Pure Grit discussion

I just finished PURE GRIT, and it blew me away! Pure Grit written by Mary Cronk Farrell is a beautifully written book about a group of amazing women who provided care to prisoners in Japanese POW camps after the fall of Battaan and Corregidor. From the attack on Pearl Harbor until the end of the war in the Pacific, over a hundred Army and Navy nurses survived and continued to serve others, despite their own diseases and malnutrition. The book is full of excellent photos and shines a light on an episode of the war, spanning four years, that is largely unremarked by and unknown to most Americans. I was so overwhelmed by the courage and character of these women. I am floored that I have never heard of this group of heroes; they are truly an important part of our greatest generation. It’s heartbreaking to read about trying to take care of wounded troops (before being captured) with no supplies and incoming wounded flooding the field hospitals. But the one thing I remember the most about the book is when the author mentions what hunger does to you. It stuck with me… the madness that comes from having no food. What it’s like to eat every bush, tree, and insect that one could find just to get some nutrition and stop the starvation from killing you… makes you grateful to be living as we are now. Read this book, it’s a terrific story and one that will keep you thinking for a long time.