Whatever It Took: An American Paratrooper’s Extraordinary Memoir of Escape, Survival, and Heroism in the Last Days of World War II – A Greatest Generation D-Day and POW Story

by Henry Langrehr, Jim DeFelice

Published to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day, an unforgettable never-before-told first-person account of World War II: the true story of an American paratrooper who survived D-Day, was captured and imprisoned in a Nazi work camp, and made a daring escape to freedom. 

Now at 95, one of the few living members of the Greatest Generation shares his experiences at last in one of the most remarkable World War II stories ever told. As the Allied Invasion of Normandy launched in the pre-dawn hours of June 6, 1944, Henry Langrehr, an American paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne, was among the thousands of Allies who parachuted into occupied France. Surviving heavy anti-aircraft fire, he crashed through the glass roof of a greenhouse in Sainte-Mère-Église. While many of the soldiers in his unit died, Henry and other surviving troops valiantly battled enemy tanks to a standstill. Then, on June 29th, Henry was captured by the Nazis. The next phase of his incredible journey was beginning. Kept for a week in the outer ring of a death camp, Henry witnessed the Nazis’ unspeakable brutality—the so-called Final Solution, with people marched to their deaths, their bodies discarded like cords of wood. Transported to a work camp, he endured horrors of his own when he was forced to live in unbelievable squalor and labor in a coal mine with other POWs. Knowing they would be worked to death, he and a friend made a desperate escape. When a German soldier cornered them in a barn, the friend was fatally shot; Henry struggled with the soldier, killing him and taking his gun. Perilously traveling westward toward Allied controlled land on foot, Henry faced the great ethical and moral dilemmas of war firsthand, needing to do whatever it took to survive. Finally, after two weeks behind enemy lines, he found an American unit and was rescued. Awaiting him at home was Arlene, who, like millions of other American women, went to work in factories and offices to build the armaments Henry and the Allies needed for victory. Whatever It Took is her story, too, bringing to life the hopes and fears of those on the homefront awaiting their loved ones to return. A tale of heroism, hope, and survival featuring 30 photographs, Whatever It Took is a timely reminder of the human cost of freedom and a tribute to unbreakable human courage and spirit in the darkest of times. 

Genres: History, World War II, Nonfiction, Memoir, War, Military Fiction, Historical

288 pages, Hardcover

First published May 5, 2020

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"Pictures don't tell half of the story. [The area] was littered with destroyed vehicles and armaments. There was enough junk on the beach to fight another war. Wrecked vehicles. Wrecked artillery. Wrecked men. Horrors of war . . . hell on earth." -- U.S. Army paratrooper Henry Langrehr, describing the aftermath of the Allied D-Day invasion on Utah Beach in lucid detail, pages 111-112

Henry Langrehr was a high school student from a small working-class farm and factory town on the eastern edge of Iowa when he volunteered for military service in early 1943. Assigned to the U.S. Army, he was placed in the then-burgeoning paratrooper ranks and also cross-trained as a combat engineer (although he wryly notes the job involved more demolition and destruction than actual assembly) with handling explosives for the 82nd Airborne. After several months on stand-by in the European Theater he is finally sent on his very first front-line mission . . . which just happened to be 'Operation Overlord,' now more popularly known as the massively-coordinated but problematic American-British-Canadian invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944. Just three weeks later he would go missing in action, badly injured by shrapnel in an explosion and taken as a prisoner of war and shipped to a stalag. After recuperating and being forced to work in a coal mine as a POW, Langrehr makes a bold escape and spends weeks on the run in occupied territory trying to avoid recapture or outright execution. Whatever It Took is his nimble military memoir, recounted in a humble and straightforward style that belies some unbelievable or once-in-a-lifetime experiences during WWII. As Langrehr notes in the final chapters he was never very comfortable speaking about this portion of his life, but thankfully - on the eve of turning 100 - he reconsidered and shared his story with us.

[Paula Fialho Silva · Rating 5 out of 5]

As memórias de combatentes da Segunda Guerra Mundial são sempre tão inspiradoras, mesmo quando os relatos são crus e duros.

