"Herbert Zincke was in the Philippines when the Japanese struck, ten hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. After the surrender of U.S. forces, Sgt. Zincke was shipped to a prison camp on Tokyo Bay, where he was a slave laborer until the end of the war. He and his fellow prisoners called their barracks, owned by the Mitsui Corporation, the Mitsui Madhouse.".

"In his three years at the camp, Zincke faced brutality, malnutrition, and disease. He would have faced almost certain execution if American forces had landed in Japan. A very real threat came from American bombers, as the POW camp was located in a heavy industrial area. (Bombs did eventually destroy it.)".

"This work tells the story of Zincke's survival and is drawn from the secret diary he managed to keep. Zincke recollects a terrifying blow from the camp commander's sword, drastic weight loss, the deaths of those around him, the POW British doctor frequently beaten for his efforts to keep the sick from going to work - and many other terrible experiences."--BOOK JACKET.