"Oscar G. Richard - a native of Sunshine, Louisiana - was not the usual World War II serviceman. After enlisting in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1942 and training diligently for many months, the B-17 bombardier spent only one week in combat. On his third and last mission - on January 14, 1944 - his plane was shot down over France and he was imprisoned by the Germans. Thus, like many in the Eighth Air Force in late 1943 and early 1944, he spent most of his war not in combat, but in captivity. In this memoir, Richard describes his wartime experiences both before and after his capture, recounting the transformation of a fresh-faced recruit into a seasoned POW."--Jacket.

1.Stateside -- 2. Shipping Out -- 3. Grafton Underwood -- 4. Operation Crossbow -- 5. Interrogation at Dulag Luft -- 6. Barth on the Baltic -- 7. The Spider Kelly Gang -- 8. Living Under Capture -- 9. Mail Call -- 10. Colonel Spicer Sounds Off -- 11. We Kept Informed -- 12. Luminaries at Stalag Luft I -- 13. The Final Winter -- 14. The Russians Arrive -- 15. Auf Wiedersehen Deutschland -- 16. Heading Home.