Book Review: "The Secret Rescue" by Cate Lineberry

"The Secret Rescue: An Untold Story of American Nurses and Medics Behind Nazi Lines", is a brilliant book outlining the harrowing tale of nurses and medics who, after crash-landing in Nazi-occupied Albania in 1943, survived an ordeal that tested the limits of their courage, determination and faith.During World War II, air evacuation of injured service members was a relatively new concept, and many nurses were trained--at times desultorily--to take part in evacuations that put them in grave danger. Cate Lineberry, the author of "The Secret Rescue", conducted extensive research to unearth and publish the story of 26 flight nurses and medics whose journey across occupied Albania was rife with suffering, hunger, disappointment, heroism and a will to survive. She also describes the individuals--American, British and Albanian--who risked their lives to rescue the stranded personnel, and how the tale unfolded on various levels. On Monday, August 5th, 2013, Cate Lineberry appeared on RN.FM Radio to discuss the story and how she came to write it. Her descriptions of the heroism of these courageous nurses and medics underscores the continued sacrifices made by medical personnel who contemporarily serve in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other dangerous theaters of military operation around the world.In the prologue to the book, Lineberry writes:On a chilly, overcast December day in 1943, Gavan "Garry" Duffy, a tough, no-nonsense twenty-four-year-old special operations lieutenant working for Bri...

Source: Digital Doorway - August 9, 2013 Category: Nurses Tags: RN.FM Radio nursing nurses nursing history book reviews Source Type: blogs