15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent, enlightening, Dec 3 2003
By Serene - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Nazi Prisoners of War in America (Paperback)
I found Nazi Prisoners of War to be a fascinating look into the little known (and explored) history of American POW camps. This book really put a human face on the soldiers of Germany who weren't always Nazi sympathizers. I felt the author presented quite a balanced view of both the anti-Nazi prisoners and the pro-Nazi officers and enlisted men.
Of particular interest was the discussion of how the camps were run, the photographs of the prisoners and the stories of their escapes. Also, some stories were quite humorous: the story where the Americans tell the Germans to clean their barracks/common rooms and the German POWS refuse. The Americans perform a trick by telling them a high-ranking German officer would be imprisoned there to get them to comply without the use of force. This was quite clever.On the flip-side I found it disturbing that the American army officials preferred to supervise hard-core nazis in prisons because they were easier to manage, rather than anti-nazis. At times these officials encouraged nazism!
I recommend this book for a different and balanced look into the past.
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A detailed look at German Prisoners in America (42-45), Aug 25 1995
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Nazi Prisoners Of War (Paperback)
A very detailed look at German prisoners of war in America. From their lives to how the citizens and the wardepartment reacted to them are here, with countless pictures, and tables to help the reader understand what occured. This is a good THICK historical document on the way prisoners lived, worked, played, and sometimes escaped. It also covers how Americans, from civilians, government, and armed service personnel reacted to their presence. A very good look into an area that has not received a lot of attention.
21 of 23 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A excellent book on a very obscure topic, July 9 1999
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Nazi Prisoners of War in America (Paperback)
To say how interesting this book is at first I have to note how unknown this topic is. When I first began looking for the book, a person working at a book store asked me if it was fiction! Gimme a break! For instance, Santa Anita Racetrack in California was a huge POW camp during WWII. Who knew that? Anyone into American history should know about this, and if not, READ THIS BOOK. It is very easy to assume that there is no other book in existance that covers this topic any better.