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Last Man Out
“A remarkable story, long overdue, of the treatment of POWs captured by Japan.” —Arthur L. Maher, Rear Admiral, USN, Senior officer to survive sinking of the USS Houston, POW of the Japanese in World War II
“In World War II, to move materials and troops from Japan to Burma by avoiding the perilous sea route around the Malay Peninsula, the Japanese military built a railroad through the jungles of Thailand and Burma at great human cost to its prisoner laborers. Last Man Out is an effective addition to the history of this tragedy.” —Library Journal
From June 1942 to October 1943, more than one hundred thousand Allied POWs who had been forced into slave labor by the Japanese died building the infamous Burma-Thailand Death Railway, an undertaking immortalized in the 1957 film Bridge on the River Kwai. One of the few who survived was American H. Robert Charles, who describes the ordeal in vivid and harrowing detail in Last Man Out: Surviving the Burma–Thailand Death Railway. The story mixes the unimaginable brutality of the camps with the inspiring courage of the men, including a Dutch Colonial Army doctor whose skill and knowledge of the medicinal value of wild jungle herbs saved the lives of hundreds of his fellow POWs, including the author.
“In World War II, to move materials and troops from Japan to Burma by avoiding the perilous sea route around the Malay Peninsula, the Japanese military built a railroad through the jungles of Thailand and Burma at great human cost to its prisoner laborers. Last Man Out is an effective addition to the history of this tragedy.” —Library Journal
From June 1942 to October 1943, more than one hundred thousand Allied POWs who had been forced into slave labor by the Japanese died building the infamous Burma-Thailand Death Railway, an undertaking immortalized in the 1957 film Bridge on the River Kwai. One of the few who survived was American H. Robert Charles, who describes the ordeal in vivid and harrowing detail in Last Man Out: Surviving the Burma–Thailand Death Railway. The story mixes the unimaginable brutality of the camps with the inspiring courage of the men, including a Dutch Colonial Army doctor whose skill and knowledge of the medicinal value of wild jungle herbs saved the lives of hundreds of his fellow POWs, including the author.
223 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 1988
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January 3, 2026Re-read this for the first time since I was a teenager. My grandfather -- Bob Charles -- wrote it about his own experience as a POW during WWII. It provides a more personal perspective, naturally, on the same subject of Ship of Ghosts: The Story of the USS Houston, FDR's Legendary Lost Cruiser, and the Epic Saga of Her Survivors. At the same time, it is clear that Bob
basically wasn't able to write his own story. He devotes most of the book to relating the story of Dr Henri Hekking, a Dutch doctor and fellow POW who he credits with saving many of the prisoners. The book is a wonderful tribute to Dr. Hekking, yet I can't help but think that Bob wrote the book this way because even after so many years, he basically couldn't process what had happened to him. The book is also written in a fairly reporterly style, with very little space given to actual descriptions of the day-to-day activities in the camps or to the feelings he experienced.
While reading this and [[Ship of Ghosts]], I also read We Do Not Part twice. They made of quite a contrast. It made me wonder how Bob's story would read if someone else -- someone not directly involved but with more of a literary interest than Hornfischer -- wrote it. I suspect that distance could actually help the story be more viscerally written, in the same way that [[We Do Not Part]] or Human Acts is more visceral with Han Kang one step removed from the direct events.
basically wasn't able to write his own story. He devotes most of the book to relating the story of Dr Henri Hekking, a Dutch doctor and fellow POW who he credits with saving many of the prisoners. The book is a wonderful tribute to Dr. Hekking, yet I can't help but think that Bob wrote the book this way because even after so many years, he basically couldn't process what had happened to him. The book is also written in a fairly reporterly style, with very little space given to actual descriptions of the day-to-day activities in the camps or to the feelings he experienced.
While reading this and [[Ship of Ghosts]], I also read We Do Not Part twice. They made of quite a contrast. It made me wonder how Bob's story would read if someone else -- someone not directly involved but with more of a literary interest than Hornfischer -- wrote it. I suspect that distance could actually help the story be more viscerally written, in the same way that [[We Do Not Part]] or Human Acts is more visceral with Han Kang one step removed from the direct events.
November 30, 2022
Finished the book more of a personnel story than history. an in dept look at life in a Japanize prison of war camp in the jungle. It gives background look into the movie Bridge on the River Kwi.
