Living in the Shadow of a Hell Ship

U.S. Marine George Burlage was part of the largest surrender in American history at Bataan and Corregidor in the spring of 1942, where the Japanese captured more than 85,000 troops. More than forty per cent would not survive World War II. His prisoner-of-war ordeal began at Cabanatuan near Manila, where the death rate in the early months of World War II was fifty men a day. Sensing that Cabanatuan was a death trap, he managed to get transferred to the isolated island of Palawan to help build an airfield for his captors.Malaria and other tropical diseases caused him to be sent to Manila for treatment in 1943 (a year later, 139 of his fellow POWs were massacred on Palawan). After another year of building airfields, Burlage survived a 38-day voyage in the hull of a Japanese hell ship and ended the war as a miner for Mitsubishi in northern Japan. By sheer luck, strength, and a bit of sabotage, he survived and was freed in September 1945 after the Japanese surrendered. He had endured starvation and torture and lost half of his prewar weight, but no one had killed him.After the war Burlage became a journalist and wrote about his POW experiences. His daughter Georgianne discovered his writings after George passed away in 2008, and edited them with additional historical material to provide context for his World War II experiences in the Pacific.

"It is a gripping firsthand account of the horrible life and treatment of a prisoner of war under Imperial Japan."--World War II History Magazine, "Readers who want to learn more about what American POWs endured at the hands of their Japanese captors during World War II will be inspired by Burlage's account."--Journal of America's Military Past, "This account, based on his writings discovered by his daughter, recounts the extraordinary survival of an ordinary Marine."--Seapower Magazine, "Burlage's narrative and story are a reminder of the strength of will needed to overcome the horrors of captivity. Readers interested in mental resilience, prisoner survival, and the history of the Marines who make up the Corps will find Living in the Shadow of a Hell Ship a quick and engaging read."--Naval History, "This book is an important addition to our knowledge of the American POW experience during the Pacific War and a fitting sequel to James Clavell's King Rat. Burlage's story is one of survival. Through a combination of guile, bravery, adaptation to the enemy's mindset, luck, and an indomitable will to live, he was able to come through captivity and tell his story. His World War II experiences as well as his postwar years as a career Marine and journalist certainly qualify him as a member of the 'Greatest Generation.'"--Ronald Marcello, author of UNT Press book Small Town America in World War II "This is a moving tribute to a resilient Marine who beat the odds through three years as a captive of the Japanese military in World War II. George Burlage's daughter has carefully assembled his personal notes, interviews, letters, and images into a captivating account of his horrifying wartime experiences. Living in the Shadow of a Hell Ship is an inspirational survival story of a man who truly defined America's Greatest Generation."--Stephen L. Moore, author of As Good as Dead: The Daring Escape of American POWs from a Japanese Death Camp "Marine George Burlage survived three years of horror at the hands of the Japanese--starvation, disease, a parade of prisoner-of-war camps and nearly forty days crammed in the hold of a notorious Hell Ship. He later recounted his agonizing experience on legal pads, in binders and even on the backs of envelopes. After Burlage's unexpected death, his daughter, Georgianne, discovered these powerful writings in a box in a closet, prompting her to sort and compile her father's memories, letters, and photos and provide the connective tissue to bring us his story. Living in the Shadow of a Hell Ship is an incredible testament to one man's struggle to survive against all odds as well as a daughter's tenacity and love to make sure his story would live on for future generations. This book should be required reading for all Americans."--James M. Scott, Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of Target Tokyo: Jimmy Doolittle and the Raid That Avenged Pearl Harbor and Rampage: MacArthur, Yamashita, and the Battle of Manila

GEORGIANNE BURLAGE, daughter of George Burlage, is a fifth-generation Texan and teacher of secondary history and journalism for more than thirty years. She is a national officer of the American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor Memorial Society, and lives in Denton, Texas.