Do the Birds Still Sing in Hell?: A powerful true story of love and survival

by Horace Greasley

Horace 'Jim' Greasley was twenty years of age in the spring of 1939 when Adolf Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia and latterly Poland. There had been whispers and murmurs of discontent from certain quarters and the British government began to prepare for the inevitable war. After seven weeks training with the 2nd/5th Battalion Leicester, he found himself facing the might of the German army in a muddy field south of Cherbourg, in Northern France, with just thirty rounds of ammunition in his weapon pouch. Horace's war didn't last long. He was taken prisoner on 25th May 1940 and forced to endure a ten week march across France and Belgium en-route to Holland.

Horace survived...barely...food was scarce; he took nourishment from dandelion leaves, small insects and occasionally a secret food package from a sympathetic villager, and drank rain water from ditches. Many of his fellow comrades were not so fortunate. Falling by the side of the road through sheer exhaustion and malnourishment meant a bullet through the back of the head and the corpse left to rot. After a three day train journey without food and water, Horace found himself incarcerated in a prison camp in Poland. It was there he embarked on an incredible love affair with a German girl interpreting for his captors.

He experienced the sweet taste of freedom each time he escaped to see her, yet incredibly he made his way back into the camp each time, sometimes two, three times every week. Horace broke out of the camp then crept back in again under the cover of darkness after his natural urges were fulfilled. He brought food back to his fellow prisoners to supplement their meagre rations. He broke out of the camp over two hundred times and towards the end of the war even managed to bring radio parts back in. The BBC news would be delivered daily to over 3,000 prisoners. This is an incredible tale of one man's adversity and defiance of the German nation.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, War, World War II, Biography, Historical, Holocaust

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Jessica Tiller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jim is my Grandfather. Although I am bias, the story is amazing ( he never spoke of his time as a POW). Full of love, pain and stories you wouldn't believe.

[Maria Espadinha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uma Canção no Inferno


Este livro tem levantado alguma polémica quanto à veracidade da história. Bem... tratando-se duma história pessoal que ocorreu durante a segunda grande guerra, julgo que será difícil encontrar factos capazes de a corroborar ou contrariar. Por isso, não creio que valha a pena enveredar por essa via!...

Verdadeira ou Falsa, esta é uma história que tem tudo a ver com a arte de viver: numa das épocas mais negras da História da Humanidade, Horace conhece Rose e ... juntos compõem uma Canção no Inferno...

Uma mensagem perfeita para os atuais tempos conturbados👍🌟🌟🌟🌟👍

[Nick · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s hard to know if an editor even glanced at this novel or they had adjectival dyslexia, considering the constant tedium, clunky sentences, and repetitive conversations. Instead of allowing the reader to assume that the two people in the scene are in-fact talking to one another, each has to sign off with the other’s name: ‘Can I have a haircut Jim?’, ‘Yes you can Flapper’. ‘How are you Jim?’ ‘I am good Flapper’. Gripping stuff.

At the best of times a shrug is a non- committing gesture, yet within the space of two pages Jim shrugs once and Flapper shrugs twice. When describing the cold, Jim states ‘Imagine the coldest you’ve ever been and times it by 100 and you’re getting close to how cold I was’, leaving the reader in a state of ambiguity to how cold it really was. To continue along this vague path Jim later says that the cold he experienced in that camp was nothing compared to what he experienced in another camp, causing you to assume the first camp wasn’t quite the sub-zero temperatures we were lead to imagine.

Upon finishing the book it becomes apparent that there was no one alive to verify the story. Although it is likely radio parts were sneaked into the concentration camp and that Jim escaped to see the woman he loved on numerous occasions, there is often a lingering feeling of exaggeration and recollection of conversations that could not have been possible. It is also never made clear whether the letters from Jim’s lover, Rosa Rauchbach, are the original articles or are they what he remembers of them. It is especially dubious that Jim kept copies of the letters he wrote to Rosa, unless he had the foresight to keep them for this book.
Although Jim was from a time when sexism appeared to be ‘accepted’, Jim’s persistent self-congratulatory remarks about his performance in bed were tedious and only reflected poorly upon his personality: ‘I left Rosa, with a satisfying soreness between the legs’. Jim possesses a proud obsession with mentioning how endowed he is and seems to save all his adjectives for these all-too-frequent occurrences, which have no significance to the story.