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

Here's a book that I started to read several times in the past two months that I just didn't have a great feel for. It didn't appear to be well written and there is way too much unrelated information to the story, but you do have to take into consideration that the author was in his 90's when he wrote this with some help. Seeing as I was having so much trouble with it, I decided to check out some reviews about the book to maybe get a better feel for it. Then I ran across a review on Amazon by a man who is the historian of the WWII 505 RCT Association (of which Henry Langrehr claims to have served with the 505 Parachute Infantry). Bottom line is Mr. Langrehr never served with them and apparently, he never escaped from a Nazi work camp. I have no idea where the truth lies in this but for me it put an end to wanting to read the book.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing, because it was about an ordinary man who was placed in historic circumstances and did many things of which he is not proud in order to survive, along with a big heaping amount of dumb luck.

This is an honest, up-front book about this man's life, starting with his experiences in the Great Depression, which he contends prepared the country for the worse hardships to come, through his training as a paratrooper and his jumping into D-Day and what followed, including capture, his being taken to a concentration camp and slave labor in the mines and his escape.

He is 100% up-front that his survival wasn't glorious. It was literally him or the enemy, other human beings, at many different times and he chose himself each time, which means the enemy didn't get to survive. He isn't proud of what he did. He realizes that if it wasn't for the war, what he did would have been murder, but because there was the war and it was his life or theirs, he chose his life. But that doesn't make the shame and horror of what he did go away. In order to kill to survive, he had to be angry, he had to be full of hate, full of fear. He's not proud of that. My heart broke for him and what he had to do, what he had to go through, just to get home.

This book isn't graphic, thank goodness, but the violent truth is underlying the whole story. Also weaving throughout the whole book is, could I do what I needed to do to survive? What is the cost of survival? All I have to say is I hope that I and the rest of the world, never have to make that decision, at least, not in the way he had to make it. My heart goes out to him and all the brave and scared men and women who have fought and continue to fight, to keep us free. (This could also be applied to what is happening in the world now. I pray that we are all strong enough to do what we need to survive and to help and not hurt others. We can be afraid, but we can't let it rule us. We are all better than that.)

This book tells is a story that NEEDS to be told. It is so powerful, so impactful, that I would not hesitate to suggest it as high school or college reading. He was 19 when he went to join the war. At the time, he wasn't old enough to vote or to get married, but he was old enough to die for his country and for freedom for the entire world. This might not be a bad book for 18-19 year olds to read. There but for the grace of God...

Stunning, sobering, incredibly important book. 5, I want to meet this man and tell him how thankful I am for his bravery in sharing his story, stars. God bless him, his family and those he fought with. What they did should never be forgotten. We can't let history repeat itself. We just can't.

My thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers-William Morrow for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

[Nathan Albright · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is somewhat extraordinary in that it is the most restrained book about a man's desire to be free from slavery in a prisoner of war camp. It is not particularly surprising that an elderly man in Iowa from a restrained German-American family would find it difficult to open up about his war experiences. And it appears as if there is a great deal of tension between the author's quiet dignity and obvious discomfort in writing about his own insecurities as well as his own struggles with faith and his own dark memories about the traumas of imprisonment, slavery, and doing whatever it took to escape to freedom in the waning days of World War II, which are described in an unsentimental manner, the co-author's insistence that there are no good wars, only necessary ones, a sentiment I happen to endorse, and the efforts of the publisher of this book to profit by pointing to the author's heroism. If this is a book about heroism, it is also a book about the horrors of war and how long they linger in the memory of those who suffer from them, making even the elderly inhabitants of small Iowa communities unable to escape such matters.

This book is a bit more than 200 pages long and it begins with a map and then a prologue that shows VE day, with the author safe at home and recovering from the horrors of his World War II experience. After that the author talks about his family background (1), his training as a paratrooper (2), and his experiences in June 1944 as he prepared for D-Day (3). After that the author shares his experience in the drop zone (4), his fighting in the hedgerows of northern France (5), and it is only on page 135, about 2/3 of the way through the book, that he discusses how he was taken prisoner by the Germans (6). After this the author discusses his story in shorter chapters that are restrained despite the horrific content of what is in the chapters, including a discussion of his work in mines as slave labor (7), a summary of the war that was going on outside of the fence (8) and the opportunity that he seized to escape from the labor camp (9). After this comes a look at what had to be done for the author to survive (10), which included going west in the night to avoid people and finding food and water and weapons by killing unprepared home guard soldiers and even escaping with German soldiers feeling towards the Americans. After that he discusses his trip home (11) and marriage, as well as the rewards of survival (12) and his experiences going back to Europe as a hero (13). The book ends with a post-script from the co-author, appendices which are of interest, notes, acknowledgements, and photo insert credits.

