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The Houdini Club
The Epic Journey and Daring Escapes of the First Army Rangers of WWII
Table of Contents
About The Book
This thrilling, personality-driven account of the first United States Army Ranger battalions follows an extraordinary band of American soldiers from their rugged Ranger training to their battles in North Africa, France, Sicily, and mainland Italy, and (for some) finally back to American shores. Drawing upon unprecedented historical research, military-service expertise, exclusive interviews, and personal correspondence with original Greatest Generation Army Rangers, The Houdini Club is an uncensored work of military history, encapsulating both the history and personal drama of World War II Special Forces warfare.
From the abundant tales of glory to the tales of misery, fear, and murderous intent, the utter exhaustion and thrill of combat, and the devastating final battle that all but destroyed them, The Houdini Club puts readers on the ground alongside the Rangers who made victory in Europe possible, portraying in gritty detail the lives and acts of one of the American military’s greatest collection of men.
Product Details
- Publisher: Diversion Books (June 18, 2025)
- Length: 352 pages
- ISBN13: 9781635769784
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Raves and Reviews
Praise for The Houdini Club:
“A propulsive account of the 1st Ranger battalion . . . With a warts-and-all approach, Bahmanyar brings to vivid life Darby’s elite soldiers, from ‘soft-spoken’ executive officer Herman Dammer . . . to Second Lt. Charles Shunstrom, recalled by his comrades as both ‘the bravest of the brave’ and a ‘psychopath.’ . . . Bahmanyar also spotlights the (astonishingly frequent) escapes made by Darby’s rangers from POW camps, which got them nicknamed the ‘Houdini Club.’ This will enthrall WWII history buffs.”
—Publishers Weekly
Praise for Mir Bahmanyar:
“For those readers looking to become SEALs, I suggest you read this book cover to cover and then read it again…. For those readers just wanting to gain knowledge and an understanding about the SEALs and the SEAL community, there is no other book you need to read.”
–Marcus Luttrell, U.S. Navy SEAL, and New York Times bestselling author of Lone Survivor
“In the tradition of soldier classics like All Quiet on the Western Front, Nicholas Moore and his co-author Mir Bahmanyar unfold Moore’s raw war story of a decade of over 1,000 special operations missions and a dozen deployments into the war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan. Run to the Sound of the Guns is the engrossing drama of Army Rangers—the training, the fighting, the brotherhood of young men in combat, of high adventure and darkest tragedy.”
–Charles W. Sasser, U.S. Army Special Forces, Author, Association of the United States Army
"Ugly, brutal, and straightforward. . . . "
–Matt Eversmann, Author of Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America’s Bravest Warriors with James Patterson, and Editor of The Battle of Mogadishu
“A riveting foxhole level view of more than a decade of modern war. . . . [A] candid, but mature, account that is as entertaining as it is informative.”
–General (Ret.) Stanley McChrystal
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- Book Cover Image (jpg): The Houdini Club Hardcover 9781635769784