Expanded from the first edition (1994, now out of print), this collection of commentaries commemorates one-on-one interviews with 21 men and women of varying ages and backgrounds – 19 of whom were directly involved in, or were otherwise affected by, World War II in various ways.

Included are the real-life stories of a pilot shot down and held as a German prisoner of war, soldiers involved in South Pacific naval battles, a Jewish woman incarcerated at Auschwitz (and subjected to Josef Mengele’s sterlization experiments), a solder blinded in battle, Seabees in Guadalcanal, a survivor of the Bataan death march … and more.

The concluding interview encapsulates the experiences of identical twin brothers, then aged 23, who simultaneously served in Iraq and Afghanistan in more contemporary conflicts, over 60 years after the U.S. entered into WWII following the fateful attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

In addition to the “up-close-and-personal” stories recounted in the subjects’ own words, this expanded edition contains reproductions of correspondence and other documents from the World War II era, along with period photographs and biographical sketches of each person interviewed.

Compelled by the ever-rapidly dwindling number of WWII survivors, this volume is a great gift idea for anyone who has a family member, friend, or neighbor with an interest in World War II. It also makes an excellent supplementary text for a high school or university course in WWII history or film studies courses devoted to that period.

Published/copyright © 2005
Paperback (320 pages)
ISBN 0-9704064-9-5
$24.95