Building the Death Railway: The Ordeal of American Pows in Burma, 1942-1945 [Hardcover]

Robert S. LaForte (Author), Ronald E. Marcello (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1993

The Oscar-winning movie 'Bridge Over the River Kwai' dramatized to millions the building of the infamous Japanese 'Death Railway' - the supply line for Japan's planned invasion of India during World War II. But the movie told only part of the story, giving the impression that all men working on the line were British. In fact, 668 Americans - serving on the USS Houston and with the Texas National Guard's Second Battalion - worked alongside the other Allied troops in the jungle camps. In 'Building the Death Railway', their story is told for the first time. In 22 interviews with American survivors, we learn the details of their lengthy ordeal. Disease, punishment, camaraderie, work conditions and attempts to escape are described by the men who were there. The story begins with their capture and ends with their liberation 42 months later. The Burma-Thailand 'Death Railway' was one of the most horrible sentences a prisoner of war could endure. Thousands died in the jungles of Burma. More than 130 Americans - one man in five - never returned home, victims of neglect, abuse, starvation and disease. 'Building the Death Railway' gives the American perspective on events that shocked the world.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The 22 survivors of Japanese prisoner-of-war camps represented here are either former crewmen aboard the U.S.S. Houston or members of the 133rd Field Artillery Battalion. All were incarcerated in the same camps throughout most of WW II. Tough, Depression-bred men, they recount their wartime experiences with fierce emotion but no self-pity despite extreme suffering. With virtually no medical care available, most contracted malaria, dysentery and tropical ulcers. All suffered prolonged starvation (one in five of the 688 Americans in the group portrayed died in captivity). Each survivor recounts the details of his capture, the claustrophobic voyage from the collection point in Java to the infamous Chagi Prison in Singapore, the slave-labor toil on the Burma-Thailand Railroad (an ordeal dramatized in the 1957 film Bridge on the River Kwai ), and their eventual liberation in 1945. The editors, who both teach history at the University of North Texas, offer enlightening speculation as to the reasons for Japanese cruelty toward POWs, and also on the relationship between the survival of these particular men and their Texas upbringing.

Copyright 1992 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 328 pages
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; First edition (January 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 084202428X
• ISBN-13: 978-0842024280
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,212,975 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A unique perspective, June 28, 2009

By 

Noel Harrelson "[e-mail]" (Boca Raton, Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Building the Death Railway: The Ordeal of American Pows in Burma, 1942-1945 (Hardcover)

Having read a number of books (memoirs) of Japanese pow experiences, I found this one surprisingly unique. It documents the exact words of prisoners, as transcribed from their personal oral interviews. Indeed, the "author" notes that he did not write the book, but merely edited it.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Justification, June 26, 2009

By 

J. Reynolds (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Building the Death Railway: The Ordeal of American Pows in Burma, 1942-1945 (Hardcover)

I was privileged to know, albeit briefly, one of the American men cited in this book -- a fellow Texan I am proud to say.

This fascinating and revolting book fully illuminates why it was absolutely necessary to vaporize two cities in the society which produced the monsters responsible for the "Greater Southeast Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere." They all deserve to rest not in peace, but in the Bad Place... forever and ever Amen.