Randy Reigstad
Randy Reigstad
March 4, 2020
It is no exaggeration to say that the Japanese have not done a very good job at coming to terms with the horrors they inflicted on others in World War II, all while crying victim over being the only nation to be atomic bombed into pacifism. This book is part of a genre of books related to those who suffered the horrors of being prisoners of war under the tender hand of the Japanese [1] and it does not pull punches about the struggle faced by people to survive during the war and the repercussions of that suffering after the fighting ended. Of particular interest is the way that the author discusses his own struggle to deal with the trauma of war when there were few resources given to such survivors and not even much of a language with which to discuss the nightmares and hypervigilance that was associated with the experience, and also the way that the author praises a Dutch doctor from what is now Indonesia for the survival of so many captives in the face of starvation and terror. Intriguingly, and revealingly, the author relates that his own prior experience of abuse at the hand of a stepfather allowed him an advantage in dealing with abusive Japanese guards.
This book is a bit more than 200 pages and is divided into 3 parts. The book begins with a foreword by James D. Hornfischer as well as a preface, acknowledgements, and a prologue in 1978 when the author committed to writing the memoir after a trip to a therapist. The first part of the book then looks at the experiences of the author at the Battle of Java Sea (1) and Sunda Strait (2) that led to his ship being sunk and he being captured by the Japanese that were then taking over the Dutch East Indies (3). Over the course of the experience he was shipped from one prison to another until he was assigned to Burma (8) and met a doctor without credentials (9) who realized a purpose for being there (10). The second part of the book then looks at the struggle to survive in captivity under starvation rations doing the work of building a railway and fighting against tropical diseases thanks to the doctor's herbal knowledge (II). After that the book ends with the deliverance of the author from the jungles and eventually his rescue in Vietnam as well as the search for the doctor and the communication that led to a heartfelt reunion (III), after which the book ends with some appendices with various historical documents including the Americans interned with Dr. Hekking, along with a bibliography and index.
This book is a compelling look at the struggle of people to deal with the horrors of war. The author notes the very real consequences of America's characteristic bias to prepare for war once we are already in them, something that has gone back for a long time, into colonial days for those men who are in harm's way before America gets its act together. The author is bluntly honest about his experiences in prison and in the lengths which he and his fellow prisoners of war were driven to in order to survive. The book discusses the way that prisoners sought to sabotage the effort to build a railroad between Thailand and Burma and do so in a way that would not lead to getting beaten to death by brutal Japanese officers who viewed prisoners as the worst possible scum until they faced their own need to surrender in turn. The book is also eloquent in discussing the way that men struggle and overcome the horrors of war and how this can be greatly helped by the support of friends and families, and how it is possible sometimes to make better decisions than one made before about the need to communicate one's experiences.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2013...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
This book is a bit more than 200 pages and is divided into 3 parts. The book begins with a foreword by James D. Hornfischer as well as a preface, acknowledgements, and a prologue in 1978 when the author committed to writing the memoir after a trip to a therapist. The first part of the book then looks at the experiences of the author at the Battle of Java Sea (1) and Sunda Strait (2) that led to his ship being sunk and he being captured by the Japanese that were then taking over the Dutch East Indies (3). Over the course of the experience he was shipped from one prison to another until he was assigned to Burma (8) and met a doctor without credentials (9) who realized a purpose for being there (10). The second part of the book then looks at the struggle to survive in captivity under starvation rations doing the work of building a railway and fighting against tropical diseases thanks to the doctor's herbal knowledge (II). After that the book ends with the deliverance of the author from the jungles and eventually his rescue in Vietnam as well as the search for the doctor and the communication that led to a heartfelt reunion (III), after which the book ends with some appendices with various historical documents including the Americans interned with Dr. Hekking, along with a bibliography and index.
This book is a compelling look at the struggle of people to deal with the horrors of war. The author notes the very real consequences of America's characteristic bias to prepare for war once we are already in them, something that has gone back for a long time, into colonial days for those men who are in harm's way before America gets its act together. The author is bluntly honest about his experiences in prison and in the lengths which he and his fellow prisoners of war were driven to in order to survive. The book discusses the way that prisoners sought to sabotage the effort to build a railroad between Thailand and Burma and do so in a way that would not lead to getting beaten to death by brutal Japanese officers who viewed prisoners as the worst possible scum until they faced their own need to surrender in turn. The book is also eloquent in discussing the way that men struggle and overcome the horrors of war and how this can be greatly helped by the support of friends and families, and how it is possible sometimes to make better decisions than one made before about the need to communicate one's experiences.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2013...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
February 21, 2016
This book was not what I expected--it was an intimately written memoir about one POW's experience being forced to work on the Burma railroad. It was incredibly fascinating and easy to read, but very little actually described his time working the railroad. Most of the book depicted life in the prison camp--starvation, dysentery, and abuse from the guards--as well as the story of one Dutch doctor in the camp with him. The author credited the doctor fur saving hundreds of prisoners lives through his compassion and knowledge of jungle herbs.
