What do you think?
Rate this book
Billy: My Life as a Teenage POW
Billy’s My Life as a Teenage POW has been compiled from a personal chronicle penned by Billy Young throughout the 1970s, supplemented by hundreds of conversations that Lynette and Billy have shared in the course of their close friendship spanning more than two decades. It is the only first-hand published account by an ordinary soldier imprisoned by the Japanese at the infamous Sandakan POW Camp, and one of only three books by a survivor at the Kempeitai’s equally notorious Outram Road Gaol. Billy is now the only soldier left alive from Sandakan, and the only Australian prisoner still alive from Outram Road.
473 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 1, 2016
20 people want to read
About the author
Lynette Silver
12 booksLynette Silver’s main interest lies in investigating various aspects of Australian history. Her work in this field was recognised in 1989 when, following the publication of her books A Fool’s Gold? and The Battle of Vinegar Hill, she was made a Fellow of the Australian Institute of History and the Arts.
More publications followed: a centennial history on St Peter’s Church, Hornsby; a number of children’s non-fiction books on ballet, craft and games; craft books for adults and and ten more non-fiction historical works. The latter includes the official bicentennial work Unsung Heroes and Heroines of Australia, to which a number of writers contributed; two World War II books, Heroes of Rimau and Krait: The Fishing Boat that went to War, and Fabulous Furphies – Ten Great Myths from Australia’s Past.
In 1995, following lengthy research into the fall of Singapore, she was appointed official Historian to the Australian 8th Division Association, a post she held for seven years. Her highly successful book, Sandakan – A Conspiracy of Silence, released in 1998, concerns the loss of almost 2,500 Allied POWs in British North Borneo. It is now into its fourth edition in Australia, with a Malaysian edition launched in 2007. The research undertaken for this book, recognised world-wide as the definitive history, led to her appointment as adviser and consultant to novelist Bryce Courtenay in his blockbuster, Four Fires, which reached Number 1 on the bestseller list.
The Battle of Vinegar Hill, extensively updated and revised for that bi-centenary in 2004, was re-released in 2003. Although originally published in 1989, it remains the only full-length account of the battle and is cited as the leading authority in The Oxford Guide to Australian History.
The Bridge at Parit Sulong, released in 2004, was described by Major General Duncan Lewis, Australia’s Special Forces Commander as ‘one of the finest pieces of investigative history you will read’. The book, which took six years to research and write, deals with one of the least known, and most gallant fighting retreats of World War II and its terrible aftermath.
In 2003 Lynette received a Defence Forces Commendation and Medal from Special Operations Command Australia, for her work during the 60th Anniversary of Operation Jaywick, the first civilian ever to receive this prestigious award. In January 2004 she was awarded an OAM in the Australia Day Honours for her services to veterans and their families for her work on Sandakan. The Sabah Government recognised her research work and her contribution to Sabah’s war history with a Minister’s Special Award, an honour rarely conferred on a foreigner, which was presented to her in November 2009 by Datuk Masidi Manjun, Minister for Tourism, Culture and the Environment.
In the Australia Day Honours 2019, in recognition of her on-going historical research since 2003, her efforts to keep alive the memory of thousands of POWs and her philanthropic projects to make life better for the people of Sabah, the Australian government upgraded Lynette’s OAM to a Member of the Order of Australia or AM, which takes precedence over both the Order of the British Empire (OBE) and Member of the British Empire (MBE), under the previous Imperial system. The years of honorary work by her husband Neil, who takes care of all administrative and logistical matters connected with the various projects initiated by the Silvers, was also recognised with the receipt of a Medal of the Order of Australia or OAM, which takes precedence over the British Empire Medal or BEM, under the Imperial honours system. (for more information go to: https://lynettesilver.com/)
Lynette has two children and is the grandmother of three. She lives in Sydney with her husband Neil, whose help and support is integral to her memorial projects. When not researching and writing Lynette’s time is fully occupied in consultative work with various organisations, raising money for her projec
More publications followed: a centennial history on St Peter’s Church, Hornsby; a number of children’s non-fiction books on ballet, craft and games; craft books for adults and and ten more non-fiction historical works. The latter includes the official bicentennial work Unsung Heroes and Heroines of Australia, to which a number of writers contributed; two World War II books, Heroes of Rimau and Krait: The Fishing Boat that went to War, and Fabulous Furphies – Ten Great Myths from Australia’s Past.
In 1995, following lengthy research into the fall of Singapore, she was appointed official Historian to the Australian 8th Division Association, a post she held for seven years. Her highly successful book, Sandakan – A Conspiracy of Silence, released in 1998, concerns the loss of almost 2,500 Allied POWs in British North Borneo. It is now into its fourth edition in Australia, with a Malaysian edition launched in 2007. The research undertaken for this book, recognised world-wide as the definitive history, led to her appointment as adviser and consultant to novelist Bryce Courtenay in his blockbuster, Four Fires, which reached Number 1 on the bestseller list.
The Battle of Vinegar Hill, extensively updated and revised for that bi-centenary in 2004, was re-released in 2003. Although originally published in 1989, it remains the only full-length account of the battle and is cited as the leading authority in The Oxford Guide to Australian History.
The Bridge at Parit Sulong, released in 2004, was described by Major General Duncan Lewis, Australia’s Special Forces Commander as ‘one of the finest pieces of investigative history you will read’. The book, which took six years to research and write, deals with one of the least known, and most gallant fighting retreats of World War II and its terrible aftermath.
In 2003 Lynette received a Defence Forces Commendation and Medal from Special Operations Command Australia, for her work during the 60th Anniversary of Operation Jaywick, the first civilian ever to receive this prestigious award. In January 2004 she was awarded an OAM in the Australia Day Honours for her services to veterans and their families for her work on Sandakan. The Sabah Government recognised her research work and her contribution to Sabah’s war history with a Minister’s Special Award, an honour rarely conferred on a foreigner, which was presented to her in November 2009 by Datuk Masidi Manjun, Minister for Tourism, Culture and the Environment.
In the Australia Day Honours 2019, in recognition of her on-going historical research since 2003, her efforts to keep alive the memory of thousands of POWs and her philanthropic projects to make life better for the people of Sabah, the Australian government upgraded Lynette’s OAM to a Member of the Order of Australia or AM, which takes precedence over both the Order of the British Empire (OBE) and Member of the British Empire (MBE), under the previous Imperial system. The years of honorary work by her husband Neil, who takes care of all administrative and logistical matters connected with the various projects initiated by the Silvers, was also recognised with the receipt of a Medal of the Order of Australia or OAM, which takes precedence over the British Empire Medal or BEM, under the Imperial honours system. (for more information go to: https://lynettesilver.com/)
Lynette has two children and is the grandmother of three. She lives in Sydney with her husband Neil, whose help and support is integral to her memorial projects. When not researching and writing Lynette’s time is fully occupied in consultative work with various organisations, raising money for her projec
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
June 12, 2023
What a terrific story. I really enjoyed the first version however this one seemed even more authentic and obviously Billy felt it necessary to set the record straight on some issues. Enthralling either way.
Displaying 1 of 1 review