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    A Pledge of Silence
    A Pledge of Silence
    A Pledge of Silence
    Audiobook11 hours

    A Pledge of Silence

    Written by Flora J. Solomon

    Narrated by Kate Rudd

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Winner Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award—General Fiction

    When Margie Bauer joins the Army Nurse Corps in 1941, she is delighted to be sent to Manila, the Pearl of the Orient. Though rumors of war circulate, she feels safe, trusting the island is fortified and the Filipino troops are well trained.

    On December 8, 1941, her dreamworld shatters when the Japanese invade the Philippines. The US Army evacuates to the Bataan Peninsula, where she cares for the wounded soldiers in a field hospital, and then in a catacomb of tunnels on Corregidor Island. Ultimately captured, she is interned in Santo Tomas, a Japanese prison camp, where for three years she endures escalating danger, starvation, and loss.

    At once an epic tale of a nation at war and the deeply personal story of one woman’s intense journey, A Pledge of Silence vividly illustrates the sacrifices the Greatest Generation made for their country, and the price they continued to pay long after the war ended.

    Revised edition: This edition of A Pledge of Silence includes editorial revisions.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateFeb 24, 2015
    ISBN9781501210303
    A Pledge of Silence
    Author

    Flora J. Solomon

    Flora J. Solomon worked as a researcher and analyst in Michigan’s university system and health-care industry. She started writing after retiring and moving to the North Carolina coast with her husband. Her first novel, A Pledge of Silence, won the 2014 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award for general fiction and was selected as a Historical Novel Society Editors’ Choice. When not sitting at her computer creating stories, Solomon can be found on the golf course, on the tennis court, or—most naturally—at the beach.

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    Reviews for A Pledge of Silence

    4/5

    41 ratings6 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Great WW2 story of a wartime nurse and POW. Uplifting ending as she suffers with and overcomes PTSD.
    • 3/5
      I liked so many things about this book - the story of a lesser known piece of the war in the Pacific, the discussion of PTSD, turning anxiety into a purpose, and how the pain of traumatic events can follow generations - but I just didn't love it (and I feel a little bad about that). Overall, this was a pretty good book and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys WWII historical fiction.
    • 3/5
      Marjie Bauer joins the Army Nurse Corps in 1941 and is sent to Manila. Her idealism life on a paradise island is abruptly interrupted when the Japanese invade the Bataan Island. She nurses wounded with few supplies and is eventually capture and held prisoner for three years. The story is based on actual events but the story is told rather than letting the read feel the horror of the time.
    • 4/5
      A moving and thought-provoking historical novel about female vets during WWII (Pacific). The most prevalent themes portrayed in this work are survival, suffering, and the mental aftermath of trauma (without giving the story away, the main character was a POW). I like that the author included what happened after the war was over. Recommended for fans of historical and/or military fiction.Net Galley Feedback
    • 5/5
      As a female Army veteran, I love reading about other female military vets, and this story is so astounding that I am sure it will stay with me for a long time, if not forever. Margie is a fictional nurse, who enters the Naval Reserve and is called up during WWII to serve in the Philippines. Initially, her duty is filled with all that you might associate with a peacetime military, officers clubs, night life, easier duty, etc. However, once the attack at Pearl Harbor occurs, things change dramatically, and her duty becomes what we might picture as combat life. There is the surgical tent, the open bay area for the wounded, the never-ending fear of what might occur. Then, she is captured and held as a POW for three years, and suffers humiliation, starvation and abuse at the hands of her guards. However, once liberated there are more ghosts to haunt her, as those she should trust betray her. Once home, she suffers from what we now call PTSD, and, because of a paper she signed, cannot really divulge what occurred during her captivity, making treatment that much harder. Margie is a strong woman, much like many of the other women with whom I served in the military. I am more than proud to be a part of her legacy in the military, even though I was not a nurse or in combat or a POW. She is a role model for anyone to follow, and today, many young girls need such a role model. The book presents a great picture of the war and what things were really like. Unfortunately, there are not very many books providing this sort of information. I personally found it a fascinating read and think anyone who is interested on what life as a nurse in combat would be like can find many answers in the book. In addition, the book presents a different side of life in the Pacific Theater during WWII. I received this from NetGalley to read and review—and I am glad I chose to read it.
    • 4/5
      Margie Bauer is a young nurse trained as an anesthetist at the beginning of the war. She is sent to the Philippines, where she is eventually captured along with other medical staff and placed in a prison camp. She struggles to survive in the harsh conditions and, at liberation, is violently attacked by one of the Americans she had known previously. This attack has an impact on her future and contributes in part to her experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome following her return home. The war not only affects Margie, but also her friends and family. The learned behaviors of combat interfere with the return to civilian life, but human nature proves resilient. I have not been compensated in any way (other than being given a copy of this book to review) and my opinion on the book is entirely my own.