Surviving Bataan & Beyond [Hardcover]

Irvin Alexander (Author), Ken Hechler (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1999

*8-page b/w photo section
* 4 drawings
* 16 maps
* 6 x 9

Until now, no book has been available about the WWII POW experience from the perspective of a midlevel commander. Colonel Alexander's unique memoir combines the military and political insight of an officer aware of his superiors' strategy with the bare emotion of a man suffering the terror of imprisonment. His account has been quoted and referenced by countless World War II historians; now, through the careful editing of Dominic Caraccilo, his memoir is available in its entirety for all students of World War II--professional and amateur.

Dominic J. Caraccilo is the author of The Ready Brigade of the 82nd Airborne in Desert Storm and a contributing author for the VFW-sponsored two-volume WWII commemorative set Faces of Victory. He has published numerous articles in World War II, Military Review, Army Magazine and World War II Historical Journal.

Contact Dominic Caraccilo at [e-mail] for comments.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This is Col. Irvin Alexander's gripping memoir of the fall of the Philippines, the Bataan Death March, and his three and a half years as a prisoner of war during World War II. Originally written in 1949 but not published until now, Alexander's remarkable and chilling odyssey is told with clarity and stark realism. As a U.S. infantry officer assigned to the Philippine Army, Alexander was wounded in combat and decorated for heroism in the losing battle for Bataan. But the inevitable surrender to the Japanese was just the start of the nightmare. The brutality of the Death March was exceeded only by the horrors that awaited American POWs in fetid prison camps and ships. Starvation, disease, madness, and torture were the POWs' greatest enemies, and death was the only escape. This is an astonishing story of human suffering, courage, ingenuity, and hope. Its insight and imagery make it a superb example of one man's victory over despair. Strongly recommended for all libraries and historical collections.?Col. William D. Bushnell, USMC (ret.), Brunswick, ME
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Col. Dominic J. Caraccilo has served three tours in Iraq as operations officer of the 101st Airborne Division and commander of an airborne battalion. A decorated combat veteran, he is a graduate of West Point and holds master's degrees from the Naval War College and Cornell. He is based out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Stackpole Books; 1st edition (March 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811715965
• ISBN-13: 978-0811715966
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,443,520 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best accounts of Japanese Imprisonment, August 21, 1999

By 

Patrick C. Labbe "Je Me Souviens" (Charleston, South Carolina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Surviving Bataan & Beyond (Hardcover)

This was one of the best books on the subject of the Bataan death March and Philippine Invasion that I've read. Col. Alexander's personal account brings the events upfront and real to the reader. You truly feel part of the Col.'s ordeal. I reccomend it highly.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Read, June 26, 2009

By 

Mac Pro "Local History Buff" (Oklahoma USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Surviving Bataan and Beyond: Colonel Irvin Alexander's Odyssey as a Japanese Prisoner of War (Stackpole Military History Series) (Paperback)

Read dozens of books on the subject of Japanese POWs and this one has a different slant because it comes from the viewpoint of an army officer. Most of the others books are written by or about the enlisted men who were imprisoned for most of the war. Colonel Alexander was a West Point grad and career officer. He was caught in the Philippines with his wife and child as war clouds boiled. His family, along with most other dependents, were sent home in May 1941. The Colonel's life was about to abruptly change from that of a quartermaster officer to a combat infantry soldier. This book is about his wounding, capture, imprisonment, torpedoing by U.S. subs and finally, six years later, was released and returned home. Dominic Caraccilo did a good job editing Colonel Alexander's notes.

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fairly good, September 21, 2002

By 

peter oakley "billys" (Duncan, British Columbia Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Surviving Bataan & Beyond (Hardcover)

The editing was sloppy with reference numbers wrong. He irritatingly keeps using the word `object' when he means of course `abject' Annoying to have to keep flipping to the back of the book which is composed of one third references.
However bearing he was an amateur I thought it was an interesting book and yes well worth a read of a first hand account of a quite dreadful experience.