One of the key elements of this book being co-written is that it is written in a spare style that emphasizes the author's own insistence of telling his story in spare and unadorned way, and the presence of the co-writer simply makes his approach to put what the author is willing to tell into a coherent and well-written narrative. The narrative has some gaps, as the author simply does not remember everything about where he was or the motivations of others. What shines through in particular, and most poignantly, is the way that the author still appears to be haunted by his doing whatever it took to be free, including risking being shot by Germans and risking the damage to his own spirit that resulted from his killing others stealing their food in order to survive as he made his way to the West. It is not surprising, alas, that the author was not judged as having any worthwhile intelligence, but it scarcely mattered, as he achieved what he set out to do in making it home. On the other hand, though, this book makes it appear as if the author was never entirely at home with himself given what he suffered and endured at the hands of the Germans and thanks to his own deeds.

[Jon Koebrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really great story. The author’s candid opinions on killing in war and his memory fading at 95 were refreshing elements. Highly recommended reading. 4.5 stars. I work with a nephew of the author and am thankful to have learned about this book from him. I heard the story of his uncle in a much abbreviated form before the book was finished.

[Schuyler Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I tip my cap in respect, for a number of reasons, to Henry Langrehr, author of “Whatever It Took,” a thrilling memoir he wrote at ninety-five years old. First, for his service in a military career specialty noted for its low survival rate and rugged existence. Second, for his clearly written account that is both thrilling, and mesmerizing, and, finally, for his fortitude at the grueling chore of writing any book at his advanced age. I know because I did it at 6o years old, and nearly ruined my health. Ten or eleven hours a day, seven days a week in front of a computer screen takes its toll on your back and butt, so much so that you never quite recover your old stride. As an ex-paratrooper, he must have had a truly wonderful stride at one time. They all did.

Langrehr served in Europe during World War II in the 82nd Airborne Division. He is the recipient of numerous service awards, including two bronze stars, two Purple Hearts, and the French Legion of Honor. Quite impressive recognition, but nothing compared to his actual participation, his imprisonment, his escape and eventual return to his Allied brethren. He tells it all, bringing the reader along with him every step of the way. His recall is amazing, his storytelling is captivating, and the interest he creates is amazing. I find it interesting that for most of his life he was either reluctant or extremely reticent about repeating his experiences, but it seems, once he started, he was relentless in his intent to tell it all. Whatever it took.

After his capture, the author was not only forced to live in squalor and horrendous conditions in a coal mining work camp with other POWS, he was witness to unspeakable cruelty where people were marched to their death, bodies stacked like cordwood. But his determination to survive, to somehow get home to his beloved wife, led him on an improbable elusive journey, where he was forced to commit his own cruel murderous acts to survive. He did so with much regret and remorse, always struggling to regain his sense of morality and righteousness in his later life.

As a World War II history addict, I found this book to be at the top of my enjoyment list. I heartily recommend you give it a try, and picture, as you read, a dogged 95-year old laboring away with thoughts that may have been somewhat difficult for him to put to words, but he got it done using whatever it took.

[Dorothy Bayles · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is good for people who want to know about WW2 planes, strategies, and different infantries. I thought it would have more about his experience as a POW etc. I’m grateful for his service to our country but I had to force myself to finish this.

[Carol Higgins · Rating 5 out of 5]

A credit to coauthor Jim DeFelice for writing about an important piece of WWII history. The accounts of Henry Langrehr experiences are incredible. This book is easy to read, eye opening, and educational. The reader can understand the lasting effects of war on the individual spirit.

