Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65847 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05-17
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 190 pages

Synopsis
Reinhold Eggers one of the German staff who was Security Officer during the last years at Colditz. It is a compilation of the most spectacular escape attempts written by the escapers themselves. Eggers supports the stories with extracts from his "Colditz" diary which ran to 26 copybooks, with stories about the German staff and their characters, and a short account of the end of his war when he became a prisoner himself. It has some memorably funny moments (especially the tale of Max and Moritz, who "filled in" on parades), some very sad moments, and some descriptions of escapes that are truly astonishing - the Franz Josef attempt alone is worth a novel.

Customer Reviews

A remarkable account from a German Officer about the camp.
This was the first book about Colditz I ever read, and in many ways is still my favourite. It covers pretty much the whole story of Colditz PoW Camp, and shows how run ragged the German Guards really were. It has some memorably funny moments (especially the tale of Max and Moritz, who "filled in" on parades), some very sad moments, and some descriptions of escapes that are truly Gobsmacking - the Franz Josef attempt alone would be worth a novel. However, it needs to be read as a companion to other books such as "The Colditz Story" to really have full impact.

The other side of the coin
Eggers' pre war occupation as a school teacher was an ideal apprentiship for what WW2 had in store for him. This book, Eggers' account of his time at Oflag IVC, Colditz at times resembles the diary of a school teacher ranting and raving about his charges yet at the same time possesing a respect for them. Eggers described the POWs as 'our friends the enemy'. Although not the most popular of German Officers with the POWs, they often thought him 'treakly' (maybe he reminded the young men of an unpopular school master they had known only a few years previous) he did have their respect. This book, written a handful of years after the famous Reid publications, 'The Colditz Story' and 'The Latter Days', it gives a fascinating insight from the German point of view, be it just Egger's own. As a Camp Officer, and later the Security Officer, he was perfectly placed to reveal many things that at the time Reid and the other Allied writers did not know. Were there stooges? How were tunnels discovered? etc etc etc. As a piece of literature it sometimes does not flow as easily as say Reid but nevertheless it is a fascinating read. I often say this should, after the above 2 Reid books, be your 3rd addition to your Colditz collection. No Colditz enthusiast can be without it.

The School Teacher discusses his pupils
Eggers' pre war occupation as a school teacher was an ideal apprentiship for what WW2 had in store for him. This book, Eggers' account of his time at Oflag IVC, Colditz at times resembles the diary of a school teacher ranting and raving about his charges yet at the same time possesing a respect for them. Eggers described the POWs as 'our friends the enemy'. Although not the most popular of German Officers with the POWs, they often thought him 'treakly' (maybe he reminded the young men of an unpopular school master they had known only a few years previous) he did have their respect. This book, written a handful of years after the famous Reid publications, 'The Colditz Story' and 'The Latter Days', it gives a fascinating insight from the German point of view, be it just Egger's own. As a Camp Officer, and later the Security Officer, he was perfectly placed to reveal many things that at the time Reid and the other Allied writers did not know. Were there stooges? How were tunnels discovered? etc etc etc. As a piece of literature it sometimes does not flow as easily as say Reid but nevertheless it is a fascinating read. I often say this should, after the above 2 Reid books, be your 3rd addition to your Colditz collection. No Colditz enthusiast can be without it.