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    Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission
    Unavailable
    Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission
    Unavailable
    Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission
    Audiobook (abridged)5 hours

    Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission

    Written by Hampton Sides

    Narrated by James Naughton

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    A tense, powerful, grand account of one of the most daring exploits of World War II.

    On January 28, 1945, 121 hand-selected troops from the elite U.S. Army 6th Ranger Battalion slipped behind enemy lines in the Philippines. Their mission: March thirty miles in an attempt to rescue 513 American and British POWs who had spent three years in a surreally hellish camp near the city of Cabanatuan. The prisoners included the last survivors of the Bataan Death March left in the camp, and their extraordinary will to live might soon count for nothing-elsewhere in the Philippines, the Japanese Army had already executed American prisoners as it retreated from the advancing U.S. Army. As the Rangers stealthily moved through enemy-occupied territory, they learned that Cabanatuan had become a major transshipment point for the Japanese retreat, and instead of facing the few dozen prison guards, they could possibly confront as many as 8,000 battle-hardened enemy troops.

    Hampton Sides's vivid minute-by-minute narration of the raid and his chronicle of the prisoners' wrenching experiences are masterful. But Ghost Soldiers is far more than a thrilling battle saga. Hampton Sides explores the mystery of human behavior under extreme duress-the resilience of the prisoners, who defied the Japanese authorities even as they endured starvation, tropical diseases, and unspeakable tortures; the violent cultural clashes with Japanese guards and soldiers steeped in the warrior ethic of Bushido; the remarkable heroism of the Rangers and Filipino guerrillas; the complex motivations of the U.S. high command, some of whom could justly be charged with abandoning the men of Bataan in 1942; and the nearly suicidal bravado of several spies, including priests and a cabaret owner, who risked their lives to help the prisoners during their long ordeal.

    At once a gripping depiction of men at war and a compelling story of redemption, Ghost Soldiers joins such landmark books as Flags of Our Fathers, The Greatest Generation, The Rape of Nanking, and D-Day in preserving the legacy of World War II for future generations.


    From the Hardcover edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateMay 15, 2001
    ISBN9780553755077
    Unavailable
    Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account of World War II's Greatest Rescue Mission
    Author

    Hampton Sides

    Narrative historian Hampton Sides is the New York Times bestselling author of Ghost Soldiers, Blood and Thunder, Hellhound on His Trail, In the Kingdom of Ice, and On Desperate Ground. He is a contributing editor to Outside magazine and a frequent contributor to National Geographic and other publications. His work has been collected in numerous anthologies, and he is a two-time finalist for the National Magazine Award for feature writing. Hellhound on His Trail, about the murder of Martin Luther King Jr. and the hunt for his killer, was the basis for the acclaimed PBS documentary Roads to Memphis. Sides lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

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    Reviews for Ghost Soldiers

