{"product_id":"ship-of-ghosts-the-story-of-the-uss-houston-fdrs-legendary-lost-cruiser-and-the-epic-saga-of-her-survivors-9780553384505","title":"Ship of Ghosts: The Story of the USS Houston, Fdr's Legendary Lost Cruiser, and the Epic Saga of Her Survivors","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES \u003c\/i\u003eBESTSELLER\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Son, we're going to Hell.\" \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e The navigator of the USS \u003ci\u003eHouston\u003c\/i\u003e confided these prophetic words to a young officer as he and his captain charted a course into U.S. naval legend. Renowned as FDR's favorite warship, the cruiser USS \u003ci\u003eHouston\u003c\/i\u003e was a prize target trapped in the far Pacific after Pearl Harbor. Without hope of reinforcement, her crew faced a superior Japanese force ruthlessly committed to total conquest. It wasn't a fair fight, but the men of the Houston would wage it to the death. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Hornfischer brings to life the awesome terror of nighttime naval battles that turned decks into strobe-lit slaughterhouses, the deadly rain of fire from Japanese bombers, and the almost superhuman effort of the crew as they miraculously escaped disaster again and again-until their luck ran out during a daring action in Sunda Strait. There, hopelessly outnumbered, the \u003ci\u003eHouston\u003c\/i\u003e was finally sunk and its survivors taken prisoner. For more than three years their fate would be a mystery to families waiting at home. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In the brutal privation of jungle POW camps dubiously immortalized in such films as \u003ci\u003eThe Bridge on the River Kwai\u003c\/i\u003e, the war continued for the men of the \u003ci\u003eHouston\u003c\/i\u003e--a life-and-death struggle to survive forced labor, starvation, disease, and psychological torture. Here is the gritty, unvarnished story of the infamous Burma-Thailand Death Railway glamorized by Hollywood, but which in reality mercilessly reduced men to little more than animals, who fought back against their dehumanization with dignity, ingenuity, sabotage, will-power--and the undying faith that their country would prevail. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Using journals and letters, rare historical documents, including testimony from postwar Japanese war crimes tribunals, and the eyewitness accounts of \u003ci\u003eHouston\u003c\/i\u003e's survivors, James Hornfischer has crafted an account of human valor so riveting and awe-inspiring, it's easy to forget that every single word is true.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Bantam\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/28\/2007\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780553384505\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 530\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.40lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 1.30d","brand":"James D. Hornfischer","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36638758207644,"sku":"9780553384505","price":18.7,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_af52916d-41a6-4f29-a320-9e5d90d529b1.jpg?v=1603848104","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/ship-of-ghosts-the-story-of-the-uss-houston-fdrs-legendary-lost-cruiser-and-the-epic-saga-of-her-survivors-9780553384505","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}