Last Man Out: Glenn McDole, USMC, Survivor of the Palawan Massacre in World War II
Review
Retired journalist and reporter Bob Wilbanks was vice president of editorial at Stover Publishing Company for ten years. He lives in Urbandale, Iowa. –Military Review.
Product Description
On December 14, 1944, Japanese soldiers massacred 139 of 150 American POWs. This is the biography of Glenn “Mac” McDole, one of eleven men who escaped and the last man out of Palawan Prison Camp 10A. This young Iowa Marine’s story begins in December 1941 and takes us through the fighting on Corregidor, capture and imprisonment by the Japanese Imperial Army, Mac’s entry into the Palawan prison camp and the terrible conditions prisoners endured there, and the day when 139 young soldiers were slaughtered. It details the escapes of the few survivors, who dug into refuse piles, hid in coral caves, and slogged through swamp and jungle to reach help. An account of the Japanese guards’ war crimes trials, follow-ups on the places and people involved, and a roster of the Palawan massacre victims are included. This entry refers to the LARGE PRINT edition.
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November 24th, 2009 at 4:47 pm
This review is from: Last Man Out: Glenn McDole, USMC, Survivor of the Palawan Massacre in World War II (Paperback)
This book should be required reading for every high school student in America – most people have no idea what many ordinary young men endured as prisoners during World War II, how they behaved under the unbelievable burden of watching their friends die and how they overcame the horror of being POWs of the Japanese in the Philippines – this book is extremely well-written, simple and concise without self promotion concerning one of the worst atrocities in modern warfare – it’s an easy although uncomfortable read – it’ll make you proud to call McDole and other POWs fellow Americans
November 24th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
This review is from: Last Man Out: Glenn McDole, USMC, Survivor of the Palawan Massacre in World War II (Paperback)
This is a great story of a survivor who makes it and also the story of others who perish. All of whom are heroes under conditions we hope will never again be faced by POW’s. This book tells the story of their sacrifice which should never be forgotten.
November 24th, 2009 at 7:53 pm
This review is from: Last Man Out: Glenn McDole, USMC, Survivor of the Palawan Massacre in World War II (Paperback)
One of the good stories to come out of World War II was the rescue of over 500 American prisoners at the CABANATUAN MILITARY PRISON CAMP. If you are not familiar with the story, 123 members of the 6th Rangers sneaked through enemy lines to the prison camp, killed all the guards and got the men out. It was not common for such break outs to be attempted. And the reason for the rescue at Cabanatuan was the massacre at Palawan. Palawan was an offshoot of Cabanatuan, some 150 prisoners from Cabanatuan had been sent to Palawan as slave workers. They spent two and a half years working on the air strip. Then on December 15, 1944 the Americans landed on Mindoro. So the Japanese decided to execute the 150 prisoners. They missed eleven who managed to escape. This is the story of one young marine. From all the people in the USMC he bacame one of the 7,000 Americans captured at Corregidor, and one of the eleven to survive Palawan. As I read this book, my first thought was to damn the Japanese. Their culture of Bushido created an environment where such events happened. Then I thought of the Islamic terrorists, or cult or whatever you’d call it in Iraq who yesterday beheaded someone just to get it in the news. And that lead me to the events in the prison in Iraq where we Americans didn’t exactly act with honor. This is a book, not only excellently written, but tells of a side of the war not often reported. And forces you to think of other places, other incidents. Highly recommended.