    4/5

    495 ratings30 reviews

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    • 4/5
      A well written and to the point (as in not trying to deal with all of the Pacific War) account of a prison camp in the Philippines and the rescue of its captives late in the war.
    • 5/5
      Ghost Soldiers is an outstanding and fast-paced account of the Raid at Cabanatuan, Philippines during WWII. This raid, conducted by 6th Army Rangers, Alamo Scouts, and local Philippine guerilla forces attempted to rescue hundreds of American and other Allied soldiers held in the prison camp. Many of the prisoners were survivors of the Bataan Death March and had been held there for 30 months at the time of the raid. Fearing a massacre at the hands of Japanese guards as the American advance moved toward Manilla, especially following similar massacres in previous weeks, the US Army determined to rescue the prisoners before they could be slaughtered. Using stealth, guts, and incredibly timely local help and resources, the Rangers and company took part in an amazing rescue combat action.The book does great justice to the events and the men involved , and is fantastically written for any level of military history reader. Sides' narrative is well developed, with just enough personal touches of the men to bring their stories to life, and his descriptions of conditions and activities at the camp are harrowing and very well constructed. I could not put this book down. Sides interweaves the stories of the rescuing Rangers with the desperate, hellish, nightmarish existence of the prisoners in the months leading up to the raid. Excellent book, amazing mission, my only complaint is that the author did not include a full sourcing of his research. Highly recommended, four and one-half stars.
    • 5/5
      The story of the men who survived the "Bataan Death March" and Japanese prison camp, and were rescued by an elite team of soldiers who feared that as the Americans were driving back the Japanese, the Japanese guards would kill the prisoners to leave no record of their crimes. That fear was not without foundation.Through many interviews and much research, the author has put together the story of those days.Ho boy. That was a tough one to read. I did skim some of the parts about the "Bataan Death March" and the life in the POW camp. I cannot read in depth about torture and cruelty. Problem is, if you skim too much, you miss the stories of heroism and courage and survival. So I sought a balance for my soul. I had to keep reminding myself that cruelty is not a national trait, but a human trait. Otherwise it would be easy to fall into the trap of hating a race rather than despising the actions of a few. The author did a good job of presenting that, I believe.At the back are some present day photos of survivors and rescuers. A lot of old men who look like they would be loving grandfathers. There is a steely twinkle in their eyes, good humor is on their faces. I was struck by how easy it is to discount the elderly, forgetting that they have lived lives many of us could not imagine surviving.
    • 5/5
      Excellent read! Again, as I say in nearly all books that require maps, make better maps! Otherwise, this book is highly readable. I'm not a WWII historian by any means, so this fills in another of the blanks in my spectrum of knowledge regarding the War in the Pacific. Very readable and extremely instructive reading. Read while in Indonesia wlorking at the Orangutan Health project.
    • 4/5
      Thrilling read.
    • 5/5
      'Ghost Soldiers' is an exciting account of the rescue of American POWs of WWII being held by the Japanese in prison camps in the Philippines. I listened to this story on audio and it was such a touching story, that it had me close to tears on more than one occasion. It is such a gratifying feeling to know that there are people out there in this world who truly care about their fellow men. The Army Rangers and the Filipino guerrillas who went on this rescue mission risked everything to rescue these POWs. They went behind enemy lines with no support and had to maintain radio silence in order to accomplish their mission. Not even our own military knew that they were attempting this feat. As I listened to the account, I felt that luck was always on the side of the Americans in this rescue event. That it went off as flawlessly as it did was truly amazing, and it left me with such a feeling of exhilaration when they successfully completed their mission. This is a story that truly makes one appreciate our men in the military and all they do for us. It is told with so much feeling and it is such a great story!
    • 4/5
      This was well worth it!
      I like to listen to war history books and I wasn't really familiar with this part of ww2. I am glad i got to hear about some brave men and learn about the atrocities that took place.
      I am really thankful...
      The audio quality was good. The story was descriptive without being too intricate. The narrator's voice was engaging. And the story was awesome.
    • 5/5
      Everyone should read this book. Or we will be repeating.
    • 3/5
      Good story of rescue effort to get POWs in Philippines. Listened on audio.
    • 5/5
      This is my third Hampton Sides book, and in my humble opinion, no one writes better nonfiction than Sides does. His research is thorough, and his use of the language is masterful.If you are like President Trump, and you think that American POWs are not heroes (“I like people who weren’t captured”), don’t bother reading this book. If, however, you revere the men and women who served this country and sacrificed years of their lives, often with brutal and severe mistreatment, this book will give you a graphic idea of what it is like to be a prisoner of war. This is the story of the American soldiers who after the Bataan Death March ended up in the Cabanatuan camp in the Philippines. The Japanese treatment of American soldiers is legendary, but this book will bring those war crimes to such a graphic and realistic level that it is almost impossible to read without frequent breaks. The heroes of this story, in addition to the POWs, are the members of the 6th Ranger Battalion and the Filipino guerrillas, who risked their lives and the lives of their families to help the rangers free the POWs. If you think you’ve read everything there is to read about the war in the Pacific, you haven’t unless you’ve read Hampton Sides’ “Ghost Soldiers.” It’s a difficult book to read, but it’s an important book in our nation’s history.
