2014 Libris Award — Joint Winner, Non-Fiction Book of the Year

Globe and Mail Bestseller
Toronto Star Bestseller


A unique retelling of WWII’s most dramatic escape, told through first-hand recollections of the soldiers who experienced it.


On the night of March 24, 1944, eighty airmen crawled through a 400-foot-long tunnel, code-named "Harry," and dashed from Stalag Luft III, the infamous WWII German POW camp. It became known as The Great Escape. The breakout had taken a year to plan, involved 2,000 POWs, and prompted a massive manhunt across occupied Europe. All but three escapees were recaptured, and on Hitler’s orders, fifty were murdered. 

Bestselling author Ted Barris revisits the story made famous by the 1963 movie. But he recounts this battle of wits and determination through the voices of those involved. Drawing on the experiences of forty years of experience as a journalist, broadcaster, and historian, Barris assembles original interviews, memoirs, letters, diaries, and personal photos to reconstruct the Great Escape’s untold story.