declined. He soon escaped from the prison camp, and had a most difficult time getting back to Hungary through the midst of the Russian Revolution. Where he had been idealistic and vocal before World War I, he came back determined to enjoy each day as though it might be his last. This exasperated his wife, who knew he could accomplish more.

   This perspective served him well when the Nazi occupation arrived. As in other countries, the Nazis relied on Jews to follow orders. There was a Jewish Council whose families were exempt from the deportations who helped organize others into the death camps and ghettos. Many people voluntarily wore the yellow star. Wanting to cut off the potential leaders, one of the first groups being rounded up were lawyers. This was being done in alphabetical order, so Mr. Soros had a little time to prepare. Rather than complying (as did over 600 Jewish lawyers from Budapest who were killed in the Holocaust), Mr. Soros decided to resist. He quickly justified this on the moral grounds of self-defense.

   Deprived of his livelihood and his property, Mr. Soros decided to use camouflage to protect his family (wife, two sons, and mother-in-law) by pretending to be Christians under assumed names. Although he knew nothing about how to undertake such a deception, he soon learned to acquire forged and real papers. He also shared what he learned with anyone who asked for his help. Those who were wealthy, he charged as much as he could. Everyone else, he either charged nothing or only what forged documents cost him.

   To be safest, the family continually lived apart from one another, meeting occasionally for coffee or a swim, and moved frequently. He helped them learn their "cover stories" and helped them practice how to react if braced by Nazis.

   There are many surprises in the book. Mr. Soros occasionally called on "Christians" for help who turned out to be other Jews using false papers. Some actual Christians took up wearing the yellow star, and the Nazis left them alone. While many people would not help, few turned Jews in to the Nazis. Some people would help for either profit or humanitarian reasons. You just had to keep looking until you found them. Most lost their nerve eventually and were either caught or stopped helping.

   Mr. Soros estimates that about 5 percent of all Jews in Budapest eventually obtained false papers. He also describes what happened to those who tried other ways out, like bribing Nazis such as Eichmann.

   The book is far more compelling than any spy novel I have ever read. It is also more inspiring because it shows what a committed "victim" of an evil regime can do. While other books portray Jews as being tough in concentration camps or in the Warsaw Ghetto, secretly hiding out in attics owned by friends, and being slaughtered, this one shows the side of a vigilent self-defense operating from an immediate defiance of the illegitimate authorities. This model needs to be well understood by everyone.

   Contemporary readers will also be fascinated to read about the rest of Mr. Soros's family, which includes the then 14-year-old George, who is now one of the world's richest men and famed fighter against totalitarian regimes. What an incredible family! The book also contains introductory comments by both sons, which will interest you as they recount the remarkable father they knew whom you will meet in this amazing book.

   The book was originally written in Esperanto, and was only recently translated into English for the first time.

   Everyone who wants to prevent future Holocausts must read this book!

   After you finish reading it, think about what you could do today to help someone else retain or gain their freedom and safety from injustice.

   Be prepared to save yourself . . . when all else fails! Saving someone else today increases your allies for tomorrow!