    • 5/5
      To read any works by Hampton Side is like traveling into a world that most of us could never imagine and much more be true!
      Hampton Sides does his homework! And then, lucky Us have the pleasure of educating our selves through his great talent when he offers us another tantalizing look into the lives and times of historical persons and events. With sincere truth, wisdom, intelligence, and humility Hamton Sides provides indepth, intelligent History to anyone that wants to learn for themselves what really happened!
      Do yourself a favor, read Hampton Sides
    • 4/5
      This was an amazing, moving story of one of the first Ranger missions in WWII. The back-and-forth on the time line was initially confusing, but after a bit I caught the logic and it worked. I liked the inclusion of the photographs and appreciated that this wasn't historical fiction or fictionalized at all - simply a telling of history. This was a well-written book about a horrible and amazing series of events.
    • 4/5
      Great story, excellent narrator for audiobook. The only drawback is that it jumps between internal stories: the rescuers, the camps, various side stories of POWs etc... which made it hard to listen to in the car. So while it was a great story about the rescue of POWs at Kabanatwan (spelling?) it was hard audiobook to read.
    • 4/5
      A great introduction to the Bataan Death March and subsequent prison break at wars end. This is not definitive historians history, rather more of a Band of Brothers telling true stories within a coherent literary framework. It's meant as much to entertain as to inform. I'm a fan of Hampton Sides for his skilful use of the braided narrative technique and this is another example. Other authors try it by not all succeed. The book was the basis of the film The Great Raid (2005).
    • 3/5
      A nice supplement to the recently reviewed Tears in the Darkness, Ghost Soldiers covers both the Bataan Death march in 1942 and the rescue of remaining POWs from a camp near Cabanatuan in 1945. It’s a good, workmanlike, military history of both. I prefer Tears for the Death March – especially because it shows a little more understanding toward the Japanese side – but [Ghost Soldiers has to cover twice as much material in the same size volume so it’s understandable a lot has to be condensed.
      The reaction of the POWs to their own rescue was interesting; there was almost Stockholm Syndrome at work. The POWs hadn’t seen any Americans in years. Suddenly their camp routine was interrupted by a hail of gunfire as the Japanese guard posts and barracks were riddled by the Ranger raiding party, then the Rangers stormed into the camp and began rounding up the POWs to get them out. Well, nobody had ever heard of “US Army Rangers”. They’d never seen US troops in those particular uniforms. They’d never seen M1 rifles, M1 carbines, M3 “grease guns” or bazookas. And all the incoming troops had yellow-tinged skin from the antimalarial Atabrine. The senior POW officer, Colonel Duckworth, outranked anybody in the raiding party and didn’t want to leave. Duckworth was a medical officer and had been performing heroically to keep POWs alive; one of his principles was “Don’t do anything to provoke the Japanese” – follow orders, don’t argue, don’t resist, don’t try to escape (escape was punished by shooting the escapee’s barrack mates, and Duckworth had actually established POW patrols to intercept escape attempts). Well, now suddenly, in the middle of the night, all the Japanese guards had been shot – certainly definable as “provoking” – and everybody was escaping. Duckworth had to be manhandled by a couple of Rangers – his arm was broken, ostensibly by “falling into a ditch” – and forced to leave. Many of the other POWs had spent years accumulating tiny caches of possessions – a few more rags, an extra canteen – and scurried back to their hiding places to pick them, unless intercepted by Rangers and turned around. The prisoners outnumbered the Rangers by about 5:1, so it must have been like herding cats. Eventually everybody was maneuvered out the camp gate, walking, hobbling, staggering and being carried.
      The Rangers get the main focus, but they didn’t have to fight so much as they had to machine-gun completely surprised Japanese guards, then drag out POWs. The real fighting, in the sense that a lot of bullets went each way, was done at roadblocks set up by Filipino guerillas to intercept Japanese columns trying to reach the camp. The guerillas were eminently successfully, knocking out several Japanese tanks with a bazooka they had only received the previous day and withdrawing with few casualties and no KIA.
      The freed POWs reacted the same way that the Tears in the Darkness POWs did – for several months, they ate anything they could get their hands on. They went back to the States together on the same transport, and as they passed under the Golden Gate they were greeted by an enormous “WELCOME HOME” banner and showered with money, food - and lingerie. Welcome was equally enthusiastic once they got ashore.
      I’d like to read more about the POWs lives afterwards, especially to compare their experience to survivors of places like Auschwitz and the Gulag (and now the Hanoi Hilton). There must be a book about that somewhere.
      Excellent maps on the endpapers, but no references (except as acknowledgements) and no index. There was a Signal Corps photographic section accompanying the raid, but it took place at night and, well, flashbulbs would have been a poor idea. There are some great pictures of the raiding column on the way in and the POWs on the way out, though, and a rather haunting page of pictures of participants at a 55-year reunion.
    • 5/5
      This was a fascinating book detailing the rescue of over 500 American survivors of the Bataan Death March in early 1945. This is an extremely brutal accounting of the amazingly savage treatment the soldiers received from the Japanese. The author starts the book by documenting one of the worst Japanese atrocities of the war, the massacre of American prisoners on Palawan Island in the Philippines. Because General Krueger, Sixth Army commander, feared that the Japanese would also massacre the Bataan survivors he asked Colonel Henry Mucci to rescue them ahead of the advance of the Americans.

