The Forgotten 500 (Book)

The Forgotten 500: This book is one I'd given my pop and finally got a chance to read myself.  He really enjoyed the book and so did I.  The story centers around airmen who partook in bombing missions in Europe and on the way back some bombers were hit by anti-aircraft or damaged by German fighters and the flyers would have to bail out.  Many ended up in Yugoslavia.  You'll learn about the amazing plan to rescue these those airmen while also getting the back story on many involved.  The country itself was divided internally by two different factions while trying to resist German occupation.  The Chetniks had fallen out of favor of the Allies but still did everything they could to protect the downed airmen even at the expense of their own.  The Chetniks were led by General Draza Mihailovich. After the war the Allies regretted which side they took as Yugoslavia became a Russian puppet state thanks to the Partisans they had backed.

 The Allied and Yugoslavia politics play a big part of this book but the individual efforts are really what stand out.  Whether it be the villagers and Chetnik fighters who risked everything to harbor and support the men they took in, the men who had to evade capture not knowing how they would get home and the efforts of individuals within the US agencies who ensured these men got home.  This is a good read and definitely a part of World War II history that many probably don't know a lot about.