Bridges to Survival: Non-Stop Action Behind Enemy Lines in World War II

Bridges to Survival: Non-Stop Action behind Enemy Lines in World War II by J. A. Stallings Meticulously researched coming-of-age tale chronicles the horrifying realities of war for a nineteen-year-old U.S. spy working with the Italian Resistance behind enemy lines “J. A. Stallings’ gripping new novel Bridges to SurvivalI gives us a flesh-and-blood narrative set in northeast Italy, a page-turner from beginning to end. Embedded in the narrative are instances of Italian art stolen by the Nazis and the daring retrieval by Harry and friends…[In] perhaps the most riveting section of the book, Harry and his compatriots make plans to destroy tunnels through the famous mountain pass between Austria and Italy, the entry point for German troops. The project is huge and full of danger…[This book will] be appreciated by veterans of all wars and by their families.” Review by Lois-ellin Datta In Bridges to Survival: Non-Stop Action behind Enemy Lines in World War II, acclaimed researcher-turned-author J. A. Stallings pens the first person account of nineteen-year-old Harry Rossi, a new recruit to the OSS, the Office of Strategic Services, a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. As the novel begins, Harry is a naïve teenager seeking adventure. Trained for the OSS, he becomes a member of the Margot team and enters Italy by submarine on the Adriatic, south of Venice, behind enemy lines. The team’s mission: to stop the flow of German troops and materials pouring into Italy by destroying bridges crossing the Adige River and tunnels leading from the Brenner Pass. Working hand in hand with the Italian Resistance, Harry meets Carlo, his lookalike best friend, Melania, his first love, and Antonio, their brutal leader. Soon, Harry finds himself wrestling with his basic morals as he witnesses the torture and death of his leaders and takes revenge on the killers. Meanwhile, to relieve the tension of war, Harry and Carlo tease and torment one another. They are teenagers, after all, not above fooling around and wrestling to alleviate their fear and anger. By default, as their leaders are killed or captured, Harry and Carlo become leaders. Their mission is to protect priceless Italian art and outwit the Nazis with their use of plastique, pencil timers, radios, disguises, and their essential alliance with the Italian Resistance. From train heists to dynamiting bridges, from unforgettable Italian friendships to falling in love, Harry lives through life-changing adventures that inevitably result in the keen grief that comes with being a soldier at war. Stallings comments, “My four children have asked why a pacifist like me would write a war story. My answer is that Harry came to me. He was persistent, and his story unfolded. Like millions of innocent, adventurous patriots, he left his home unprepared for the war-time world that awaited him, a world where friends are tortured beyond recognition, where the instinct for revenge is unbridled and killing comes easy, where the mirror reflects a man he does not know, and where home is a child’s fairy tale to which there’s no way back.” She adds, “My father and uncles were in World War II. Like most of the World War II warriors, they never spoke of it.”