      The author did a great job of alternating the story of the rescue with various narratives of the captured men. Interspersed with these two main story lines are descriptions of the heroic efforts of the native Filipinos and a really interesting story about Claire Phillips, an American spy known as High Pockets. The interaction between the surviving soldiers and their captors was very illuminating This is an amazing book but definitely not for the faint hearted. That men survived this type of imprisonment is almost unbelievable, except many did live to tell about it. I highly recommend to anyone who has an interest in World War II, especially the Pacific Theatre.
    • 5/5
      In this very readable account of a Ranger mission to rescue Allied POWs from a Japanese prison camp, Sides gets it right. This is one of the only popular books about the Pacific War which even mentions the role of Taiwanese and Korean prison guards, for example. His treatment of the Japanese is fair and he clearly attempted to understand their perspective, but his account of the trials of American POWs during their years of captivity is unsparing.
    • 4/5
      This really is a gripping story about the rescue of the Bataan Death March survivors/POWs by U.S. Army Rangers and two aligned Philippino guerilla forces (not to mention, assistances from the Philippino citizens as well). The book is not new and has been summarized many times, so I won't do that again. It is a book, and real life story, that is hard to put down. It's very tragic, but also, the rescue defies a great many odds. My only complaint is while Hampton Sides is an outstanding non fiction writer and I love his work, it's a bit over the top on hyperbole and crescendo. Time and time again, he leads up to what the reader thinks will be the rescue, leave the chapter hanging, then the next chapter will be filler about another happening. After ten or so times, that got old, and it was so over-used it lost its effectiveness. It got to when the actual rescue happened, it was not very exciting. But that is a small complaint, it was his way of crafting the story to keep the reader engaged. Also, it truly is one of the most important stories of World War II. Overall, highly recommended.
    • 4/5
      This is a story of cruelty and barbarism, heroism and endurance. The men of Bataan drew the shortest straw. No one who actually survived were treated worse or survived more. The clash of cultures, the cruelty and the barbarism can't be overemphasized or understated I don't think even the POWs of Vietnam suffered more.Then the US Army decided to rescue these POWs when they invaded Luzon. They sent a company of the 6th Rangers (plus a platoon) to bring them out. They were well-armed, well-trained and very well motivated. But they couldn't have done the job without the Alamo Scouts and the tough Filipino guerillas who gave them the information and guidance they needed and the protection and help they had to have.The operation worked almost perfectly with only four fatal casualties among the Americans and a lot of dead Japanese. The guerillas fought a tremendous battle to protect the operation without a single casualty. The kind of operation commanders dream of.There was only one minor jarring note to me. The author kept writing about 'razor wire'. Razor wire was not invented until the 1960s. This was minor but it grated.The author did his research well, talking to survivors, reading documents, generally doing the research needed for the book. The writing was good and flowed well. I recommend the book.
    • 5/5
      There appears to be no limits to the cruelty inflicted on the remaining survivors of the battles at Corregidor and Bataan. Faced with no alternative but to surrender, the POW's Death March was just the beginning of the brutality and nightmarish arrangements awaiting them. Their ultimate destination was Cabanatuan, a POW camp that provided a hell-on-earth for the hunters and their prey alike. In addition to the daily hardships that they endured: tropical heat and disease, starvation, physical and psychological trauma; news, such as the massacre at Palawan had permeated the camps moral. Isolated from the rest of the war for so long, the POW's thought they were forgotten about, that is to say, left behind. Hampton Sides introduces us to all of the key performers without assaulting our senses (or what's left of them). His method of storytelling is clear and direct. With two detailed maps and a handful of vintage pictures for guidance, you get the experience firsthand by the POW's, their captors, the combined forces dedicated to liberating the POW's, and, you'll witness