“The Dangerous Shore” is a masterful compilation by best selling author . The book describes the role of a diverse group of unknown and often unheralded people who protected the homefront during World War II.
Sara’s fascination with history began when she was 13 years old and became curious about the story of the USS Indianapolis. Her book about the World War II heavy cruiser and its tragic end would become a New York times bestseller. It is considered by many to be THE authoritative book on the subject.
We discuss some of the stories from The Dangerous Shore that I found most intriguing. In one of the most unusual alliances ever, the American Mafia was recruited to help with the war effort. No strikes took place among the port workers during the entire war and the Mafia also helped mitigate the threats of sabotage and espionage at the ports. Their contacts also provided key intelligence contributing to the invasion of Sicily and, in some cases even had their “soldiers” participating in battles against the Nazis.
Civil Air Patrol volunteers flew more than 244,600 hours on 86,635 missions. These included coastal patrols, rescue and fire watch missions. Some even flew scouting missions into Mexico. Female pilots were a key element of this effort, with women selling sandwiches on the roadsides to pay for their fuel. Twenty-six pilots and ninety planes were lost performing these missions.
We also talk about the significant role that Americans played in developing the Bombe machine that led to the cracking the enigma code. American inventor and engineer Joe Desch has not been given sufficient credit for his efforts in this regard and is one of the more tragic stories related in The Dangerous Shore.
The Dangerous Shore is a superb read for anyone interested in World War II history!