Being there . . . . to read and know what a Tyrone, Pennsylvania, draftee’s experiences were likebeing drafted into that state’s Army National Guard in April of 1941, then promptly placed inthe 105 th infantry Battalion (Anti-Tank). After extensive, but rushed, Carolina Maneuvers, theunit was redesignated as the 805 th Tank Destroyer Battalion. In January of 1943, SSG Ernest V.Focht, and his battalion, were hastily deployed to North Africa. Within weeks, he was captured
in 1943 and remained a German prisoner until the Russians liberated the POW camp in May of
- For 27 months, SSG was incarcerated in FIVE separate prisoner of war camps, forcedmarched his way to each, often in the freezing temperatures of the 44’ and 45’ winter. Whatmakes this biography, “Guest of Adolf”, so riveting is that it is based upon on his very ownsurvival words jotted down in three hidden diaries son-in-law author Michael H. Zang’s liftedand meshed with his own writings of father-in-law’s remarkable journey. Perfectly legitimatesince, in addition, it includes what Michael recalls Ernie telling him during his after- supperspontaneous reminiscences. Such personal battle and camp survival encounters, comminglingwith Michael’s deep interest and knowledge of European WWII history, qualifies him superblyfor the task of biographer. Not only does Michael Zang sensitively share Ernie’s, and his own,insights of and into the 805 Tank Destroyer Battalion, but also father-in-law’s open, no-holdsbarred, unique, and exceedingly rare recollections now told for first time in print by a scarcelyencountered five-camp survivor. Not since Martin W. Bowman’s 1987 compelling, “HOME BYCHRISTMAN – – The Story of U.S Airmen at War”, by Martin W. Bowman, Patrick StephensPublisher, has such a profound POW study appeared.U.S. PRISONER OF WAR CAMPS, LARGE AND SMALL, NUMBERING OVER 100 PEPPERING THEGERMAN, CZECHOSLOVAKIAN, AND AUSTRIAN LANDSCAPES DIVIDED THEIR CAPTORS INTO SIXGROUPS, ENLISTED MEN, NAVY AND MERCHANT MARINE, AIRMEN, OFFICERS, CIVILIANINTERNEES, AND THOSE HOSPITALIZED. A FRESH NEW BOOK ABOUT TO ROLL OFF THECASEMATE PRESS (SEPT. 15 th ) ALLOWS READERS TO TRULY EXPERIENCE AND KNOW WHAT THEHITLER BARRACK BLOCK LIFE WAS LIKE, SURVIVING BEHIND HIGH BARBED WIRE, AT NIGHTALWAYS WATCHED BY POWERFUL SEARCHLIGHTS, ALWAYS WITHIN REACH OF HEAVYMACHINE GUNS, AND EXPERTLY GUARDED BY WELL-MANNED IN HIGHLY MAINTAINED SENTRYTOWERS. “GUEST OF ADOLF” OFFERS THE READER RARE POW CAMP SCENES AND ESCAPETHOUGHTS VIA A VIVID WAR MEMOIR. PARTICIPATE IN LIFE AND DEATH MARCHES TO FIVECAMPS AS THE RED ARMIES ROLLED BY BLASTING THEIR WAY WEST TO BERLIN. SIDE BY SIDEWITH SSR STAFF SERGEANT ERNEST V. FOCHT, FACE THE DAILY CHALLENGES OF STAYING ALIVE. . .Reviewed and highly recommended by Don DeNevi“GUEST OF ADOLF – – The War of SSG Ernest V. Focht, in the 805 th Tank Destroyer Battalion”, byMichael H. Zang. CASEMATE PUBLISHERS, Havertown, PA 19083: 2024, 210 pages, hardcover, 6¼” x 9 1/4”, 50 maps and photographs, actual pub date, September 15, 2024. Visit,www.casematepublishers.com.Few books on WWII POWS staying alive, including attempted and successful escape stories,
have made so deep an impression on this reviewer as the new “Guest of Adolf”. It fascinates
with its beauty, narrative skill, important miniature, and integrity of factual truth. Althoughwritten by a son-in-law, and assisted by his son, the grandson of the hero, it is moreautobiographical than biographical. As we witness bloody glimpses of battles surrounding eachcamp, we witness how Ernest Focht was determined to remain alive; the chaos of camp life ineach of the five he was in; always the gossip of the nearby underground activities; watching andknowing the final defeated German greed for destruction in the fateful 1944 and 1945 years.Within the first few pages, we realize the gift of vivid reality Earnie and Michael have given us.In his Preface, son-in-law Michael Zang, writing how he came into possession of Earnie’smaterial, a story onto itself, details how he became a member of the Focht family. “In 1973, Imarried Karen, his only daughter. Over the next 30 years, I listened to her dad speak of hisyouth, and, later, his time as a POW. I wrote this saga for his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and future descendants so that they may know what it was like to be a memberof ‘The Greatest Generation’. . . It wasn’t until the late 1990s I came into possession of Ernest’streasure trove of materials. I spent a few minutes looking them over, then stored them untilearly 2019 when I donated all to a museum. My youngest son, Patrick, and I photographed myfather-in-law’s three-volume POW diaries . . . while transcribing the diaries, I began to develophis military career. Naturally, in my additional research, one thing led to another. . . the endresult being ‘Guest of Hitler’, using Ernie’s own words to provide the reader with a firsthandaccount of his thoughts, actions, and feelings. His words are interspersed throughout thisbiography as quotations without accompanying citations.”Echoing his dad Michael’s Preface of love, respect, and admiration, Patrick Zang, in hisForeword, adds, “This is not a book about politics, strategy, or featuring the movements ofarmies. It is a look at one man’s journey from the hill country of north central Pennsylvania toEngland, to combat in North Africa, then years behind wire as a German guest. I consider myselfblessed to have been able to spend as much time with my grandfather as I did.”Needless to say, just about as perfect a Christmas gift a loved WWII buff can receive – you
read it from this reviewer first.