the results of the all-important life and death decision making from the mouths of those that actually pulled off one of the Pacific Theatre's most astonishing rescue missions. Not all the liberators were American. Filipino guerilla's had a stake in ridding their land of the invading Japanese, and even though they didn't have the current weaponry afforded our Armed Services, their combative desire stood the test when it was called for. In opposition to the darker side of this forgotten historical event, there's constant recognition and appreciation for the bravery, patriotic inspiration and self-sacrifice it took to accomplish this triumphant mission. Some readers may feel that the lack of footnotes detract from the validity of all that transpired, but as Sides admits, he had chosen to ignore the tradition in the name of style and pacing. I agree with his decision. 'Ghost Soldiers' is a must read for anyone that's intrigued by what the human spirit can accomplish when the odd's are clearly stacked against you. I highly recommend this book.
    • 3/5
      A popular historical account of a WWII rescue mission / prison camp break at the onset of MacArthur's return to the Philippines, Sides interleaves stories of life in the prison camp with the buildup to the coordinated rescue mission on part of U.S. Rangers, Alamo Scouts & Filipino guerrillas. In doing so, he recounts the stories of three groups of U.S. and allied soldiers held by the Japanese Imperial Army on the Philippines:Group 1: those left in Cabanatuan because too weak / ill to be useful, and threatened with massacre when Camp overrun by MacArthur’s advancing troops.Group 2: those split off from main camp and shipped off Philippines during strategic defense / retreat of Imperial Army (late 1944-45). Group 3: those who passed through Cabanatuan prior to 1945 and at time of Rangers mission either dead or in other camps. This group by far the more numerous, but their story is told only as reflected in story of Groups 1 & 2. (On the other hand, this group is the focus of other published personal accounts or histories.) The alternating story lines means the narrative hops between the raid (occurring over 3-4 days in 1945) and what led up to the raid: Bataan Death March, daily life in prison camp, Group 1 in camp, Group 2’s travel to Japan (a span of years, essentially late 1941 - 1945).Sides's story is itself a reflection of the strange relationship between Filipinos and (U.S.) Americans – as it focuses on the U.S. Rangers and the U.S. prisoners, yet far more Filipinos were on the March and in the camps; and about twice as many Filipino guerillas (2 bands & leader names) participated in the raid led by the U.S. Rangers. Sides does provide numerous examples of the disparity in this, and makes clear the Filipinos remain loyal and aligned with the U.S. (except for the Huk guerillas at very end). Legacy of colonialism.The origin of U.S. Rangers is also referenced – this raid being the first real mission (?) but overshadowed by later events in WWII, so seemingly “forgotten” now. (C Company and F Company, 1 platoon)Sides also takes up the Japanese account of motivations and intentions with respect to Bataan Death March; taking Corregidor; treatment of prisoners. The peculiar challenge faced by the Imperial 6th Army, needing to take Corregidor in order to secure access to Manila Bay and its natural harbor, but the masses of retreating U.S. / Filipino forces being forced into a corner that directly impedes the Imperial Army's later objective in laying siege to Corregidor. However, Sides does pretty much take up the Japanese perspective in Chapter 3, rather than weave it throughout his narrative.Sideline stories of High Pockets, Siege of Corregidor, Puerto Princesa Prison Camp (Palawan, PHilippines) in prologue that was massacred in Dec 44, demonstrating the real danger faced by the men held at Cabanatuan. There are many great examples of gallows humour, typical of concentration camps and other places of horror. It's also amazing (though perhaps it shouldn't be) how much ingenuity the prisoners had: building a radio, making fake pills resembling the actual pharmaceuticals to sell to their guards for STDs, a full-blown black market.Very readable, provides a nice thumbnail sketch of the Philippine role in WWII and its place in the Pacific theater.
    • 5/5
      A great historical work besides just being an exciting read. My husband and I were both really impressed with this book, even before we realized that Capt. Prince was my father-in-law's old friend, Bob.
    • 3/5
      Good story of commando raid to rescue long-held prisoners of the Japanese in the Philippines. They were survivors of Bataan.