[Noah · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5. What an incredible story, and I thought I’d read it all on WWII. At first, the folksy writing and Cliff’s Notes histories of the war had me worried; however, Henry’s story of paratrooper combat on D-Day, his capture and time as a POW, and his miraculous escape gripped me. Notable among many of these firsthand accounts, we get a strong sense of the author’s inner turmoil and emotions regarding the terrible things he had to do to survive, and to help set Europe free from tyranny. We can never thank these men enough, so the next best thing we must do is honor their memory by ensuring that their sacrifices were not in vain.

[Don LeClair · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Whatever it Took” is the first-person story of Henry Langrehr and his experience as a paratrooper in the D-Day invasion of Normandy, being a prisoner of war, and escaping and returning to his fiancée in Clinton Iowa. The book was published in 2020, when Langrehr was 95, and worked with writer Jim DeFelice to publish his story.

I was impressed by Henry’s story and how well he portrayed the horrible reality of war. The title of the book sums of the experience – you did whatever it took just to survive. Langrehr was an atheist when he enlisted and a senior in high school. He became a Christian based on the bible he was issued, and his experience with the death of some other Christian soldiers who seemed to be at peace. After the war, Langrehr joined the Lutheran church in Clinton, Iowa with his wife.

Like many World War II veterans, Langrehr avoided sharing the reality of war with just about anyone. He tried to put it behind him and move forward with his post-war life and marriage. His family convinced/forced him to go to Normandy for the 50th anniversary of the landing, and was glad to have been there. Langrehr is not proud of his wartime service; he feels a sense of shame in doing “whatever it took” to survive.

I am very happy to have finished this book on Memorial Day. While Henry Langrehr survived, his story provides an important lesson in what war is all about, and some perspective on the millions of soldiers and civilians who lost their lives in the war.

[joeypizza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fast read. Tells a good story about a first hand ww2 experience. However the book is not very detailed with historical context, lacks details. That being said I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking to scratch the surface on a ww2 read. If your a history buff and know much about this topic this book may not have much to offer

[NJB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing memoir about an ordinary 19 year old paratrooper in WWII. Henry Langrehr’s story of survival is an incredible tale of survival told in a Mayer of fact way-no bragging or declarations of heroism-although he is certainly entitled to do so.

[David Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a story told by a 95 year old veteran

[Shane W · Rating 4 out of 5]

This reminds me of a story the way my grandfather would tell it. Good read.

[Chuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good personal description of the Normandy invasion, breakout, Battle of the Bulge, POW camp, escape and rescue by Patton’s army.

[Merlene Neville · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book, whatever it took, is especially meaningful to me as I had a cousin who was a paratrooper and fought in the Battle of the Bulge, I read whatever I can to better understand what he went through during WWII. He stayed with us for awhile after the war but never talked about it. I found that this book seemed to show the hardships the soldiers went through but also the determination to reach their objectives. I also now have a clearer idea of what a hedgerow is, A great book!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book tells the first hand account of a paratrooper on D-Day. What I loved about this book is Henry’s honesty and true feelings now and during his time at war. He is a true hero and I’m grateful that he decided to share his story. I felt the book was an easy read and I finished in less than a week. I would recommend this book for those who would like to hear a soldier’s own words.

[Dorothy Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

War

This was one of the most sincere books about WW 2 that I have read. The author was so open and honest about his emotions. I could feel his fear and pain as he recalled the war. It was so wonderful that he enjoyed a happy life after the war with his family.

[Matt Buskard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book. It was well written, easy to understand and follow, and written in such a genuine and matter-of-fact way. Henry isn’t just telling you about the Army or the war, he is telling you about himself and his experiences. Highly recommend!