I really liked the authors voice, and his ability to separate the Japanese guards that abused him from the entire Japanese population. I do wish there was more information on the history of this railroad, but I highly recommend this book to history lovers.
I really liked the authors voice, and his ability to separate the Japanese guards that abused him from the entire Japanese population. I do wish there was more information on the history of this railroad, but I highly recommend this book to history lovers.
April 23, 2021
Very few books make me cry
September 27, 2022
Hooray for Dr Henri Hekking.
World war II and the Japanese needed a railroad built from Rangoon to Saigon, so they used prisoners of war for their work slaves. This book, written by one of the work slaves, doesn't tell much of the story of building the railroad, but mostly the story of Dr Henri hekking, a Dutch Dr born in Java, who saved many men by his knowledge of jungle medicine, jungle plants, and tropical diseases.
The Japanese, among most humans, exceed at cruelty. They did not care about taking good care of their prisoners, and kept them on starvation diet: one dirty rice ball a day, along with watery soup. Dr hekking helped find ways to keep them alive: for example, in one village he found where they had pounded rice to remove the husks. He gathered up the husks and put them in the watery soup that was given to the men. Moreover, when he saw Japanese soldiers slaughtering a water buffalo, he asked to take the blood that they were going to throw away. Put that in water, cooked it, and gave it to the work slaves. When you're starving, you'll eat things you think you would never ever eat.
One of the POWs, Glen self, had a leg injury that had ulcified, clear down to the bone. Another doctor said the leg would have to cut off, but Dr hekking said nonsense, I will save it.
With no anesthesia, he got four men to hold Glen down:
"Doc felt the edge of the spoon with his thumb to make sure it was sharp enough. He struck a wooden match the Japanese guard had given him, and he held the spoon to the blaze. He waited a few moments until the spoon cooled, then asked Glen to lie back, motioning at the same time for the four men to take hold of his legs and arms. He scraped lightly at first, removing the pus and loose surface material. He then told Albert to squeeze Glen's leg as hard as he could on both sides of the ulcer. Once the doctor started to probe deeper with the spoon, Glen let out a long, agonizing scream. Then, mercifully, he passed out.
Doc worked in silence, stripping away the rotted flesh, scraping the blackened bone. One of the men they called Gabe walked out of the shack to vomit.
looking at the bone, doc saw more than a tropical ulcer: a part of the bone had been chipped, and soon the infected part of that would have to be removed. He would need a surgical tool that resembled a chisel to take it out. And only one man he knew - the sergeant he called Butch from his staff in tjamplong, who was in another prison camp - would know how to make it. If only he had the piece of metal in a way to shape and sharpen it..
it took a long time to finish removing the pus. He scraped the bone but, none of this was a substitute for removing the piece of infected bone. That was still to come. He used strips of bamboo split with a pocket knife to make the open cagelike contraption to protect the open cavity. The four men used a stretcher made of bamboo poles and rice sacks to carry glen, still unconscious, back to a shelf in the officers' quarters. He would be in pain and would run a temperature for several days. Doc wanted to be near him to offer as much encouragement as possible."
The water buffalo blood scene:
" 'Why are you doing that?' I asked.
He was poking wood beneath the kettle, stoking the fire. He didn't look up. 'It is protein. Our bodies starve for protein.'
'but, you expect us to eat that?'
'of course. You will eat what you must to live. In java, cooked blood is A delicacy.'
'Java is a mighty strange country,' I said.
I watched, ready to vomit, as the blood boiled and turned black.
Finally, as doc stirred it around with a pole, it hardened and became grainy. He dipped some of it out with a spoon, blew on it to cool it, then tasted it, smacking his lips. A pleased look appeared on his face. 'M-m-m-m-m-m,' He said. 'very good! Here. You try it.'
