2/2 AIF Escapees from Greecephoto, ww2, army

"SANDAKAN/ A conspiracy of Silence/ of the 2,434 prisoners massacred by/ the Japanese at the Sandakan POW camp, only 6, all escapees, have survived."Soft cover book. Cover - cardboard; green, blue, yellow and white colour print on front spine and book, illustrated, red colour round blotches on a mottled grey colour background. 400 pages, cut, plain white paper. Illustrated black and white photographs and maps. Title page - handwritten notations.Title page - handwritten notations - grey lead pencil "PSO 985/ ECEA" . Black ink "MS FRANK MARRIOTT".books, ww2, pows, sandakan, japan

Ill, p.87non-fictionHere in brief compass is the thrilling tale of air crew adventure told by its navigator, who was one of three Australian in a crew of six manning a Marauder aircraft operating from Africa over the Mediterranean. The aircraft becomes involved in combat, in which two enemy fighters are drive off, one emitting clouds of smoke; but the Marauder, too, is crippled, and comes down in the Mediterranean near the Italian Island of Ustica. Rescue from the sea is followed by the rigours of captivity in Fascist barracks and compounds, of travel through Italy, of sharing British air raids with their captors, assuming careless ease while their musical comedy soldier captors cannot conceal their unease. An ingeniously planned escape is successful; five prisoners break from the compound, and this party, with intrepidity and endurance, gain a liberty which is also a life of great hardship. Italian peasant life provides great interest, and friendly folk protect the adventurous band from the Fascists, while they meet at the coast a mysterious English Captain, who later proves to be a Commando officer on a mission; when this mission is accomplished, and not before, he helps the several groups of escapees to liberty. A motor torpedo boat calls at midnight and, within six months, home in Australiaworld war 1939-1945 - aerial operations - australia, world war 1939-1945 - prisoners of war

Index, ill, p.530.non-fictionOnly six escapees survived the Sandakan death marches of 1945 in North Borneo, the worst atrocity ever inflicted on Australian soldiers. 1787 Australian and 641 British POWs perished. Previous descriptions of the numerous violent acts have yielded little understanding of a situation where the real struggle was to keep one's humanity when so many were losing theirs, whether Allied POWs, local residents of Borneo, Javanese slave labourers, or Japanese soldiers. Understanding this extraordinary story is aided by reference to a wide range of sources in different countries and disciplines, and by examining the perspectives of all players in this terrible game of survivalworld war 1939-1945 - prisoners of war - sandakan, world war 1939 – 1945 - prisons and prisoners - japanese