Ben Macintyre is my favorite historian/author, and he did not disappoint in this one.

The story of POWs often goes untold, except for a few anecdotes here and there. The entire book focuses on an ancient castle used in Germany for the “worst of the worst” Allied prisoners. Those of particularly high value, repeated escapees, and those determined to be “unfriendly” to Germany spent the war within its gatehouses.

The ingenuity and persistence of escape attempts were impressive, but the book took care to share the perspective of the German army garrison as well. This made the story much more interesting and humanizing.

Would I recommend: YES

ISBN: 978-05931362331