As opposed to feeling a connection with the protagonist, I often found myself disliking Jim and questioning the continuity of the story and why it was only being heard now, 65 years after the events.

[Maria Espadinha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something Completely Different


When so much has been written about WWII, when zillions of stories have been told, is it still possible to find something really, really different?

Surprisingly YES!!!

Open your mind and get ready for the unexpected!!!
🌟🌟🌟🌟

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story but way too much R-rated details of his sexual encounters. For this reason I would not recommend for most of my friends.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was difficult for me to choose what star rating to give this book.

I saw a pic on Pinterest of an Allied soldier standing behind barbed wire, grinning at the SS officers walking by. The caption told of the soldier's name and story. Horace Greasley, escaped over 200 times and returned each time to bring his fellow POWs food.

I immediately looked for more details on his story and saw there was this book about it, got it through the library, started in.

The author said people tell him all the time about "great stories" he should write. Someone told him about Horace, and he thought, I'll talk to the old codger, see what he has to say, humor him. Then was riveted for hours by the story and decided to write it.

Here's where I have questions. Did the author JUST write what Horace told him, like, word for word, or did the author get the story and like most ghost writers, shape it into a book.

Because the writing is AWFUL. I mean.... just brutal.
And the editor needs to be smacked.

By page 9, there were seven typos and two heaving breasts. Literally. "heaving breasts". Ugh.

This book is riddled with typos, which is just fucking lazy. And there is a weird emphasis (obsession?) with the sex scenes. They are written as though an OCD physician was trying to write a romance novel. Far too much "stiffening penis" and "moist vaginal opening" - just.... stop it.

Even the point when a Nazi-sympathizing civilian was overhearing sensitive information while taking a piss, the author felt the need to add the detail of the civilian "pinching the tip of his penis" to slow the flow of urine. WHY do we need these details?

Then there's the blatant homophobia, sexism, misogyny, and racism to contend with. Saying awful things like "the mixed-breed Welshman named Darkie Evans" may be saying one needs to read this within the context of the time period, but saying the Nazi guard raping the male prisoners because he "couldn't control his homosexual urges" is bullshit. That's not how that works, you homophobic asshole. Sorry... homophobic and racist asshole.

The first time Horace has sex with Rose (the love of his life and the reason he started escaping over 200 times).... it's rape. She says, "No. Stop. We'll get caught." and whether that last line means she wants to but is afraid to get caught or not, the first two words make it rape. AND he even says he was raping her.

There are so many problematic points in this story, it's hard to see anyone as a good person. Flapper. Flapper is a good guy. I get that a lot of the problems have to do with war, and there are no winners in war, but still....

It is an incredible story, but not as incredible as the Pinterest pic and the cover of the book make it seem. The escapes were incredibly easy done for entirely selfish reasons that evolved into better, less selfish reasons.

Save yourself the misery of the awful writing, though. Maybe someday they'll make a less problematic movie about him.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a strange book. I wasn't expecting the graphically described sex that is a recurring theme. It was like opening up the Radio Times and discovering it was Penthouse instead. It felt like the ghost author was trying too hard to sex up an already interesting yarn and ended up losing my sympathy for the protagonist, Horace (Jim) Greasley. When I took a dislike to Jim early on I felt sure that as I kept reading there would be some redeeming incident and by the end of the book I would have warmed to him. But no. Nothing at all. I did still feel guilty though, he being a war hero and all that.