Other prisoners were gathering around, some more repulsed than others. The cooked blood was tough enough to chew. If it was good for us, and I had no reason to doubt that it was, I was determined to chew it and injust it. It tasted a bit like burned rubber with only a bare hint of beef liver. 'Not bad,' I lied, smacking my lips, trying to hold a straight face. 'Excellent,' I said, swallowing it.
Doc's face beamed. "See? I tell you so!'
Bird dog's eyes were like saucers. 'You're kidding! Give me that spoon!' "
The Javanese had been a gentle people before the Japanese took them prisoner. The men turned violent afterward. After the end of the war,
"in fact, the British offered little help to the Dutch women and children on the islands until the peloppors killed a British general. This enraged the british, and they promptly dispatched gurkhas and sikhs to take on the peloppors. Unfortunately, in some instances this was like throwing gasoline on the fire because the sympathies of some of the gurkhas and sikhs were with the indonesians. To this day, there is still bitterness on the part of some Dutch soldiers who claim the British would not allow them to defend their women and children: stories still persist the gurkhas turned their backs while peloppors took women from the camps, raped them, and killed them."
I don't know why the British would think that people from India would help them, after they robbed and raped their own country. That's pretty stupid.
From the "Indo Project":
"Since 1956, the “boys” from Texas have held reunions with fellow ex POW’s. Each time, they passed the hat around to make it possible for Doc Hekking to come from Holland with his wife. Each time, they embraced wholeheartedly at the airport as they saw “Doc”.
On January 28, 1994 Dr. Henri H. Hekking passed away in Holland after a long battle with cancer. His “boys” were at a loss for words of how much he meant to them. He was an expert jungle doctor who saved their lives and became an endearing father figure and great friend."
World war II and the Japanese needed a railroad built from Rangoon to Saigon, so they used prisoners of war for their work slaves. This book, written by one of the work slaves, doesn't tell much of the story of building the railroad, but mostly the story of Dr Henri hekking, a Dutch Dr born in Java, who saved many men by his knowledge of jungle medicine, jungle plants, and tropical diseases.
The Japanese, among most humans, exceed at cruelty. They did not care about taking good care of their prisoners, and kept them on starvation diet: one dirty rice ball a day, along with watery soup. Dr hekking helped find ways to keep them alive: for example, in one village he found where they had pounded rice to remove the husks. He gathered up the husks and put them in the watery soup that was given to the men. Moreover, when he saw Japanese soldiers slaughtering a water buffalo, he asked to take the blood that they were going to throw away. Put that in water, cooked it, and gave it to the work slaves. When you're starving, you'll eat things you think you would never ever eat.
One of the POWs, Glen self, had a leg injury that had ulcified, clear down to the bone. Another doctor said the leg would have to cut off, but Dr hekking said nonsense, I will save it.
With no anesthesia, he got four men to hold Glen down:
"Doc felt the edge of the spoon with his thumb to make sure it was sharp enough. He struck a wooden match the Japanese guard had given him, and he held the spoon to the blaze. He waited a few moments until the spoon cooled, then asked Glen to lie back, motioning at the same time for the four men to take hold of his legs and arms. He scraped lightly at first, removing the pus and loose surface material. He then told Albert to squeeze Glen's leg as hard as he could on both sides of the ulcer. Once the doctor started to probe deeper with the spoon, Glen let out a long, agonizing scream. Then, mercifully, he passed out.
Doc worked in silence, stripping away the rotted flesh, scraping the blackened bone. One of the men they called Gabe walked out of the shack to vomit.
looking at the bone, doc saw more than a tropical ulcer: a part of the bone had been chipped, and soon the infected part of that would have to be removed. He would need a surgical tool that resembled a chisel to take it out. And only one man he knew - the sergeant he called Butch from his staff in tjamplong, who was in another prison camp - would know how to make it. If only he had the piece of metal in a way to shape and sharpen it..
it took a long time to finish removing the pus. He scraped the bone but, none of this was a substitute for removing the piece of infected bone. That was still to come. He used strips of bamboo split with a pocket knife to make the open cagelike contraption to protect the open cavity. The four men used a stretcher made of bamboo poles and rice sacks to carry glen, still unconscious, back to a shelf in the officers' quarters. He would be in pain and would run a temperature for several days. Doc wanted to be near him to offer as much encouragement as possible."
The water buffalo blood scene:
" 'Why are you doing that?' I asked.