    • 5/5
      Not being a WWII expert, I can't really say yay or nay on the "most dramatic mission" claim on this book's title, but I got so caught up in this book I read the whole thing in one afternoon. The basic outline is this: The US has decided that it's time for the Army to take Manila from the Japanese in 1945, after the landing at Leyte Gulf. There is a slight problem, however; directly in the path that the soldiers would take on the push to Manila lies a prisoner-of-war camp holding Americans and others. By this time the camp is a way station for Japanese soldiers and the road to the place is loaded with Japanese vehicles & army. Since the Japanese know that everything's coming to a close, the US fears that (as in earlier examples) the prisoners stuck in the camp are in danger of being exterminated. So the Army decides it needs a small force of men to go in, liberate the camp, and clear the way for the bulk of the troops to get on the road to Manila. This book is the story of how this was achieved. The structure of the book is such that there are actually two alternating stories here. The main story is of course, the attempt to liberate the camp, and interspersed is the second story, that of the Bataan Death March and then life inside the prison camps, told by the survivors. The author's writing style is so good that you'll think you're reading a novel rather than history. Now comes my only complaint: my graduate degree is in History, and I cringe every time I read something like this where there are NO footnotes or endnotes. The author does say what sources he relied on in the back of the book, but I like to be able to trace exact quotations, references, etc., in case I want to follow up with another source. That's just my thing, and I would guess that the great majority of readers do not give a fig about footnotes.Even if you know nothing about WWII, or if you're not particularly interested, any reader would find this book captivating. It is written for readers -- no bogging down with overly technical details. Very well written and worth every second of reading time. Recommended.
    • 5/5
      what a great way of telling an awful episode in the war
    • 5/5
      Even though this was a very interesting and fulfilling book, at times it had a tendency to break your heart thinking about all the suffering the prisoners went through.
    • 3/5
      Great book on the aftermath of surrender of the Phillipines, especially on the Bataan Peninsula. I found the story of the prisoners more interesting then the actual rescue mission.
    • 5/5
      Ghost Soldiers tells the story of the greatest war stories ever told. It details the heroism of Col. Mucci and his Rangers. In the months preceding the Japanese Imperial Army's surrender during WWII the US Army learned of the location of POWs--men who had survived the infamous Bataan Death March were being held at Cabanatuan in the Philippine islands. Brutal Massacres of American POW had begun in other prison camps in the Pacific. To prevent this from happening again at Cabanatuan the US Army ordered Col. Mucci to rescued survivors.Enthralled, I turned to page after page intent on what awaited at the prison camp. The physical hardships of the prisoners were excited my senses of both compassion and adventure. Imagining their hardships, I could not help wanting to be a part of such a historic mission.
    • 5/5
      A deeply moving and often horrifying account of the mission of a group of Rangers charged with the liberation of the survivors of the Bataan Death March in the Philippines. Sides also attempts to examine the cultural differences and desperate circumstances that contributed to the remarkable brutality of the Japanese.
    • 5/5
      Sides presents an often heartwrenching and difficult story with respect, seriousness and (where appropriate) humor. In many ways this book tells two stories. The interspersed timelines or threads of these two stories seemed confusing to me at first. The first presents the US retreat and surrender at Bataan, followed by the POWs experiences over several years in the camp. The second thread covers the much shorter period after the US reinvasion during which the prison rescue took place. Ultimately he brought both together well, focusing on the stories of imprisonment in the first and on the adventure of the rescue in the second. Military history buffs may not appreciate the lack of attention to units and other military details, but for me this was the right approach. He clearly respects the veterans and spent a great deal of time with them, bringing out many details that ring true.