In this novel by the 2012 Nobel Laureate in Literature, a benign old monk listens to a prospective novice’s tale of depravity, violence, and carnivorous excess while a nice little family drama—in which nearly everyone dies—unfurls. But in this tale of sharp hatchets, bad water, and a rusty WWII mortar, we can’t help but laugh. Reminiscent of the novels of dark masters of European absurdism like Günter Grass, Witold Gombrowicz, or Jakov Lind, Mo Yan’s Pow! is a comic masterpiece. In this bizarre romp through the Chinese countryside, the author treats us to a cornucopia of cooked animal flesh—ostrich, camel, donkey, dog, as well as the more common varieties. As his dual narratives merge and feather into one another, each informing and illuminating the other, Mo probes the character and lifestyle of modern China. Displaying his many talents, as fabulist, storyteller, scatologist, master of allusion and cliché, and more, Pow! carries the reader along quickly, hungrily, and giddily, up until its surprising dénouement. Mo Yan has been called one of the great novelists of modern Chinese literature and the New York Times Book Review has hailed his work as harsh and gritty, raunchy and funny. He writes big, sometimes mystifying, sometimes infuriating, but always entertaining novels—and Pow! is no exception. “If China has a Kafka, it may be Mo Yan. Like Kafka, Mo Yan has the ability to examine his society through a variety of lenses, creating fanciful, Metamorphosis-like transformations or evoking the numbing bureaucracy and casual cruelty of modern governments.” —Publishers Weekly
Frank Battle, a forward observer for Allied troops in WWII, is captured by German forces. Unfortunately for Frank, one of his SS interrogators decides it would be quite an accomplishment to break Frank Battle and convince him that the Axis of Evil is the right way and he will stop at nothing to do so. But as a member of the Greatest Generation, Frank will have none of it and is sent to Stalag 13.Frank's hope and faith are tested throughout his captivity. Then, hope begins to rise as US forces storm the compound in a bold attempt to free the captives. Unfortunately their escape attempt is thwarted by German forces and Frank and his two comrades are given the choice of fighting it out with the Germans, being recaptured or slipping into the dark German night in one last dash for freedom. Will they make it?Join Frank and his fellow POW's as they struggle to survive the hardships of imprisonment, the brutally harsh winter and the physical and mental anguish of a deadly game of hide and seek with German troops.
When Green Beret Lieutenant James N. Rowe was captured in 1963 in Vietnam, his life became more than a matter of staying alive.In a Vietcong POW camp, Rowe endured beri-beri, dysentery, and tropical fungus diseases. He suffered grueling psychological and physical torment. He experienced the loneliness and frustration of watching his friends die. And he struggled every day to maintain faith in himself as a soldier and in his country as it appeared to be turning against him.His survival is testimony to the disciplined human spirit.His story is gripping.From the Paperback edition.
Just under 300,000 Allied servicemen from Britain, the Commonwealth and the United States were captured in Europe and North Africa between 1939 and 1945. This work describes their experiences, and tells of the secret organisations who smuggled escape aids to the prisoners.
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