To D-Day and Back: Adventures with the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment and Life as a World War II Pow: A Memoir

My Uncle Bill Aubel was in the very same unit and so reading this book gave me so much information about those last months of his life. He died July 5th after D-Day. Part of a letter he wrote his DAd and views of his grave were used in Larry King's 50th Anniversary show.

This book is an outstanding resource for information about the war in general, but it also provides a different perspective from most accounts. It's very well written and easy to read. It is also the only first-hand account of the war from member of the 507th Parachute Infantry Division I know of. The book itself starts off pretty much like any other paratrooper memoir. But it's interesting that most of the action takes place in the mid-western United States. I also enjoyed the information about the Texas 36th Infantry Division as it holds a special place in the Italian campaign. The author was a member of the 36th prior to transferring to the 507th. However, what makes this book special is the author didn't see a tremendous amount of combat in Normandy, France. He was captured by the Germans and promptly sent to a POW camp. The majority of this book details how Bearden survived there, the ingenious ways they staved off hunger when they could, and how poorly treated the Americans were as prisoners of war. Interestingly enough, he also writes about what happened when his camp was overrun by the Russians. The war wasn't over yet and he had a real issue figuring out where he was and what the best way to get back to the American side of things. This starts a remarkable trip through central Europe ending in Moscow of all places. If this wasn't more confusing, to make things worse he's eventually captured and placed in a Russian POW camp and well, the rest is quite an interesting and brutal story.

This is a good first-person account of one American's adventures and escapades as he goes from being a member of the Texas National Guard in 1940 at the tender age of 17 to becoming several years later a (mortar) squad leader in the famous 82nd Airborne Division as a member of H Company, 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment. As a member of the 82nd Airborne Division, the author parachutes into Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Unfortunately, at D-Day plus 2, he is captured, along with several others, including a Colonel, after being surrounded and running out of ammunition. (It is the Colonel who orders the men to surrender.) The author then spends the next several months being shuttled to various German prisoner of war camps, finally ending up in one for American NCOs near the Oder River that is liberated by the Russians in their march toward Berlin. Although the author's experiences as a POW were traumatic, after liberation by the Russians he and his fellow prisoners were left to fend, and forage, for themselves, as the Russians were too intent on exacting revenge on the Germans to assist the freed prisoners. Incredibly, the author, while simply trying to get back to his own troops, becomes a prisoner of war of the Soviets and then has to escape from a Soviet POW camp, fortunately making it back to his own troops and, eventually, home. The book, despite its grim tales and subtext, is an enjoyable read as it is written in a first-hand, almost conversational style that makes you feel you are right there in the action. It is an excellent addition to the personal histories of World War II, especially from the perspective not just of the horror and chaos that was D-Day but from the unusual vantage point of someone who was a prisoner of war.

I only enjoy reading soldiers accounts of D-Day in their "real words"-not technical history books (showing maps,etc.). This is a terrific account of a paratroopers D-Day jump and aftermate in a German Stalag. He talks about his buddies and the hardships they went thru to survive-a great storyteller. Bob was one real "tough texan" who gave his all...

Thank you Bob Bearden for sharing your adventures during WWII. First person accounts of D-Day and WWII are very important for succeeding generations. I am afraid that there are many stories that will never be told because veterans put off recording them until it is too late. I have enjoyed reading your adventures and I feel much closer to understanding what occurred prior to and during WWII. I think that you did a terrific job and I hope it will inspire other veterans to get their stories published. Thanks again.