[Tita · Rating 2 out of 5]

Estava muito entusiasmada com este livro, quer porque gosto de ler sobre a 2ªGuerra Mundial mas também por referir que era uma "histórica verídica" e de um soldado inglês, que foi prisioneiro de guerra mas que escapou, inúmeras vezes, do campo para se encontrar com a sua amada e também levar comida para os seus colegas. Como não ficar curiosa? Óbvio que estava mesmo muito empolgada.
No entanto, e infelizmente, não consegui retirar prazer desta leitura e foram vários os pontos que me "incomodaram".
Primeiro, a má escrita. Senti a escrita demasiado adjectivada e ao mesmo tempo juvenil. E com demasiadas referências aos nomes das personagens. Mesmo quando se refere a Horace/Jim, é usado o nome e, se é a sua história, como se fosse contada por si (apesar de ter recorrido a um ghost writer, é sempre narrada na terceira pessoa, e fez-me mesmo imensa confusão.
Depois, a forte componente sexual. Eu percebo que Jim tinha apenas 20 anos quando se deu a guerra e que os tempos eram outros mas, será que eram necessárias tantas descrições sexuais? E tantas descrições do tamanho e capacidade do seu pénis? 
A própria "história de amor" entre Jim e Rose pareceu-me muito mas muito improvável. 
Confesso que esperava encontrar, para além de uma bonita história de amor, um relato sobre as dificuldades de um prisioneiro de guerra mas, foi uma leitura que me desiludiu e pareceu-me uma história muito fantasiosa. 

Opinião em vídeo aqui

[Natasha Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an amazing story and well worth the read. At times I couldn’t help but think that and elderly Horace was using the book to reminisce nostalgically about being a young man which brought the content of the book down.

For example, the sex scenes were very graphic and didn’t fit with the mood of the book at all- it was kind of like reading a cheap romance novel. The size of Horace’s penis was bragged about around 3 times- each time more random than the first!

This quote (which is meant to be the thoughts of a close friend in the book) kind of sums up the way that Horace (Jim) is consistently described throughout the book, “Jim Greasley was almost certainly one of the unsung heroes in the Second World War. He was the hunter, the gatherer, the engineer, the smuggler, the lover and the fighter. He was the most stubborn bastard he’d ever met.” These sorts of descriptions are pretty constant.

Otherwise, this book is such a good war story that it’s worth the read- the death march, description of being a POW and the aftermath of the war is so well written. It’s half war epic, half tacky romance.

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the finest book that I have read so far. A story of enduring courage, compassion and mankinds ability, to rise above the most brutal and adverse conditions.
Highly recommended.

[Marie Carmean · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were aspects of this book that I really enjoyed; parts of it that made excellent reading about the English prisoners during World War II. I respect the bravery of Horace "Jim" Greasely. But what I did not like about the book were the very lurid intimate details of the sexual exploits of Jim both before and during the war. I also had trouble believing that he could have escaped his captivity so many times to see Rose, over 200! It is just beyond reason that he would be able to pull that off. There were other things about his meetings with Rose, like the fact that her father knew she was seeing him, and had to suspect they were having sex....what kind of father accepts that of his daughter? And then there is the danger of her sneaking into the woods for these trysts. Not only would Jim's life be in danger, but hers was as well. Both of them would have been shot if caught. What kind of father allows his daughter to be in that kind of danger? And what kind of lover allows his girl to be in that kind of danger, also? It just wasn't believable to me! Perhaps she and Jim did meet, and most of the story is true. But, the writer even admits at the beginning of the book that Jim did not share this until he was 89 years old. By then, most people who could substantiate the veracity of the tale would be dead. The writer states that he uses Jim's account almost verbatim in writing the book. So much could have been embellished, particularly regarding Jim and Rose's romance. He never mentions even her hair color (but makes sure we know the prostitute he is with earlier has red hair), just that she had a film star body...and there is no photo of her in the book. Conveniently also, Rose dies in childbirth bearing their son, who also dies (after almost five years of sexual activity that did not produce a pregnancy!) after the War's end, and when he learns of it a year after it happened, he burns the letter written by her friend, telling him she is gone. So, there is no evidence that Rose even existed. I would like to believe that she did, but one has to wonder. I mean, so many little things bother the reader...how on earth could he have even produced a viable erection over and over during those years, being mistreated and starved in a prison camp, for one thing? And, oh, Jim makes sure the reader knows all about his sexual prowess, even to the point of giving details of his time with Rose, who he is supposed to be in love with. No, I couldn't accept the book at face value. I can't recommend it. I think that's a shame.

[Dannielle Potts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nobody Had Seen Him [Charlie Cavendish] Leave; He’d Simply Disappeared During The Night. He Was Never Seen Again. He Had Given His Life Voluntarily To Save His Friends And Comrades” - Just One Of The Ordinary Hero’s Who Helped Defeat The Nazi’s.

