The Fifteen - by William Geroux (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The true story of the long-forgotten POW camps for German soldiers erected in hundreds of small U.S. towns during World War II, and the secret Nazi killings that ensnared fifteen brave American POWs in a high-stakes showdown"--

Book Synopsis

The revelatory true story of the long-forgotten POW camps for German soldiers erected in hundreds of small U.S. towns during World War II, and the secret Nazi killings that ensnared fifteen brave American POWs in a high-stakes showdown.

"In the pantheon of American history, it's very hard to find compelling, original stories, and even harder to find authors worthy of them. In The Fifteen, William Geroux delivers the goods."--John U. Bacon, New York Times bestselling author of The Great Halifax Explosion

The American government was faced with an unprecedented challenge: where to house the nearly 400,000 German prisoners of war plucked from the battlefield and shipped across the Atlantic. On orders from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Department of War hastily built hundreds of POW camps in the United States. Today, traces of those camps--which once dotted the landscape from Maine to California--have all but vanished. Forgotten, too, is the grisly series of killings that took place within them: Nazi power games playing out in the heart of the United States.

Protected by the Geneva Convention, German POWs were well-fed and housed. Many worked on American farms, and a few would even go on to marry farmers' daughters. Ardent Nazis in the camps, however, took a dim view of fellow Germans who befriended their captors.

Soon, the killings began. In camp after camp, Nazis attacked fellow Germans they deemed disloyal. Fifteen were sentenced to death by secret U.S. military tribunals for acts of murder. In response, German authorities condemned fifteen American POWs to the same fate, and, in the waning days of the war, Germany proposed an audacious trade: fifteen German lives for fifteen American lives.

Drawing on extensive research, journalist and author William Geroux shines a spotlight on this story of murder and high-stakes diplomacy, and on the fifteen American lives that hung in the balance--from a fearless P-51 Mustang fighter pilot to a hot-tempered lieutenant colonel nicknamed "King Kong."

Propulsive and vividly rendered, The Fifteen reminds us that what happens to soldiers after they exit the battlefield can be just as harrowing as what they experience on it.

Review Quotes

"Excellent and insightful . . . More than a well-crafted history, The Fifteen raises questions worth considering today. Was the U.S. too lenient with German POWs? . . . And what was--is--the responsibility of POWs, of any nationality, to their fellow prisoners and their captors? Those reading The Fifteen will be motivated to make up their own minds."--The Wall Street Journal

"William Geroux recovers the fascinating history of what happened once German detainees reached the U.S. In a brisk and impressively researched narrative, he shows how, even during their American imprisonment, hardcore Nazis enforced fealty to Hitler with brutal and occasionally deadly force."--AirMail

"With dogged research and a narrative that parachutes readers into some of the most dangerous corners of World War II, Geroux has brought to light a sweeping story from the homefront that was not just forgotten--most Americans never knew it even happened to begin with. A dynamic, high-stakes tale that will leave readers questioning not only their loyalties and beliefs but the value of life itself."--Bradford Pearson, National Magazine Award winning author of The Eagles of Heart Mountain

"In the pantheon of American history, it's very hard to find compelling, original stories, and even harder to find authors worthy of them. In The Fifteen, we get a surprising drama about 400,000 German POWs held at hundreds of camps throughout small-town America--and a series of murders that took place there. William Geroux unearths this off-beat subject and delivers the goods, including the high-stakes diplomatic showdown in the war's final months. Highly recommended--trust me!"--John U. Bacon, New York Times bestselling author of The Great Halifax Explosion

"A compelling exploration of the experiences of prisoners of war in WWII."--Booklist

"Exhilarating . . . A riveting, whirlwind look at a little-known episode of WWII."--Publishers Weekly

"Nearly 400,000 German POWs spent WWII in America. Journalist Geroux delivers an expert, unsettling story of this little-known aspect of the war."--Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

William Geroux is the author of The Ghost Ships of Archangel and The Mathews Men. He has spent twenty-five years as a journalist, writing often about the military and winning awards for breaking news coverage, investigative journalism, and feature writing. A native of Washington, DC, and graduate of the College of William and Mary, Geroux lives in Virginia Beach, Virginia.