Rating: 
Summary: Well researched. Must reading for anyone interested in WWII
Review: A group of men was almost forgotten by politicians and left as prisoners to die. Finally a decision is taken to liberate them and an exceptional group of men is selected for the rescue. The way the story is written, with each chapter showing a parallel view of the rescue operation, keeps you stick to the book. The inhuman face of politicians and their priorities is described in full. Excellent details of the Pacific war not only militarily and politically but also morally. I have read several WWII books and this one shows a side of the war I have never seen before. I recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: Rangers to the Rescue
Review: Three things struck me as I read Hampton Sides "Ghost Soldiers". First, as a young boy I read an account of the Bataan Death March which, I believe, is one of the references cited in the author's acknowledgements. Ghost Soldiers brought back memories of the incredible suffering of the American and Filipino prisoners of war at the hands of the Japanese. Mr. Sides tries to justify the actions of the General Masaharu Homma and the troops under his command. He doesn't succeed and he ignores the fact that the Japanese have never acknowledged the atrocities committed during World War II. In fact their government's official position is that they were the victims and the war was caused by the U.S. embargo on oil to their island empire.
Next is how Mars smiled on the 6th Ranger Battalion's efforts to liberate the Cabanatuan prison camp survivors. They were guided and escorted by two bands of competent Filipino guerrillas. The little known Alamo Scouts provided invaluable intelligence without which the mission could not have be attempted. The battalion surgeon found two Filipino doctors in the village closest to the camp. The Filipino civilians provided oxen and wagons to transport the emaciated and sickly prisoners back to American lines. The weather cooperated. As Napolean said, "In war it is better to be lucky than good."
Finally, the author errs on some military facts. For example, he says the M-1 carbine is a lighter version of the M-1 Garand rifle (not true) and seems awed by the Browning Automatic Rifle's cyclical rate of fire of 550 rounds per minute. This is the theoretical rate of fire. The BAR is fed by a 20 round box magazine. At 550 rpm a rifleman would use up 28 magazines in a minute (impossible) which is more than he carried. Some might argue that this is picking at nits but if one is going to write military history one should get the military facts straight.
Overall, this is a quick, engrossing read that is a testament to the human spirit. It reinforces the cruelty of the Japanese military in WW II as previously described in current books such as "The Rape of Nanking" and "Flags of Our Fathers." The description of the welcome given to these brave POW survivors will bring tears to your eyes.
Rating:
Summary: Hard to put down.
Review: This is truely the hardest book to put down that I have ever picked up. The author tells alternating stories of two groups of truely heroic men. One is of the prisoners and their unbelievable hell. The other is the Ranger unit sent to rescue them. Both stories collide at the end with the story of the rescue.I strongly reccommend this book to those who light candles and sing peace songs every Aug. 6.
Only drawback? Have the dictionary standing by.The author annoyingly attempts to show that he knows every word in the English language.
Rating:
Summary: Example of Excellence-Required history read for all
Review: I had family on Bataan, this is the book I wish I'd written. All members of the armed forces should read this book!
I read the bood and listened to the CD, very excellent. The author put me with the Rangers but with the advantage of historical perspective and awsome background information. Very well researched and documented!! The interviews especially add a demention of realism!My thanks to the author!
Rating:
Summary: Glimpse the Hell of POW Life, and Witness a Valiant Rescue
Review: Bataan. It is a name which stirs emotions in the shrinking number of Americans who know the word. Americans have not forgotten Pearl Harbor, but few realize that an even more shameful ambush occurred in the Philippines. On December 8, 1941, despite hours of advance warning, virtually the entire American air force in the Phillipines was caught on the ground by Japanese aircraft and destroyed. Because of this, plans to directly confront an invading force fell apart. The forces in the Philippines were forced to fall back on an older plan: withdrawal to the peninsula of Bataan, where American and Filipino forces would hold out and wait for American reinforcements to arrive. But the old plan was based on there being an adequate supply of food and medical supplies within Fortress Bataan. There wasn't enough food: the men starved. There wasn't enough medicine: easily treated wounds and illnesses took lives that should have been saved. And the Pearl Harbor disaster combined with the threat of Germany meant there would be no reinforcements. And so, on April 9, 1942, having held out for 4 months without adequate supplies, Gen. Edward King surrendered his forces. The Japanese were ill-prepared to accept the prisoners and had badly underesitmated the number of prisoners they would capture. "Ghost Soldiers" by author Hampton Sides, tells two intertwined stories. One is the story of how a small band of Rangers took off on a quickly prepared mission in late January of 1944 to rescue POWs at a hellhole called Cabanatuan, where over 500 Allied, mostly Amercian, POWs were kept. The other story tells of how the prisoners came to be at Cabanatuan. Mr. Sides pulls few punches in telling the horrifying hell through which the American POWs went through, from the stories of the thoudands who died on the Death March out of Bataan, to the thousands more who would die in the custody of the Japanese. Both stories are compelling, from the matter-of-fact attitude of the Rangers on their mission, to the tortures the Japanese inflicted on their prisoners. The juxtapositon of the two stories is masterful. It should never be forgotten that there are those who would undertake a 30 mile trek through enemy held territory to rescue Americans who were in real danger of being massacred by their guards, as had already happened to American POWs at another camp in the Philippines. But it also should never be forgotten what was endured by the veterans of Bataan. They fought for far longer than could have reasonably have been expected of them, and did so with valor and honor. What they endured, from being forced to stand at attention without drinking water at a spring mere feet away, to watching civilians killed for acts of humanity, to the years of inhumane imprisonment, must always be remembered with honor and gratitude. Read this book about the Battling Bastards of Bataan. They sang that they had no mama, no papa, and no Uncle Sam. But by remembering, show that we definitely give a damn.
Rating:
Summary: Really Good
Review: Easy to read, moves fast, very well written.
Rating:
Summary: Please Read This Book
Review: President Harry Truman stated that the atomic bombs dropped on Japan were "against those who have starved and beaten and executed American prisoners of war." "Ghost Soldiers" dramatically tells the story of such prisoners and their exciting rescue in the Philippines. I had known little of the famous Bataan Death March or how the Japanese treated those prisoners. This book is a stark revelation of disease, violence, starvation, and death. It is also one of the most exciting stories of rescue/escape that I could ever imagine. PLEASE READ THIS BOOK! It is told in a marvelous narrative style in the tradition of John Hersey's classic, "Hiroshima". I cannot praise Hampton Sides enough for this wartime masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: A Time for Heroes
Review: A compelling story about the rescue of prisoners during World War II. This is a great book. It details the lives of many characters that are impacted by this portion of the war. First we learn of the horrors of the Bataan Death March, the horrific treatment of the prisoners and Philippine civilian by the ruthless Japanese soldiers. After reading these accounts, I do not sympathize at all with the people who protested the dropping of the Atom bombs on Japan. The book builds emtional ties with the many heroes that Hampton Sides describes. We realize that none of our bravery (except for the NYPD and NYFD) compare to the prisoners, Rangers, and many civilians that were involved in this event. Thank you, Hampton Sides for bringing this story to me.
Rating:
Summary: A very good story
Review: A story of sacrifice, loss, suffering, courage, and heroism -- as good as any novel, only it really happened.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Reading!!!
Review: This is one of the best books I have ever read. If you are a true story junkie(like me), but don't have alot of detailed information about WWII, this book will give you such an understanding about the commitment and mindset of WWII soldiers. I read ALOT-and this is one of my all time favorites. Please take the time to e-mail these veterans to show your support!!
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