I’m A Big Believer In Everyone Who Played A Part, No Matter How Small, Helped Us To Win That War. Whether You Think This Memoir Is A Work Of Fiction (As Many Reviews Suggest) Or Not, No-One Can Discredit What Went On And What Our Boys Went Through.

This Book Broke My Heart - Harrowing To Read And Kept Me On The Edge Of My Seat. I Was Honestly Grieved When I Had To Put It Down. I Felt Like I Really Got To Know Horace (Jim) And His Comrades And I Loved How They Had Each Others Back & Would Sacrifice Anything They Could To Protect Each Other. That’s Real Loyalty.

I Just Wish The Book Had Ended Differently. I Haven’t Stopped Thinking About It And What Effect The Outcome Had On Horace And His Mental State. What A Strong Man To Go Through All That And For The Future He Believed In To Be Stolen

[Jon Siegrist · Rating 1 out of 5]

Problematic almost from the jump. Poorly written for something with a ghost writer to spruce it up. Even for the time period, the misogyny of our hero makes it very difficult to care for him, even though the writer desperately wants us to believe he’s the best, cleverest, biggest man alive. Ugh, this story is presented in a way that makes it a slog to get through, and I haven’t even mentioned the sophomoric sex scenes that are too numerous and over the top graphic. I found myself questioning the veracity of this story at many turns, not because the events are too hard to believe but because of the way our narrator presents them. By the end, the writer doesn’t do enough to help me sympathize with Horace and his love for Rosa since all we ever learn about her is what she looks like and how nice her body is.

[Dave Monds · Rating 2 out of 5]

It doesn’t sound like hell

The book is poorly written, almost juvenile if it wasn’t for all the sex. The sexual descriptions become gratuitous, it’s unnecessary to go into as much detail as it does. There is no real sense of suffering, more like this gentlemen outsmarted the nazis at every turn. It is very self serving. It’s hard not to doubt the exploits of the hero of the story but if it is true, it’s a heck of a tale.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible story, and a true one to boot. I’m very glad I read this, it was an important story and so well written. The only improvement could have been if the guy didn’t keep banging on about how big his knob is! So many people should read this. Fantastic piece of work. The ending gets grim by the way!

[Greg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a review but an observation: before you buy this for your father-in-law just because it says WWII on the cover, know that it's a lot...pornier?...that one expects. #Stalag69

[Carolyn Scarcella · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book I’m reading is called “Do the birds still sing in hell?” written by Horace Greasley. What a keen eye for this incredible true story. He was a true hero. As a result, I thoroughly enjoyed his autobiography and this is a story that everyone should read, simply to get a view what is like in a P.O.W, camp. Horace was a British army officer and was captured by the Germans. The ending is not what I was expecting. You can decide.

[Katie Goodman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was recommended this book by a friend and I read it in one evening.

Many reviews of this book I found were pretty negative and controversial. Some found the book too depressing, others said it was too focused on Horaces’ sexual activity and self-gratification. Before reading this book, it is important to know that this is one man’s story, told by the man himself through the penmanship of the open-minded Ken Scott. This is not a light-hearted read, it is heavy and harrowing, but it is history.

Horace was a sexually driven man, from his accounts, I believe he loved to love and be loved. To remove this characteristic from the plot line and character of Horace would’ve been dehumanising for him, as it is an essential component of the book. Horace himself doesn’t sound much like a contemporary “hero” or even a gentleman in many cases, his lust for sex is clear and these scenes are vivid and descriptive.

To me, this is a historical novel seeped with horrors and sex, but the overall story is pretty amazing. Whether it is factually accurate is widely argued, but I enjoyed reading it.

[Jessica Hixon · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars for the amount of descriptive sex and overdone comments about the man’s penis size.

If the sexual stuff wasn’t so detailed and explicit then I would have give this book a 4 star review. It was an incredible story and well put together. The detailed sex wasn’t necessary to explain the love story.

[Tony Hodson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful and uplifting in equal measure.

In broad terms the story of BRITISH POWs during WW2.

The main focus, one man who managed to escape to see his true love, repeatedly!