He was poking wood beneath the kettle, stoking the fire. He didn't look up. 'It is protein. Our bodies starve for protein.'
'but, you expect us to eat that?'
'of course. You will eat what you must to live. In java, cooked blood is A delicacy.'
'Java is a mighty strange country,' I said.
I watched, ready to vomit, as the blood boiled and turned black.
Finally, as doc stirred it around with a pole, it hardened and became grainy. He dipped some of it out with a spoon, blew on it to cool it, then tasted it, smacking his lips. A pleased look appeared on his face. 'M-m-m-m-m-m,' He said. 'very good! Here. You try it.'
Other prisoners were gathering around, some more repulsed than others. The cooked blood was tough enough to chew. If it was good for us, and I had no reason to doubt that it was, I was determined to chew it and injust it. It tasted a bit like burned rubber with only a bare hint of beef liver. 'Not bad,' I lied, smacking my lips, trying to hold a straight face. 'Excellent,' I said, swallowing it.
Doc's face beamed. "See? I tell you so!'
Bird dog's eyes were like saucers. 'You're kidding! Give me that spoon!' "
The Javanese had been a gentle people before the Japanese took them prisoner. The men turned violent afterward. After the end of the war,
"in fact, the British offered little help to the Dutch women and children on the islands until the peloppors killed a British general. This enraged the british, and they promptly dispatched gurkhas and sikhs to take on the peloppors. Unfortunately, in some instances this was like throwing gasoline on the fire because the sympathies of some of the gurkhas and sikhs were with the indonesians. To this day, there is still bitterness on the part of some Dutch soldiers who claim the British would not allow them to defend their women and children: stories still persist the gurkhas turned their backs while peloppors took women from the camps, raped them, and killed them."
I don't know why the British would think that people from India would help them, after they robbed and raped their own country. That's pretty stupid.
From the "Indo Project":
"Since 1956, the “boys” from Texas have held reunions with fellow ex POW’s. Each time, they passed the hat around to make it possible for Doc Hekking to come from Holland with his wife. Each time, they embraced wholeheartedly at the airport as they saw “Doc”.
On January 28, 1994 Dr. Henri H. Hekking passed away in Holland after a long battle with cancer. His “boys” were at a loss for words of how much he meant to them. He was an expert jungle doctor who saved their lives and became an endearing father figure and great friend."
Review of advance copy
The three stars don’t mean that this isn’t a worthwhile read. It’s just that I’ve read several memoirs of soldiers’ and civilians’ experiences in Japanese Prisoner of War Camps before (notably Agnes Keith’s “Three Came Home”) and seen a couple of unforgettable films like “The Bridge on the River Kwai” (which actually wasn’t blown up by the British commander at the time) and “Paradise Road” about a women’s camp on Sumatra.
The author recalls his months in different work camps constructing the notorious Burma-Thai Railway, the cruelty of most of the Japanese guards and camp commanders who treated the prisoners like slaves and humiliated them at every opportunity, the accidents and tropical diseases, the starvation rations and total lack of medicines. On the other hand there was the camaraderie and the looking out for each other among those young Americans. Special mention is made of a Dutch Colonial Army Medical Doctor who literally risked his life for the prisoners and who - apart from keeping up morale - was able to save many lives through his superhuman dedication as a doctor and friend and also through his knowledge of tropical plants with healing properties and his experience with uncommon procedures thereby in many cases avoiding amputations.
The author recalls his months in different work camps constructing the notorious Burma-Thai Railway, the cruelty of most of the Japanese guards and camp commanders who treated the prisoners like slaves and humiliated them at every opportunity, the accidents and tropical diseases, the starvation rations and total lack of medicines. On the other hand there was the camaraderie and the looking out for each other among those young Americans. Special mention is made of a Dutch Colonial Army Medical Doctor who literally risked his life for the prisoners and who - apart from keeping up morale - was able to save many lives through his superhuman dedication as a doctor and friend and also through his knowledge of tropical plants with healing properties and his experience with uncommon procedures thereby in many cases avoiding amputations.
March 31, 2021
Different from most books written by survivors of the TBR, this was written mainly as a tribute to the doctor who kept the long ordeal from being even worse. A good reminder of selfless service to others.
December 11, 2021
Wow what these POWs endured was unbelievable! The beat part about the book was the focus on morale and staying positive even when it seems there is no hope. These men are an inspiration of strength and perseverance.
