Zero Night
The Untold Story of the Second World War's Most Daring Great Escape
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Icon Books
Published:7th May '15
£8.99
Available to order, but very limited on stock - if we have issues obtaining a copy, we will let you know.
'The story of a lesser known - but perhaps the greatest - escape of Second World War prisoners has been told in a new book.' The Scotsman
'This is undeniably history as it should be told and a thundering good read.'? History of War Magazine
Oflag VI-B, Warburg, Germany: On the night of 30 August 1942 - 'Zero Night' - 40 officers from Britain, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa staged the most audacious mass escape of the Second World War.
It was the first 'Great Escape' - but instead of tunnelling, the escapers boldly went over the huge perimeter fences using wooden scaling contraptions. This was the notorious 'Warburg Wire Job', described by fellow prisoner and fighter ace Douglas Bader as 'the most brilliant escape conception of this war'.
Months of meticulous planning and secret training hung in the balance during three minutes of mayhem as prisoners charged the camp's double perimeter fences.
Telling this remarkable story in full for the first time, historian Mark Felton brilliantly evokes the suspense of the escape itself and the adventures of those who eluded the Germans, as well as the courage of the civilians who risked their lives to help them in enemy territory. Fantastically intimate and told with a novelist's eye for drama and detail, this is a rip-roaring adventure story, all the more thrilling for being true.
Felton's action-packed account provides a fitting tribute to the ingenuity of the escapees and of the brave civilians who subsequently assistant them. * The Good Book Guide *
The story of a lesser known - but perhaps the greatest - escape of Second World War prisoners has been told in a new book. * The Scotsman *
Major Tom Stallard, born in this city in 1904, masterminded one of the most daring and ingenious bids for freedom ever, yet he remains an unsung hero. That is until now, because a major new book plans to put the record straight, and give Bath's hero the place in history he deserves. * Bath Chronicle *
This generally untold story of the daring night escape of August 30, 1942, is now skilfully retold by author Mark Felton [...] in his new book Zero Night. For once, the book's blurb is accurate in describing Felton's racy work as "a rip-roaring adventure, all the more thrilling for being true". -- Mike Scanlon * The Newcastle Herald *
The story of what is being hailed as the greatest escape of the Second World War has been told for the first time. -- John Coles * Western Daily Express *
The story of the greatest escape of World War II has been told for the first time.
The audacious breakout saw dozens of Allied prisoners of war scale the wire at a camp deep in Nazi Germany using four huge ladders they had made and disguised as bookshelves.
During the breakout 32 prisoners got out and legendary pilot Douglas Bader, who was a prisoner in Oflag VI-B camp near Warburg, described it as the most daring escape of the war.
'This is undeniably history as it should be told and a thundering good read.'? * History of War Magazine *
ISBN: 9781848318472
Dimensions: 198mm x 129mm x 20mm
Weight: 268g
320 pages