We Band of Angels The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan by the Japanese

Hailed by The New York Times Book Review as a "grippingly told" story of "power and relevance," here is the true, untold account of the first American women to prove their mettle under combat conditions. Later, during three years of brutal captivity at the hands of the Japanese, they also demonstrated their ability to survive. Filled with the thoughts and impressions of the women who lived it, "every page of this history is fascinating" (The Washington Post).

We Band of Angels

In the fall of 1941, the Philippines was a gardenia-scented paradise for the American Army and Navy nurses stationed there. War was a distant rumor, life a routine of easy shifts and evenings of dinner and dancing under the stars. On December 8 all that changed, as Japanese bombs rained on American bases in Luzon, and the women's paradise became a fiery hell. Caught in the raging battle, the nurses set up field hospitals in the jungles of Bataan and the tunnels of Corregidor, where they saw the most devastating injuries of war, and suffered the terrors of shells and shrapnel.

But the worst was yet to come. As Bataan and Corregidor fell, a few nurses escaped, but most were herded into internment camps enduring three years of fear and starvation. Once liberated, they returned to an America that at first celebrated them, but later refused to honor their leaders with the medals they clearly deserved. Here, in letters, diaries, and firsthand accounts, is the story of what really happened during those dark days, woven together in a compelling saga of women in war.

Publishers Weekly Makes excellent use of extensive quotations from diaries and interviews.... Norman also captures moments of great courage....But the true highlights come in the evocation of tears and sweat that went into the nurses' daily struggle...in the face of overwhelming adversity.

Austin American-Statesman (TX) Compelling...engrossing...suspense-filled....Terrific reading.

The Philippine Inquirer The most comprehensive account ever told of the capture and captivity of the ninety-nine nurses known as the "Angels of Bataan"....The vivid details of their actions, taken from interviews, journals, letters, and government testimony...prove to be the real gems of the book.

Library journal Harrowing...well-written.

San Antonio Express-News Packs an emotional wallop.

Kirkus Reviews Gripping....Norman's touching and stirring narrative makes a fitting tribute to these women's courage and dedication.

The Boston Globe Captures [war's] gritty, surreal texture with as much eloquence as the best writers on the Balkan front lines....Norman tells the story of Bataan with authority, compassion, and an unusually clear-sighted view of the American military. She hooks readers from the start.

The Dallas Morning News Poignant and powerful...riveting.

Stephen E. Ambrose This is a gripping book. Elizabeth Norman presents a war story in which the main characters never kill one of the enemy, or even shoot at him, but are nevertheless heroes....First on Bataan, then moved to Corregidor, they were under almost constant shell fire, were always hungry, close to starvation, had horrendous diseases to deal with despite a shortage or even a complete lack of proper medicines, getting little or no sleep, nothing in the way of recreation -- yet they were a true band of angels, inspiring all the men whom they were there to help. In a squalid prison camp, they remained giants, despite their small size....They were the bravest of the brave, who endured unspeakable pain and torture. Americans today should thank God we had such women.

Richmond Times-Dispatch One cannot help but be impressed by their courage in the worst of circumstances ....An incredible piece of research.

For the first time, Savage Will brings to life a remarkable story of perseverance, heroism, and survival: the true tale of the American medics and nurses who endured two months in Nazi-occupied Albania—and the fearless citizens and Allied intelligence officers who risked all to save them.

On a cold morning in war-ravaged Sicily in 1943, men and women of the 807th Medical Air Evacuation Squadron boarded a routine flight to the Italian mainland to care for wounded soldiers. En route, their plane became lost in storm clouds looming over the Adriatic Sea, drifted hundreds of miles off course, and crash-landed in remote mountainous Albania.

Stranded without proper winter clothing or even weapons, the Americans were trapped 850 blizzard-plagued miles from Allied lines, in a country torn apart by rival bands of pro- and anti-German guerrillas.

What followed is the most thrilling untold story of World War II—a saga that would ensnare a cast of hundreds, from President Roosevelt and top Allied intelligence officials to a host of brave Albanian Resistance fighters, the British and U.S. Mediterranean air forces, and the gritty officers sent behind enemy lines to rescue them: a dashing English lieutenant and a tenacious American captain.

Hunted by German soldiers, the American castaways were forced to rely on what one survivor called their “savage will” to elude their enemy and ultimately find their way to freedom. Savage Will is a testament to a generation who defied all odds.

Savage Will brings to life a remarkable story of perseverance, heroism, and survival: the true tale of the American medics and nurses who endured two months in Nazi-occupied Albania—and the fearless citizens and Allied intelligence officers who risked all to save them.

On a cold morning in war-ravaged Sicily in 1943, men and women of the 807th Medical Air Evacuation Squadron boarded a routine flight to the Italian mainland to care for wounded soldiers. En route, their plane became lost in storm clouds looming over the Adriatic Sea, drifted hundreds of miles off course, and crash-landed in remote mountainous Albania.

Stranded without proper winter clothing or even weapons, the Americans were trapped 850 blizzard-plagued miles from Allied lines, in a country torn apart by rival bands of pro- and anti-German guerrillas.

What followed is the most thrilling untold story of World War II—a saga that would ensnare a cast of hundreds, from President Roosevelt and top Allied intelligence officials to a host of brave Albanian Resistance fighters, the British and U.S. Mediterranean air forces, and the gritty officers sent behind enemy lines to rescue them: a dashing English lieutenant and a tenacious American captain.

Hunted by German soldiers, the American castaways were forced to rely on what one survivor called their “savage will” to elude their enemy and ultimately find their way to freedom. Savage Will is a testament to a generation who defied all odds.

Timothy M. Gay is the award-winning author of Assignment to Hell, Satch, Dizzy and Rapid Robert: The Wild Saga of Interracial Baseball Before Jackie Robinson, and Tris Speaker: The Rough-and-Tumble Life of a Baseball Legend. His essays and op-ed pieces on American history, politics, public policy, and sports have appeared in the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, USA Today, and many other publications. A graduate of Georgetown University, where he majored in American history, Tim lives in Virginia with his wife and children.

Contents

Foreword

Maps

1. Waking Up to War

2. Manila Cannot Hold

3. Jungle Hospital #1

4. The Sick, the Wounded, the Work of War

5. Waiting for the Help That Never Came

6. "There Must Be No Thought of Surrender"

7. Bataan Falls: The Wounded Are Left in Their Beds

8. Corregidor -- the Last Stand

9. A Handful Go Home

10. In Enemy Hands

11. Santo Tomas

12. STIC, the First Year, 1942

13. Los Banos, 1943

14. Eating Weeds Fried in Cold Cream, 1944

15. And the Gates Came Crashing Down

16. "Home. We're Really Home."

17. Aftermath

18. Across the Years

Afterword

Epilogue

Acknowledgments

Appendix I: Chronology of Military Nurses in the Philippine islands, 1940-1945

Appendix II: The Nurses and Their Hometowns

Bibliography

Endnotes

Index