Not what you might expect.

Very good.

[Maureen Moss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing! Funny, inspiring, heart warming...what a roller coaster of emotions. This brave man stood up to tyranny in a truly original way!!

[Marjie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Extremely disappointed! No way was this a true account - somebody was living on fantasy all the way through. It should never have been posted as non fiction. It was ALL FICTION,

[Mebsie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I realise there is some controversy regarding the veracity of this book. Howsomever, I found it a gripping read and recommend it on those grounds.

[J ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Humans are terrible

[Brenda Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

No se que calificación darle a este libro, según el autor no hay ninguna exageración, puedo creerlo, hay personas con mucha suerte, y Jim es una de ellas! Lo que si no termina de agradarme son todos los pormenores que da el protagonista de sus encuentros amorosos, creo que no eran necesarios, están de mas, no me imagino a un hombre de 89 años contando eso para que aparezca en su libro... En fin... Me decidí por 3 estrellas tomando en cuenta que es una historia real...

[Janneke · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 naar boven afgerond. Wat een ander uniek verhaal over de tweede wereldoorlog.

[Ana Carolina · Rating 4 out of 5]

"La ausencia es al amor lo que el aire al fuego, que apaga el pequeño y aviva el grande"

[Emily Stannard · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dreadful. This book basically reads like a male fantasy, a lads mag during wartime. Whilst I’m not disputing the horrors of the Second World War, Horace’s “escapes”, whilst still quite amazing, were not equivalent to Colditz or Auschwitz because he was kept in a relatively open camp. I didn’t like Horace/Jim, he seemed obsessed by sex, and I didn’t like the way this was written. It glorified lust and sex above all else, and although they clearly loved each other by the end, the damage was done by the gleeful and glib writing style. This is NOT a war story that should be read by everyone - even the Tattooist of Auschwitz was better than this and I wasn’t a fan of that either. The best bit of this book was the building of the radio. A lot of the book felt over-exaggerated and anything from Rose felt like words were put in her mouth (eg how amazingly satisfied she was after lovemaking, how glorious her orgasms were, etc). *eye roll* not one I will be recommending to anyone else. Honestly - I feel sorry for the majority of men during wartime who weren’t as much of an idiot as Horace was. It gives them all a bad reputation and unfortunately perpetuates the stereotype of the glorification of laddish behaviour.

[Debbie Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book a challenge...

As much as it's stated that it's based on "true events" and it's not "exaggerated" - I still feel like this is more a work of fiction. It, unfortunately, made me question how much of the story was true - especially the conversations - how can they be recalled with such clarity after that many years?

The number of sex scenes in the book was tedious (there was A LOT considering he was a PoW) and they got very boring and very stale, very quickly.

90% of the book was Jim thinking about sex, talking about sex or having sex...
Again, considering that he was a PoW, I would have thought that he would have had bigger concerns than whether his penis (the biggest in the camp - thanks for the constant reminder 🙄) still worked 🤷🏼‍♀️
I couldn't paint a picture of Rose in my head because all I knew about her was that she had nice boobs and a nice body and that she was always satisfied by Jim (and his massive willy)... That's it. Cringe.

I didn't like the way it was written, it felt juvenile and very clunky and there were SO MANY typos 🤦🏼‍♀️

I've read a lot of stories about World War II, but this one will not be one I read again, trying to forget it already...

[Jeff Dawson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is billed as a memoir. The author claims he’s only telling the story of Horace Greasley. At times I didn’t get that feeling especially when conversations took place with their captors. I was also trying to figure out if this is a story about a Englishman who is captured in France or an attempt at pornography. The lines truly become blurred.
There are plenty of interesting chapters in the book about his captivity and the harsh treatment the SS doled out to the English pigs and how they would rebel against their captors even if it meant they would receive a severe beating or worse. I enjoyed when Horace, “Jim” busted up the sergeant that surrendered without firing a shot. It’s true, even if they would have fought it out, it wouldn’t have prevented France from falling, but at least they would have made a stand. Justice was served!
The ending left me flat. It is sad to know his English Rose died during child birth along with the baby. What did he do after that? Did they have reunions in later years?
Not a bad read, but not one of my favorites.
Three Stars