[William Troy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book reminds me of the title of Victor David Hanson's book, The Second World Wars. Truly the experience of Henry Langrehr was a different war from what other soldiers experienced. He was ninety-five years old when he wrote this book with the assistance of Jim DeFelice. He admits that there are a lot of blanks in his memory but one cannot forget the essentials of his war. He trained as a paratrooper and was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division. He trained as an engineer but his main function was as an explosive expert an blow things up. He jumped into Normandy near Sainte-Mer-Eglise. His mission was to get to the Chef-du-Pont bridge and blow it up if the Germans were counterattacking and intended to use the bridge. On landing he got out of the town where he had broken through the glass and landed in a greenhouse. He headed to the bridge with other soldiers but was told the bridge was captured so he proceeded to essentially be an infantry soldier and continued moving with the group he was with. He fought through the hedgerows until 29 July when he was wounded and captured. His wounds were treated by German surgeons and he healed. He was sent to a POW camp he thinks was in Poland. It was in an industrial complex and he was sent to work in the coal mines. He and an American friend named Tim escaped when returning at night from the mine to the camp. He thinks it was late March or early April. They came across a small town and got too close and were seen. His friend was killed by a guard but Henry killed the guard and took his pistol. He still has that pistol. He had to hide and scrounge his way towards Allied Lines. Along the way he had some encounters with Volksstrurm home guard soldiers. He finally ran into American soldiers of the Third Army and was repatriated to France and then back to the States. He was at home when VE day occurred. It is an interesting read and not the common soldier story from WWII.

[Brian Prosser · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read many books of men in combat, but this one feels unique. The storyteller is a 95 year old man, Henry, who is remembering his time during WWII when he served as an engineer with the 505th PIR, 82 ABN and jumped into France on D-day. I didn’t think I’d like this book after the first couple of chapters; the prose was a bit too folksy and halting (think of sitting on the porch listening to you grandpap tell a story). But as I read more, I was thankful that his coauthor wrote the book in much the style I can imagine Henry telling it. Henry saw combat, was captured by the Germans and became a POW. One of his camps was beside a death camp; another he toiled in the shafts of a coal mine. A wonderful aspect of his story is that he doesn’t attempt to impress his reader of the knowledge of the strategy and tactics of the war. As a private, he just went where he was told, did what he needed to do to survive that day, and make it until the next. Henry escapes the POW camp and tries to get back to friendly lines. Here is the strongest portion of his story. As I read of the things he did in order to make it safely to friendly lines, I could feel the pain of his memories. He admits to becoming a savage - doing what he needed to in order to survive. And although I believe he’d do the same things again to survive, his shame in those actions (and those things he admits to leaving out of his story because they’re still too painful) is evident. I finished this book about 10 days ago and I’ve thought about Henry and his story every day since. For his willingness to share his story, his actions and his shame - and because this book has lingered for me - 5 stars.

[Todd Kiger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Henry Langrehr with the help of Jim DeFelice took Henry’s experience as a WW II paratrooper and encapsulated it in an easy to read book. This was Henry’s story, told by Henry. As I read this book, it was as if I was listening to Langrehr telling the story as we sat together. It was his words; it was his style; he told me what he remembered and only as much as he wanted, or could, tell. It’s difficult to find a book told in such absolute first person.

Henry joined the paratroopers in time to jump into battle during the Invasion of Normandy. Fighting for the liberation of France, he was taken prisoner by the Nazis. He ended up in a prison where the prisoners were forced to work in a coal mine. He details (to some extent) the things he saw, the treatment he received and his harrowing escape. Henry tells later in the book his struggle to tell anyone, much less the readers of his book, all the horrors he went through and all the things he did to escape. As you’re reading the book, you can tell he’s reluctantly telling all his conscience will allow.

This was a very intriguing read and even though Langrehr left out some of the details, he walks you through his time in the war, as a prisoner and his race to the western front. It was like having a long conversation with Henry and you knew not to ask certain questions about “Whatever It Took” for him to make it home. I’d recommend this book. Good read.

[skip thurnauer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Henry Langrehr is a 90+ year old survivor of the WWII Normandy invasion. He was still in high school when war broke out in Europe. Henry enlists as soon as he is able to and becomes a paratrooper with the 82 Airborn. He recounts basic training and his love of jumping out of planes, even though he had never been in one before his Army enlistment. D-Day finds Henry parachuting into France amid heavy German anti-aircraft fire. He survives a crash into a greenhouse and helps take an enemy position, engaging in hand-to-hand combat and killing his first enemy soldiers. Three weeks after parachuting into France he is wounded and taken prisoner by the Germans. Henry recovers from his wounds and is sent to a prison work camp. En route, his prison train stops at a Nazi concentration camp where he sees bodies stacked up like firewood. In the prisoner-of war camp he is assigned to a coal mining detail. He miraculously escapes and does whatever it takes to make his way back to Allied troops. This is an inspiring story of a simple soldier told in very plain language. He recieved 2 Bronze Stars, 2 Purple Hearts, and the french Legion of Honor awards for his service.

