Prisoners of the Sumatra Railay Narratives of History and Memory [Hardcover]

Prisoners of the Sumatra Railwayis the first book to detail the experiences of British former prisoners of war (POWs) who were forced to construct a railway across Sumatra during the Japanese occupation. It is also the first study to be undertaken of the life-writing of POWs held captive by the Japanese during the Second World War, and the transgenerational responses in Britain to this period of captivity.

This book brings to light previously unpublished materials, including:

? Exceptionally rare and detailed diaries, notebooks and letters from the railway

? Memoirs from Sumatra, including detailed recollections and post-war statements written by key personnel on the railway, such as Medical Officers and interpreters

? Remarkable original artwork created by POWs on Sumatra

? Contemporaneous photographs taken inside the camps

Employing theories of life-writing, memory and war representation, including transgenerational transmission, Lizzie Oliver focuses particularly on what these documents can tell us about how former POWs tried to share, preserve and make sense of their experiences. It is a wholly original study that is of great value to Second World War scholars and anyone interested in 20th-century Southeast Asian history or war and memory.

List of Figures
List of Maps
Preface: The Man in the Photograph
Acknowledgements
Note on Text
List of Abbreviations

Introduction
1. Building the Sumatra Railway
2. Writing the Sumatra Railway
3. Guard Your Tongue
4. The Body of the Prisoner
5. Aftermath
Afterword

Appendix: Research Resources
Selected Bibliography
Index

Prisoners of the Sumatra Railwayoffers a much-needed study on the experiences and memories of the British prisoners of war (POWs) on the nearly forgotten Sumatra Railway & Olivers book provides flS>