John M. McGrath, a young Navy pilot who was captured in 1967 after being shot down over Vietnam, vividly presents a straightforward and compelling tale of survival, of years of suffering, and of the human will to endure. During the era of the unpopular Vietnam War few issues united the American people as did the emotion-laden problem of POWs and MIAs. When the peace treaties were finally signed and the POWs returned to American soil, the nation was collectively relieved by their safe return. A self-taught artist, the starkness of McGrath’s drawings underscores his remarkable and moving chronicle of the lives of these prisoners, who were constantly in peril, attempting to survive a brutal captivity almost unimaginable in civilized times.
To Hell and Beyond: The First Enlisted Man’s Version of What Happened as a POW in Vietnam
“What are you gonna call it?” he asked, his hands fidgeting nervously, looking for something to do, searching his mind for the next thing to say. “To Hell and Beyond,” I replied with a bit of cautious skepticism in my voice. Waiting with nervous anticipation I wondered what thoughts were
