The Houdini Club: The Epic Journey and Daring Escapes of the First Army Rangers of WWII [Hardcover]

Highlighted by the prisoner-of-war escapes that earned them the name “The Houdini Club,” here is the elite combat odyssey of World War II’s “Darby’s Rangers” as never told before—drawing on previously unknown sources and former Army Ranger Mir Bahmanyar’s exclusive, uncensored interviews with the greatest generation of Rangers themselves.

This thrilling, personality-driven account of the first United States Army Ranger battalions follows an extraordinary band of American soldiers from their rugged Ranger training to their battles in North Africa, France, Sicily, and mainland Italy, and (for some) finally back to American shores. Drawing upon unprecedented historical research, military-service expertise, exclusive interviews, and personal correspondence with original Greatest Generation Army Rangers, The Houdini Club is an uncensored work of military history, encapsulating both the history and personal drama of World War II Special Forces warfare.

From the abundant tales of glory to the tales of misery, fear, and murderous intent, the utter exhaustion and thrill of combat, and the devastating final battle that all but destroyed them,The Houdini Clubputs readers on the ground alongside the Rangers who made victory in Europe possible, portraying in gritty detail the lives and acts of one of the American military’s greatest collection of men.Mir Bahmanyarearned a BA in History from UC Berkeley, enlisted in the Second Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, and attained an MA in War Studies from King’s College London. He served on the Board of Directors for the 75th Ranger Regiment Association and was an Associate Historian of the World War Two Ranger Battalions Association. He has been a military technical advisor on such films asThe Good German,Black Hawk Down, andWe Were Soldiers; a German language coach; and a producer and writer in Hollywood. He co-wrotelƒ·