Colditz
Prisoners of the Castle
Published on 29. September 2022
Audio
CD-Audio
978-0-241-98893-0 (ISBN)
Description
Brought to you by Penguin.
In a forbidding Gothic castle on a hilltop in the heart of Nazi Germany, an unlikely band of British officers spent the Second World War plotting daring escapes from their Nazi captors. Or so the story of Colditz has gone, unchallenged for 70 years. But that tale contains only part of the truth.
The astonishing inside story, revealed for the first time by bestselling historian Ben Macintyre, is a tale of the indomitable human spirit, but also one of class conflict, homosexuality, espionage, insanity and farce. Through an astonishing range of material, Macintyre reveals a remarkable cast of characters, wider than previously seen and hitherto hidden from history, taking in prisoners and captors who were living cheek-by-jowl in a thrilling game of cat and mouse.
From the Indian doctor whose hunger strike and eventual escape reads like a thriller, to America's oldest paratrooper and least successful secret agent, the soldier-prisoners of Colditz were astonishingly imaginative in their escape attempts; but there were many other ways to survive while awaiting their unknown fate. Deeply researched and full of incredible colour, this is the definitive book on one of the greatest war stories ever told.
(c) Ben MacIntyre 2022 (P) Penguin Audio 2022
In a forbidding Gothic castle on a hilltop in the heart of Nazi Germany, an unlikely band of British officers spent the Second World War plotting daring escapes from their Nazi captors. Or so the story of Colditz has gone, unchallenged for 70 years. But that tale contains only part of the truth.
The astonishing inside story, revealed for the first time by bestselling historian Ben Macintyre, is a tale of the indomitable human spirit, but also one of class conflict, homosexuality, espionage, insanity and farce. Through an astonishing range of material, Macintyre reveals a remarkable cast of characters, wider than previously seen and hitherto hidden from history, taking in prisoners and captors who were living cheek-by-jowl in a thrilling game of cat and mouse.
From the Indian doctor whose hunger strike and eventual escape reads like a thriller, to America's oldest paratrooper and least successful secret agent, the soldier-prisoners of Colditz were astonishingly imaginative in their escape attempts; but there were many other ways to survive while awaiting their unknown fate. Deeply researched and full of incredible colour, this is the definitive book on one of the greatest war stories ever told.
(c) Ben MacIntyre 2022 (P) Penguin Audio 2022
Reviews / Votes
A fine feat of storytelling . . . will surely become the last word on the subject -- Patrick Bishop * Telegraph * Like watching a black-and-white photograph being colourised . . . rich in humour and quirky detail . . . another compelling narrative -- Clare Mulley * Spectator * Nuanced and gripping . . . told with sensitivity and insight, with an eye for telling detail -- Gerard DeGroot * The Times * Fascinating * The Sun * Every Ben Macintyre book is a treat -- Jane Thynne * The Tablet * Entertaining yet objective and often moving * Wall Street Journal * Macintyre's genius has long been to excavate the nuance, subtlety and ambiguity beneath the myths he explores . . . remarkable -- Matthew D'Ancona * Tortoise Media * Another fine history . . . His unerring eye for the telling detail that can illuminate a greater story is apparent in Colditz -- Ronan McGreevy * The Irish Times * Macintyre so seamlessly fuses so many different accounts that their compilation creates something more profound than a simple escape yarn: a biography of the prison itself and the world detainees built there -- Andrea Pitzer * Washington Post * Macintyre recreates the daring escape stories with punchy flair . . . a lively page-turner -- NJ McGarrigle * Independent.ie *More details
Edition
Unabridged edition
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
College/higher education
Edition type
Unabridged edition
Product notice
Audio CD
Dimensions
Height: 142 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 26 mm
Duration
Dauer: 806 min
Weight
337 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-241-98893-0 (9780241988930)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Persons
Ben Macintyre (Author, Reader)
Ben Macintyre is the multimillion-copy bestselling author of books including Colditz, Agent Sonya, SAS: Rogue Heroes, The Spy and the Traitor, Agent Zigzag, Operation Mincemeat and A Spy Among Friends. He is a columnist and Associate Editor at The Times, and has worked as the newspaper's correspondent in New York, Paris and Washington. Several of his books have been made into films and television series, including Operation Mincemeat, A Spy Among Friends and SAS: Rogue Heroes.
Ben Macintyre is the multimillion-copy bestselling author of books including Colditz, Agent Sonya, SAS: Rogue Heroes, The Spy and the Traitor, Agent Zigzag, Operation Mincemeat and A Spy Among Friends. He is a columnist and Associate Editor at The Times, and has worked as the newspaper's correspondent in New York, Paris and Washington. Several of his books have been made into films and television series, including Operation Mincemeat, A Spy Among Friends and SAS: Rogue Heroes.