I bought this book on a whim, never having heard about the rescue mission to save nearly 500 POWs in the wretched Cabanatuan prison camp. It sounded interesting, so I thought I would give it a try -- and I'm so glad I did. This is the best book I have ever read in my entire life, and believe me, I've read my share. It was powerful and moving in a way that many other historic books are not. I laughed when I heard about the prisoners nicknaming their sadistic guards. I cried when I read of the sickness, the filth, the hunger and the disease -- and I cried when the men were rescued from their hell. These men lived for three years brutal conditions that no human being should ever have had to endure. Hampton Sides does such a magnificent job of portraying details that I was hooked from page one. I would *highly* recommend this book to anyone, regardless of whether or not you're a history buff. It is, truly, the most heart-wrenching story you will ever read, reinforced by diary entries left behind, like this one at the end: "We are all ghosts now, but once we were men."

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