November 1, 2023
great historical read
Really enjoyed reading about this forgotten event in history. Thanks to a compassionate Dr who worked so diligently to save lives.
Really enjoyed reading about this forgotten event in history. Thanks to a compassionate Dr who worked so diligently to save lives.
March 13, 2024
Saving lives
A great memoir told of the real life story of surviving a horrific casualty of war, by one who survived to live to tell it.
A great memoir told of the real life story of surviving a horrific casualty of war, by one who survived to live to tell it.
September 29, 2016
War sucks
This should be required reading for every Chickenhawk in congress. The people who will send your son or daughter to war but when it was their turn they had other "priorites". That's a direct quote from Dick Cheney.
This should be required reading for every Chickenhawk in congress. The people who will send your son or daughter to war but when it was their turn they had other "priorites". That's a direct quote from Dick Cheney.
July 3, 2015
This was a very hard book for me to read, as I have family who served in WWII in the Pacific, some of whom were POW's, starved and tortured by the Japanese. Regardless of the difficulty of reading the book, I recommend it highly. We should not forget.
The dedication explains the entire book:
"The following is dedicated to Dr. Henri Hekking, Den Hague, Netherlands, who loved and respected his Texan friends, risking his life repeatedly to save them, although he had never seen the United States of America.
It is dedicated to those whom the Japanese held captive in Burma during World War II, forcing thousands to face acts of ultimate human indignity -- death by starvation, sicknesses, firing squads, beheadings, bayonetting, beatings, and torture. It is unconscionable to allow future generations to forget what happened on the Burma railroad, just as it is to turn our backs on the holocaust in Europe.
If there is any reason to recall what happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki each August 6 and 9, then at the same time let us remember Burma and the Death Railroad, where an estimated 100,000 prisoners died in fourteen months at the hands of the Japanese."
The dedication explains the entire book:
"The following is dedicated to Dr. Henri Hekking, Den Hague, Netherlands, who loved and respected his Texan friends, risking his life repeatedly to save them, although he had never seen the United States of America.
It is dedicated to those whom the Japanese held captive in Burma during World War II, forcing thousands to face acts of ultimate human indignity -- death by starvation, sicknesses, firing squads, beheadings, bayonetting, beatings, and torture. It is unconscionable to allow future generations to forget what happened on the Burma railroad, just as it is to turn our backs on the holocaust in Europe.
If there is any reason to recall what happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki each August 6 and 9, then at the same time let us remember Burma and the Death Railroad, where an estimated 100,000 prisoners died in fourteen months at the hands of the Japanese."
September 1, 2025
A deeply flawed but moving memoir
This is not a work of fiction, but neither is it an accurate record of history. It’s best read as a personal memoir, valuable in that there were relatively few American PoWs on the Thai-Burma railway and therefore very few records of their experiences. The vast majority of books on this subject reflect the experiences of British and Australian servicemen (there were no women), and they worked for the most part on the longer stretch from Kanchanaburi to Chedi Sam Ong (Three Pagodas Pass). The vast majority if not all the few American servicemen worked on the shorter but no less harsh Burmese stretch of the railway. There are many historical and geographical inaccuracies but the emotional truth of the author’s experience outweighs these and it remains a valuable testament.
This is not a work of fiction, but neither is it an accurate record of history. It’s best read as a personal memoir, valuable in that there were relatively few American PoWs on the Thai-Burma railway and therefore very few records of their experiences. The vast majority of books on this subject reflect the experiences of British and Australian servicemen (there were no women), and they worked for the most part on the longer stretch from Kanchanaburi to Chedi Sam Ong (Three Pagodas Pass). The vast majority if not all the few American servicemen worked on the shorter but no less harsh Burmese stretch of the railway. There are many historical and geographical inaccuracies but the emotional truth of the author’s experience outweighs these and it remains a valuable testament.
December 4, 2013
It took me a while to read this book along with others I was reading but it was such a good read. I definitely want to go back and re-read the book. This book, along with a few others, peaked my interest in the Burma-Thailand death railway.
June 27, 2014
Historical
these man are the country duration of our country and we
must never forget their sacrifices.May God bless then and we all as Americans owe a debt t that certain never be repaid.
these man are the country duration of our country and we
must never forget their sacrifices.May God bless then and we all as Americans owe a debt t that certain never be repaid.
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