The War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause [Hardcover]

Stephen Ambrose (Author), Damon "Rocky" Gause (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 10, 1999

A Veterans Day treasure, the true, first-person account of a captured World War II soldiers incredible escape and courageous journey home, discovered after more than fifty years. Of all the heroic stories to come out of World War II, few are so extraordinary as that of Major Rocky Gause, who was captured by the Japanese, escaped from the infamous Bataan Death March, and, with a fellow soldier, endured a harrowing voyage across the enemy-held Pacific in a leaky, hand-crafted boat. In the battered notebook he kept throughout his journey and later converted to a thrilling narrative, Gause traced his steps from the besieged city of Manila on New Years Eve, 1941, to his safe landing on the Australian coast ten months later.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This newly discovered memoir relates one WWII soldier's extraordinary escape from the Japanese invasion of the Philippines and the fortress of Corregidor as he made his way through jungles and villages and then across the Pacific in a leaky boat. A pilot, Gause was stationed in the Philippines when the Japanese launched their attack on the American-controlled islands just after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Retreating with the American forces to the peninsula of Bataan, he was captured as that area fell to the overwhelming forces of the Japanese. He made an amazing escape from a prison camp to the American fortress of Corregidor, off the coast of the Philippines, and then, when that bastion fell, escaped again; with another American officer, he managed to reach Australia in an old motorboat. They were helped by a beautiful Filipino woman, residents of a leper colony and the isolated inhabitants of various islands on which they landed. The author's repeated references to "japs" and "nips" and his description of the Japanese conquerors as "victory-crazed sadistic devils" may offend readers of a more ethnically sensitive era, but despite these lapses and his merely workmanlike prose, the drama of the events described will hold readers' attention. Gause died in a plane crash in the European theater later during the war. His long-buried journal, found in his foot locker by his son, offers a real-life adventure for fans of The Thin Red Line. Photos not seen by PW. (Nov.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Among all the war stories of World War II, this memoir stands apart as a remarkable true story of a great escape and a miraculous sea voyage. Maj. Rocky Gause, an American pilot in the Philippines, was trapped on the Bataan Peninsula as the Japanese invaded in 1941; when U.S. and Filipino forces surrendered in spring 1942, he escaped from the Bataan Death March and began a 159-day odyssey of survival that ultimately took him from Corregidor to Australia. Accompanied by another American soldier, Capt. William Osborne, Gause sailed a leaky, 20' wooden motorboat across 3200 miles of treacherous waters, dodging Japanese warships, aircraft, submarines, and coastal patrols. Using a hand compass and an old National Geographic map of Oceania, Gause and Osborne navigated all the way to Australia and safety. Rich in detail, suspense, and drama, this memoir was written a year after Gause's escape using notes and a journal he kept during the journey. Gause died in a plane crash in 1944, but his son has resurrected and published this inspiring and exciting tale of human courage and endurance. Recommended for all public libraries.ACol. William D. Bushnell, USMC (ret.), Brunswick, ME
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion; 1St Edition edition (November 10, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786865105
• ISBN-13: 978-0786865109
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,089,384 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars They don't make heroes like this anymore!, September 5, 2000

By 

TMac "busted_flush" (North Carolina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause (Hardcover)

Major Damon "Rocky" Gause's "War Journal" chronicles his escape from the Philippines by boat to Australia at the outbreak of WWII. This heroic escape is outlined in detail in this fairly short, very readable account. It gives the reader a feel for the time as well as the incredible odds faced by Major Gause and his shipmate Captain William Lloyd Osborne. This book reads like a screenplay and I can't wait for the movie. Recommended to military and adventure buffs alike. A special thanks to Damon Lance Gause, "Rocky's" son, for sharing his father's heroic escape with the world.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fine adventure story, January 12, 2000

By 

Richard Kendall (Westlake, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause (Hardcover)

This is an excellent adventure/survival story as much as it is a war story. You will like this if you have enjoyed Into Thin Air, The Perfect Storm, We Die Alone, and other survival tales, as well as WWII retrospectives like The Greatest Generation or Citizen Soldiers. Major Gause escaped Bataan and Corregidor in the Phillipines and then, with another officer, island-hopped in a small, leaky fishing boat all the way to Australia, avoiding Japanese airplanes and ships --and poor supplies of food, drinking water, fuel, and sunscreen - along the way. This is a first person account by Gause, and in the typical ways of his generation, he understates his accomplishments and adds humor to the story too. What's more, after reporting to General MacArthur in Australia, Gause didn't feel his duty was done. After a publicity tour of the States to help sell War Bonds, he demanded active duty again and was sent to Europe, where he lost his life testing modifications to the P-47 in preparation for D-Day. Sadly, Gause's dedication to service only allowed him to hold his newborn son a single time before he went off to war again. One is left wondering whether the Boomers and other post-WWII generations could ever be counted on to make the kinds of sacrifices in pursuit of freedom as did The Greatest Generation men like Gause. If you know a WWII veteran, take the time now to thank him or her for saving the world.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An exciting record of adventure, courage and sacrifice, December 11, 1999

By 

J. Taylor (Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause (Hardcover)

I couldn't put down this book. As a World War II history buff, and having lived in the Philippines as a young child, I was fascinated with Rocky Gause's escape from the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in 1942.

Gause attributed his successful escape to the Filippinos who helped him along the way. He acknowledged their courage and sacrifice in not only helping him, but in fighting for freedom. I have always considered Filippinos to be the friendliest people in the world. No doubt, their willingness to help soldiers like Gause stems from wonderful and powerful attribute.

I hope that more people read this book. Gause's record, along with the history of the Philippines in World War II, is one that needs to be heard.