Escape from Colditz
May. 5th, 2026 09:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
qatsiBook Review: The Colditz Story, by P R Reid
Reid begins, logically enough, before Colditz - he escaped from Laufen in Bavaria before being recaptured in Austria and sent to Colditz. The focus of the book is on his time as escape officer, and then of his own escape in 1942. Written in 1952, this is a valuable if partisan memoir, though it's noticeably variable on details of means and methods (perhaps not coincidentally, Reid followed his escape with a stint working for the intelligence services, which receives no mention here). In contrast, Ben Macintyre's book is a work of history and tries to be more rounded and all-encompassing. But at least Reid mentions the Dry Rot attempt (and notes that there is "probably" still a glider somewhere in the rooftops of the castle.)
In comparison with our own time, there's some sense of disbelief in the resources PoWs were able to obtain, and also in the way in which escapees could hoodwink the German army and locals. One consequence of the 1955 film is that this book now has the feel of being narrated by John Mills.
Reid begins, logically enough, before Colditz - he escaped from Laufen in Bavaria before being recaptured in Austria and sent to Colditz. The focus of the book is on his time as escape officer, and then of his own escape in 1942. Written in 1952, this is a valuable if partisan memoir, though it's noticeably variable on details of means and methods (perhaps not coincidentally, Reid followed his escape with a stint working for the intelligence services, which receives no mention here). In contrast, Ben Macintyre's book is a work of history and tries to be more rounded and all-encompassing. But at least Reid mentions the Dry Rot attempt (and notes that there is "probably" still a glider somewhere in the rooftops of the castle.)
In comparison with our own time, there's some sense of disbelief in the resources PoWs were able to obtain, and also in the way in which escapees could hoodwink the German army and locals. One consequence of the 1955 film is that this book now has the feel of being narrated by John Mills.