Rating: 
Summary: too much
Review: It was a good true life story of which we don't have enough of.....but the author drug this out way.....tooo far. The subject was one we all need to know but it did not hold my attention because in my mind it was poorly written.
Rating: 
Summary: one great read
Review: this was a wonderful book that completely had me captatvated. this was one book i could not put down. this is one of the very best books on ww2. it's testament to those brave soldiers.
Rating:
Summary: Worth every cent
Review: I have never been so moved by a book. I read it in 2 days. It was captivating, informative and emotional. Highly recommended! There are hard things to read of the Japanese brutality. There are some F-words in it (for parental censorship). But it's an amazing book!
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Summary: Truly An Epic Rescue Mission!
Review: This is one of the best written WW2 books I've ever read. I read this book in a less than 24 hour period because I could not put it down. The author's use of descriptive narrative and the maps enabled me to picture in my mind the action as it unfolded. I was also impressed by how the author effectively integrated the stories of the rescuers and the rescuees so that I was unable to stop reading on. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more of the sacrifices our parents' generation endured to give us the freedoms we enjoy today.
Rating:
Summary: History Alive
Review: I just finished this captivating book. Thank you Hampton Sides for making history come alive. Thanks to you these brave men who spent years in the prime of thier life in a POW camp and the brave members of the Rangers will not be forgotten. It is men like these and the men in the Rangers to whom we owe our freedom...Thank you to all of them as well.
Rating:
Summary: The real story confirmed
Review: My father is a survivor of the Bataan death march. Over the years we have heard him tell the story of that ordeal countless times. I was amazed when I picked up a copy of Ghost Soldiers and began to read. My fathers stories were in almost every chapter. My dad knew those people, suffered under that enemy and survived to tell. Some who heard his stories might have wondered how much of it was true. This book graphically and with researched integrity confirms that it was all true. And to a much more horrific extent than my fathers accounts revealed. I could not put the book down. I wept as I read what dad endured so that I might be free. Each of us owe all those who fought for our freedom a debt of gratitude. More than ever, I love you dad. Thank you. And my thanks to Hampton Sides for this work of passion and integrity.
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Summary: One of Most Important "Unknown" Missions of WWII
Review: This book was incredibly well-written and moved at the speed with which this mission to save American POWs at Cabanatuan Camp had to be planned, staged and executed. It tells not only how the POWs were forced to live and survive, but also what they went through on the Bataan Death March even to get Cabanatuan. Even more amazing was that the US Army could so quickly grasp the situation at Cabanatuan, identify the Rangers/Philippines/Alamo Scout force needed to carry out the mission, and put them on the move to do so. Col. Mucci's and his staff's planning and leadership (and that of the guerrilla leaders) and their bravery and that of their men is a truly inspirational story, as is the human story of the prisoners whose rescue was the whole purpose of the mission. Though have read extensively on WWII, I had not known that Army Rangers participated in the Pacific Theater of WWII (having previously read only of their European Theater exploits). Fortunately the 6th Rangers "were there" and can add this mission to the proud laurels of US Army Ranger history. Hoooah!
Rating: 
Summary: Hate To See It End
Review: Hampton Sides does a great job showcasing the horror of the Japanese prison camps and the outstanding courage of the Rangers sent to save them from hell. Sides does this best when he is working with details, from the intensity of the Rangers, to the mundane attitude of the Japanese towards atrocity, to the life of a POW regurgitating milk because of its richness after years of starvation - it all comes down to the little things that make you think about how easy the Japanese have gotten off the war crimes rap and how close to home real atrocity comes when the willing are abandonded by the elite to fight for a freedom we all to much take for granted. This book brings a fading old war that changed the history of this planet up close and personal for a new generation. My only complaint is that Sides sometimes makes the camps seem to be a bit of a hard luck country club. His take on the evil inflicted on the Allied soldiers sent to Japan via ship shows the true nature of the Japanese Imperial forces in a much starker light. I wish I could put this book into the hands of every young Japanese child who has been conditioned to regard the atrocities committed against China, America, England and all the asians in the "co-prosperity sphere" as paid for by Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Its a powerful adventure story of real good fighting real evil...and winning.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting Reading
Review: About one half hour ago, I completed reading this dramatic story about a little known story of World War II. I was 9 years old on December 7, 1941 when I heard the news of the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the next day listening to Frankllin Roosevelt asking Congress to declare war on Japan.While I have many vivid memories of that war, I have never heard of the ranger attack on the Japanese prison camp to free the 500 prisoners that was in immenent danger of being killed by their captors. Hampton Sides weaves this great "Prison Breakout" around all of the stories of the Bataan death march,(yes,I heard about this); horrible life in this camp; the "Pacific MataHari" that garnered valuable military secrets from Japanese Officers and sent them to McCarther's headquarters and with the profits of her night-club she sent much needed quinine and fruit juices to the prisoners; and the many personal stories of the few survivors. I read this long story in record time because I was unable to put the book down. Whether you are a military veteran, a busy mother, or a bread-winner that doesn't have time to sit down and read. This book is a MUST READ. John J (Jack) Vax
Rating:
Summary: a finely written work
Review: this is a very readable book. History buffs will not put this one down unfinished, More than a tale of the Bataan death march and the conditions of the camps, but a true tale of the adaptability of the human spirit. Finely researched and done at time when we are losing our living memories of this war. If you are similar to me and need to know where we have been as a nation and a people this book will add to your knowledge of the past.
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