The Forgotten 500: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All for the Greatest Rescue Mission of World War II

by Gregory A. Freeman

Book Overview

The astonishing, never-before-told story of the greatest rescue mission of World War II--when the OSS set out to recover more than 500 airmen trapped behind enemy lines in Yugoslavia.

"An amazing, riveting tale of unsung heroes who went above and beyond."--James Bradley, New York Times bestselling author of Flags of Our Fathers

During a bombing campaign over Romanian oil fields, hundreds of American...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451224957
• ISBN13: 9780451224958
• Release Date: September 2008
• Publisher: Dutton Caliber
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.83 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.9" x 8.9"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Would gladly read AGAIN and AGAIN

Just finished this book. This had me at numerous emotions; laughter, anger, joy, thrill. I am glad that this story was finally told, but I wish it was told sooner. I hope there will be a film to come out about this story. This is one of those stories that isn’t much publicized. When we think of WW2 we think of Pearl Harbor and Normandy to Berlin. There is much more that happened in Europe. I would like to visit Serbia some day. This has lit a fire within me to do more research

G.A. Freeman Insures the 500+ Are Forgotten-No-Longer!

The heroic and heartwarming stories of World War II aviators shot down in Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia; the courageous efforts of the local Serbian peasants who risked their lives to protect them; the pro-American guerrillas who not only protected them, but fought the occupying Nazis AND their fellow countrymen who also hated the Germans, but wanted Yugoslavia to turn to the Russian Communists and not the Allied Democracies; behind-the-scenes intrigue between England and America on how to rescue the stranded airmen and not upset the balance of power; political power struggles, rebel leaders who were great friends to America but cast aside for the sake of skilled manipulators who envisioned power for themselves - this book has it all! Gregory Freeman has taken his entrenching tool, and excavated truths long buried in the dust of time - and America should be grateful for his work. Awesome read!

On to Iraq

I have just passed the book, The Forgotten 500, on to my son in Iraq. What a terrific read and one I know that he and his fellow soldiers will enjoy. I cried, laughed and got very angery as I read this book. Those Airmen and the civilians who helped them return to their homes should never be forgotten. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in WWII history.

great book for history lovers

this is a great book for history lovers got it as a gift for my dad who loves to read about war and history. arrived quickly and in great condition

A welcome addition to World War II shelves

Award-winning writer and experienced journalist Gregory A. Freeman presents The Forgotten 500: The Untold Story of the Men Who Risked All for the Greatest Rescue Mission in World War II, the story of Operation Halyard - a mission to rescue American airmen who were shot down in Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia, and sheltered by Serbian villagers who risked their lives. To pull off Operation Halyard, the starving Americans in Yugoslavia had to construct a landing strip large enough for C-47 cargo planes without tools, without alerting the Germans, and without endangering the villagers. And the cargo planes that came to their rescue would have to traverse enemy airspace without being shot down. Extensively researched, The Forgotten 500 brings the daring true saga to life with compelling detail. A welcome addition to World War II shelves, sure to intrigue laymen and military historians alike.

The Forgotten 500 - An Essential Book about the Halyard Mission Heroes

There are men who fight for their country who are truly a personification of dedication, determination, courage and heroism. Some of them we come to know, and their names are immortalized in our historical consciousness. There are others who most people never hear of and their deeds never become legend, though they deserve to be known and remembered and permanently included in the historical record. "The Forgotten 500" by author Gregory Freeman is a new and important book that not only introduces the public to such men, but explains why they and their rescuers deserve a prominent place in history. This book is a celebration of human fortitude and integrity and is so much more than just another book about World War Two. `Heroes' has become an all too common term in this day and age, to the point that heroism has become trivialized. Gregory Freeman reminds us what true heroism is really all about, the kind of heroism that can, and should, leave us in awe. He doesn't just tell us, he shows us. That would have been enough to make this a valuable book in any library, but Freeman strove for more and has accomplished it. He was bothered by the fact that these heroic acts that he had discovered had not only been virtually ignored, but were actually deliberately suppressed as if they never happened. His research led him to painful discoveries that he could not help but include in this story of heroism, and the light that he sheds on the dark side of `Operation Halyard' makes "The Forgotten 500" not only a valuable book, but an essential one. Just as he reminds us of the great things that men in the worst situations are capable of, he also exposes the lengths taken to cover up acts that should have been widely heralded as triumphant examples of the human spirit but instead were sacrificed to the manipulations of political expediency. We owe both the dead and the living to move, once and for all, `Operation Halyard', possibly the greatest rescue of American lives from behind enemy lines in the history of warfare, from being a mere footnote in history to being a shining example of what men of integrity are capable of. Mr. Freeman, with "The Forgotten 500", is paying the long overdue debt. During the second half of World War Two, hundreds of American airmen were sent on dangerous missions over Europe during which their job was to cripple the oil production that was feeding the Nazi war machine. Freeman describes in vivid detail the nature of these missions and by tapping the memories and experiences of the airmen and faithfully capturing them on the pages of The Forgotten 500 he paints a graphic picture of what was endured by these patriots who did their job and followed their orders regardless of the retaliation that was sure to follow. These missions would cost many of their lives. Those who survived the Nazi retaliations had to bail out of their planes over foreign territory in order to get a shot at survival and they did so, not knowing what