Albanian Escape: The True Story of U.S. Army Nurses Behind Enemy Lines

by Agnes Jensen Mangerich

Book Overview

On November 8, 1943, U.S. Army nurse Agnes Jensen stepped out of a cold rain in Catania, Sicily, into a C-53 transport plane. But she and twelve other nurses never arrived in Bari, Italy, where they were to transport wounded soldiers to hospitals farther from the front lines. A violent storm and pursuit by German Messerschmitts led to a crash landing in a remote part of Albania, leaving the nurses, their team of medics, and the flight crew stranded...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813191572
• ISBN13: 9780813191577
• Release Date: April 2006
• Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.1" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A story of Bravery and Survival good for all ages

Albanian Escape was exciting, quick-paced, and inspiring. After crashing behind enemy lines, this narrative of a group of brave women, written from one surviovor's perspective, was everything an adventure story could be. An unexpected turn of events leads to a challenge, a journey behind enemy lines during World War II. Throughout, the physical strength, courage, disciple and patriotism of the servicewomen remain steady. I loved hearing about the descriptions of covert radio transmissions, the long walks in the dark and the unfamiliar food eaten gratefully by the characters. The story read like a story, yet one knew IT HAD REALLY HAPPENED, because of the threat of Hitler's armies and that there was much at stake if these people were captured. Another angle of the narrative which interested me was the fact that Albania, recently in the news because of the wars in the Balkans and Kosovo, was the poulation the nurses came in contact with. I learned a lot about the way political loyalties were very fragile and unreliable during a war. For example, In the book, there were three main groups of citizens in Albania: those loyal to the Germans, those who wanted political independence from the dictator of Albania at the time, and those who were loyal to the Allies. Therefore, the issue of who was friendly was a complicated one for the Americans. Reading about Ablania, I gained insight into current events in my own world. I recommend this book highly to readers of all ages, especially those who want to learn about what it was like during World War II.

Important piece of historical work.

This was very important for me as my father, who is now deceased, was one of the medics on board the aircraft. Information on him that was unknown to me was brought to light in the book. It is well written and i am thankful that this piece of history that involved my father was recorded for the future.

A Great Story and A Great Read

This book, Albanian Escape, The True Story of U.S. Army Nurses Behind Enemy Lines, by Agnes Jensen Mangerich as told to E.M. Monahan and R.L. Neidel is a great story, well written, and historically relevant today. It is relevant to today's debate on women in the military and their ability and stamina to deal with hardship and come out winners. And it certainly has relevance to today's problems in the Balkans. While the story is told from the perspective of one of the nurses, it does deal with the other 12 nurses involved, the medics and the plane crew; the Albanians willing to help them escape German-held Albania and the British SOE and American OSS officers detailed to help them escape. The authors were able to trace down actual reports from the Bari Air Base, Command Communique concerning the incident and reports from Lt. Duffy, SOE and Capt. Smith, OSS, intertwining these very well in the account. One mystery remains in this book--regarding why the pilots did not have the password for the day which prevented them from getting the information they sought from the Bari Air Field about the time they were due there and the copilots unwillingness to talk about it to Jensen when she mentioned to him that the radio operator had told her that the pilots had tried to radio Bari. I also understand that Monahan and Neidel were telling Jensen's story, but it would have been great if some of the others in the group could have been contacted to hear their perspective of this event. Unfortunately, we hear from the Veterans Admiinstration that we are losing 1000 WWII Veterans daily in the U.S. and it is not easy to find such people if they didn't keep in touch. But an awful lot of good stories are going untold. As a retired Army Nurse, Korea and Vietnam era, I had to smile alot at some of the dialogue, and think how typical it was of military nurses in every generation when the going got rough. I believe the writers did a great job of telling Agnes Jensen Mangerich's story and I would recommend it to all who have an interest in military history and particularly women in the military and military nurses. We're blest this year with both this book and Norman's We Band of Angels--Great Readings. Ira P. Gunn, MLN, CRNA, FAAN, LTC, US Army Retired

This is an exciting, suspense-filled history lesson.

If you are a history buff, you will enjoy Albanian Escape written by Rosemary L. Neidel & Evelyn M. Monahan as told to them by Agnes Jensen Mangerich. It is a gripping book filled with tension as a group of nurses bound for Italy in World War II in November of 1943 crash land in Nazi-occupied Albania. From the time they take off from Catania,Sicily until their eventual rescue almost three months later, the story is filled with suspense and excitement. This true story provides insight into what life was like in the Balkans during the war and provides a good history lesson for understanding the situation there today.

Amazing story ! well-documented and very interesting to read

Even tho I knew the outcome of the story, it was attention-grabbing and demanded that I read each chapter to understand the entire ordeal. The text is easy to read and the photos are very clear, though it is too bad they didn't pinpoint Bari, Italy on the map. I would definitely recommend this to nursing groups, WW II buffs, and anyone who wants to know "how it was" in the war zones. This is an especially timely release,as there is an excellent, brief history of the Balkans which explains part of what is happening in today's news. Short and an easy read, it will be a good book for reading groups. Especially any that include a mix of ages, for a better understanding of the WW II efforts.