Prisoners of War: A Story of Four American Soldiers 2005
Distributed by The Vermont Folklife Center, Masonic Hall, 3 Court St., PO Box 442, Middlebury, VT 05753; 802-388-4964
Produced by Erica Heilman and Gregory Sharrow
Director n/a
Audio CD, 58 min.
Sr. High - Adult
World War II
Date Entered: 09/21/2005
Reviewed by Alexander Rolfe, Reference Librarian, George Fox University, Newberg, OR, Newberg, ORAfter a brief introduction to the Battle of the Bulge, the former POWs begin speaking. Their names, pictures, and brief biographies are on the CD insert, but the CD itself doesn't state their names until the very end. The four survivors tell their different stories of capture and survival in a German prison camp. They speak of the constant effort to get food, their discouragement, the support of religious faith and their struggle not to become animals, and their shame upon their return to America. One man was told he was a disgrace for being captured; another never even told his wife that he had been a POW; they mentioned that they think about it all to this day. One makes a reference to Abu Ghraib. The men retain their composure, although their emotion is audible. There are no questions; simply the alternating voices of the veterans. The technical quality is very good. This is a powerful and revealing account of the inmost experiences of four men who suffered in war.
Recommended for any collections supporting classes on World War II, military studies, or social work with veterans.