Readers Comment

"As a Lead Pilot who flew combat during World War II, I feel well qualified to recommend Valor at Polebrook. It not only portrays the bravery of this crew, it also details the experiences of the hundreds of combat crews that served their country well during the big conflict. If you have never been in a plane loaded with tons of high explosive bombs and thousands of rounds of 50 caliber ammunition plus 3680 gallons of high test gasoline, with anti aircraft shells exploding all around, and being attacked by enemy fighters pouring 20 millimeter cannon shells into your aircraft, then you will never know just what these crews faced. This book tells it like it was."

Major Clinton Hammond, President, 351st Bomb Group Association

Clarence Richard Nelson, pilot and crew leader, smiles for Archie's camera.

"I thoroughly enjoyed reading Valor at Polebrook. This is the story as it was and a good job was accomplished in putting it together. Chapter five, "LANDING" (which describes the untrained crewmen's efforts to land their damaged aircraft) is exactly as it happened. I know. I was there!"

Col. Elzia Ledoux, Former Squadron Commander, 351st Bomb Group and pilot of the aircraft sent up to assist Ten Horsepower.

"Valor at Polebrook takes the reader inside Ten Horsepower, a B-17 with the 351st Bomb Group on February 20, 1944 on a mission to Leipzig, Germany. This isn't a Hollywood recreation, but true words which tug at the heart and soul of the reader. At the risk of sounding stale, the cliche "this is a must-have for anyone interested in the World War II air war" is truly and understatement. Enough cannot be said about this book. Read it. You won't be sorry."

Book Review by Peter Moll, Executive Director - Warbirds of America

"As a World War II pilot of a B-17, and a recipient of the Medal of Honor, I highly recommend reading Valor at Polebrook. This is the incredible story of the crew of a B-17 and of the heroics of two members of the crew who received the Medal of Honor posthumously for an action the same day that I received mine. Many years were spent in researching the material for this book and it is evident that this is a well told and true story without any of the misconceptions that are often used to enhance war stories. Read Valor at Polebrook and know that you are experiencing one of the great stories of the Mighty Eighth Air Force."

Col. William R. Lawley, Jr., MoH, USAF (Ret.)

Book Reviews: