Rating: 
Summary: Rescued from the depths of despair
Review: This is the incredibly gripping story of the rescue of American POWs by U.S. Army Rangers in the Phillipines near the end of WWII. The author gives great details of the rescue itself as well as what life in the camp was like. This was an important mission because all allied prisoners were going to be rescued from the camp, and it was to be the proving ground for the Rangers who were in their infancy. Highly recommended patriotic read that will leave the reader with a good feeling afterward.
Rating:
Summary: Compelling Non-Fiction
Review: Hampton Sides' GHOST SOLDIERS reads like an action / thriller. I had to remind myself that it was a Non fiction account of actual events. Larger than life yet unsung heroes such as Captain Robert Prince remind us that World War II was won by common people doing uncommon things in obscurity. The American Rangers and Phillipino guerrilla fighters pulled off a rescue mission worthy of any Hollywood production. With Steven Ambrose's BAND OF BROTHERS, THE WILD BLUE, and D-DAY, this outstanding work illustrates the importance of front line soldiers improvising techniques to accomplish their mission. Anyone interested in World War II will love this book. I think it would make a great movie
Rating:
Summary: Intense and inspirational
Review: Ghost Soldiers is an extremely compelling work. Although Ghost Soldiers is a non-fiction work, it flows smoothly and is well written. Many likely have a fleeting understanding or recognition of the Bataan Death March. Very few people have an understanding of the lives of the US soldiers in the aftermath of the March. Sides provides an excellent view of the brutal existence (both physical and emotional) of the prisoners during their years in captivity. Intertwined with perspective of the prisoners, Sides tells the story of the newly-formed and untested Army Rangers outfit that will attempt to rescue the prisoners from their living hell. Sides provides the reader with great insight into the tenaciousness, courage, perseverance, valor and honor of both the rescuers and the rescued. This is a truly inspirational story. It is a must read.
Rating: 
Summary: The "Greatest Generation"-Again
Review: "Ghost Soldiers" is the tale of the American POWs from the Bataan Death March in WW2, their ordeal, and the eleventh hour commando rescue of SOME of them. GS is well written and well researched. Author Sides strikes a solid balance between the suffering of the POWs and the dangers facing the rescuing US Army Rangers. As of the writing of this review, GS is one of the New York Times paperback bestsellers. It is quick and interesting reading. The problem is that there is nothing new here! Author Sides takes us over previously well trod ground-to little historical end. I dislike using the review of one book to promote another but I would recommend Donald Knox's "Death March" for an earthier approach to this unpleasant but vital piece of American military history. I recognize that WW2 vets are currently in vogue and that hundreds are dying daily. There is an urgency to recognize them "while we still can". This promotes sales and perhaps this is as it should be-as long as GS is not listed with true epic WW2 efforts. This is no "Naked and the Dead", "Battle Cry" or "Cruel Sea"! I have to close with a query: Where were these Rangers in Vietnam where POWs lingered longer than on Bataan with only ONE rescue attempt in eleven years? Where was the steadfast resolve to rescue those POWs? Therein lies the difference between the "good war" versus Korea and Vietnam.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: This is an amazing story of courage and bravery. I could not put this book down. I am not a reader of war stories, but this book may change my future reading habits.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful book to read
Review: I read this book over my vacation and have to say it is a wonderful read. There are two main plots in the book, that of the POWs and that of the Army Rangers. From chapter to chapter the author switches back and forth between the two sub-plots. As the book progresses, these two intertwine tighter and tighter, making for an excellent climatic ending.Also recommend these WW II books:
Forgotten Soldier
Great Escape (occurred in the European theater)
Codebreakers : The Inside Story of Bletchley Park
Rating: 
Summary: Powerful book of real life heroism from WW2
Review: Well written and researched, Ghost Soliders recounts the true story of the liberation of American troops from behind enemey lines during World War Two. American and British troops had survived the Bataan Death March in the Phillipines. These remarkable soliders survived three years in a horrible prison camp and were eventually liberated by the U.S. Army 6th Ranger Battalion. The story of their harrowing days in the death camps and ultimate salvation makes for inspired reading. It's a great example of the human will to live and the bravery of many of the enlisted men from World War Two. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Read
Review: I was slow to pick up this book after my son gave it to me for a present, and even slower to lay it down. I was crying by the end. What does freedom cost us? This book will lay it out for you. The depictions of P.O.W. life are not easily read, you have to catch your breath before plowing ahead. The courage of the prisoners leaves me wondering if we could do it today; but of course we could, we're all able to rise to unbelievable heights of courage and achievement when the circumstances call it forth. Several things I found especially intereting about the book. It noted the inability (or unwillingness) of the Roosevelt administration to help the troops under siege at Bataan and Corrigedor. The author helps us to understand the cultural differences and simple miscalculations by Japanese commanders that gave rise to the brutal treatment of American prisoners. After all, the Japanese were also prisoners of their samurai culture. And as the author noted several times, you don't put your best and most sensitive military people in charge of POW camps. While not shrinking from describing Japanese brutality, the author doesn't go on a jingoistic rant against them. Heroism was displayed by both the POWs on a daily basis, and by the rangers who came in to rescue them. You get to know several of the rangers and the prisoners rather well and can't help but cry when some of them don't make it back to final freedom. Not an easy book to read, but it is one that high school seniors and college students should be required to read. And then discuss with their teachers.
Rating:
Summary: Even if...
Review: Even if...
... you are not a history major
... you are not a WWII buff
... you are female
this powerful book will hold you in its grip and not let you go! Sides' storytelling is masterful. His method of switching back and forth chapter by chapter (thankfully not paragraph by paragraph, Clancy-style) between the "past" of the surrender of Bataan/Death March/imprisonment of the POWs and the "now" of the rescue mission, kept me keenly interested in the developments on both sides of the story. He introduces just enough characters to present a balanced (rather than bird's-eye) view of the events, but with enough depth to evoke tears when some of them (POWs and rescuing Rangers alike) perish. Literary embellishments and descriptive phrases (the temperature dropped "from infernal to the merely intolerable") were a treat and added to the readability. I was so loathe to put this book down, I read every word of the acknowledgments, the only tribute I could pay to the author. Read it and pass the word!
Rating:
Summary: Gripping story
Review: Once I started I couldn't put the book down. I loved the format of going back and forth between the prisoner's and Ranger's account of events. Brought home the horrors of the Prisoner of War but also brought forth the the brotherhood soldier's have for eachother despite being complete strangers. A must read for military enthusiasts and those that just like a good human survival story.
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