PALO ALTO, Calif., Aug. 10, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- When the United States military began drafting young men during World War II to reinforce the depleted Allied forces, those who were barely adults faced atrocities many Americans will never know. In A Young Man Goes to War -- 1944 (now available through AuthorHouse), Arthur F. Adams Jr. recounts his experiences on the front lines and behind the walls of a POW camp.
Adams shares how his youthful face fooled people into believing he was younger than 12 although he was 18 and being drafted. He underwent rigorous training at Camp Hood, Texas, and in a span of 19 months went from naive teenager to infantry replacement.
A Young Man Goes to War reveals the monotonous and often terrifying days spent either standing in the line of fire or anticipating orders to advance. Adams describes the "hurry up and wait" atmosphere that agonized soldiers with its menacing uncertainty.
He details the personal horrors he faced when he was wounded in the Battle of the Bulge and captured by the Germans. His liberation was but a short taste of freedom as he was injured again and taken prisoner. After he was freed a second time, Adams was hospitalized, only to be sent back into training to prepare for the invasion of Japan. Throughout the story, he plunges readers into the dark days of violence and fear the Allied forces faced.
In addition to his harrowing account of the battlefield, Adams relives the days he shared with soldiers from around the world in a prison camp near Hammelburg, Germany. From dangerous work assignments to unbearable living conditions to General Patton's attempt to free the soldiers, A Young Man Goes to War -- 1944 describes it all in vivid detail.
With candor and poignancy, Adams delivers an important account of both his own life and the lives of fellow soldiers who risked everything in the name of freedom.
Adams, a retired electromechanical engineer, graduated from the University of Illinois. Throughout his 40 years in this field, he has written numerous technical reports and worked on a variety of projects from refrigerators to nuclear weapons to space vehicles. Adams restores antique vacuum tube radios from the 1920s and 30s and has submitted articles on this hobby to relevant magazines. He has also given presentations on the histories of radio, television and motion picture palaces. A Young Man Goes to War -- 1944 is his first book.
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