[Carolyn Page · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Langrehr's story is told in unvarnished language, very midwestern and to the point. He is open and frank about what he did, why he did it, and how he feels about it. It's obvious some pieces of his story were very hard for him to tell, and I admire him both for his service in action, and his honesty thereafter.

I think his kind of experience might be more common than realized, except that those experiences were not discussed for decades, if at all. If there is one thing I've noticed from my years of casual wartime history reading, its that everyone had a story, and many of them were extraordinary. War tends to bring out the best, the worst, and a newfound appreciation for the commonplace.

Side note: as I started reading this, I wondered why it was on my reading list. Sure, I'll read WWII history or memoirs occasionally, but usually there's a reason i've picked them beyond the era. And then I saw--the author is a native and resident of my new town in Iowa! I remembered I heard some coworkers talking about this book a few months ago.

Am I already at that phase of my "to read" list where i'm cleaning up books i added only a few months ago? Oooo hooray!

[Stephanie Burkhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Langrehr and DeFelice pen a gut-wrenching book about World War II. It's a poignant story about the sacrifices of war.

The book is an account of author Henry Langrehr's time as an Army Paratrooper in World War II. Henry is coming of age as the war starts and volunteers for the Army. Readers will understand where Henry is coming from as he is a young man when he volunteers and has all the idealism that youth have. He signs up to be a paratrooper and receives training as a combat engineer. Henry is proud to serve his country, but is tested when D-Day arrives and he jumps into France. From there, Henry sees combat and what he experiences will change his outlook on life.

The book is full of heartwarming anecdotes on what it was like growing up in the 1930-40's. Henry shares stories about his family and what it was like in Clinton, Iowa. The book is easy to read and understand. I didn't want to put the book down. Henry's story will resonate with readers long after they are done reading.

[Simran K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartbreaking and eye-opening look on the short and long-term effects war has on humankind. The last chapter where Henry reflected on everything really made me stop and truly think. Would we be able to make the sacrifices they made back then, today? Upon reflection, I concluded that no we could not. The younger generations are used to instant gratification and instant knowledge; patience doesn't exist as widely as it did. Take for example the current situation, the war against virus we are facing, aka the pandemic. Most of this country does not want to make the necessary sacrifices and that is why we are losing this battle. Overall loved this book and to hear Henry's story. WWII has always fascinated me because there were so many different angles it can be explained from (someone imprisoned at the concentration camps, a solider from the USA/British/Russian forces, someone part of the resistance, POWs, those at home, etc).

[Chuck Wright]

What's the cost of our freedom? Read and discover.

A matter of fact first person story of life in America during the depression and of a paratrooper's extraordinary experiences in France and Germany during World War 2. It rings true, a mostly "just the facts" rendition of one man's war experiences. It is also a powerful insight into the high cost of war and how hard fought our freedoms truly are. In a United States where politicians are given far too much credit, this story describes the difficult journey of ordinary men and women who deserve full credit for the good things in our lives. In a country where so few are active duty or military veterans, I pray others may read this and understand how much we take for granted in the USA of 2024.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audio book. I found this whole story fascinating, because the author was about the same age as my parents. Listening to the author describe his growing up put me in the story of how my own father and mother grew up, and what it must have been like for them during those depression years. My dad also was on Normandy Beach on D-Day, but his mission was very different. I really want this whole story to be true, but in doing some research, it sounds like everything about it may not be factual. The author admits that since he was 95 at the time of writing the story, he is probably misremembering some things. But it is a great story of resilience and the strength of the human spirit despite being in terrible circumstances.

[Keith Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

The fact that this person came home and without psychological assistance was able to put together a life at home, I am in awe. My father went through some tough situations in the Pacific during WWII, we never talked about it either, but I know now he suffered from PTSD. It was not an every day thing but something he endured throughout his short life, he died at the age of 66. This gentleman, wow, saw and did it all, survived, came home lived his life and wrote this story when he was 95. This will stick with me, especially, knowing what little I know about my Father's experience. Two BIG HEROES, we are so lucky they were both here.