Campaign for the American Reader: Pg. 69: "A Perfect Hell"

John Nadler is the author of Searching for Sofia and, more recently, A Perfect Hell: The True Story of the Black Devils, the Forefathers of the Special Forces.

I asked John to apply the "page 69 test" to his book. Here is what he reported:

When first hearing of Marshal's page 69 formula for book appreciation, I wondered if the symbolism was spicily sexual. You know, a reference to the position the French call Soixante-Neuf, and the Kansas legislature calls Statutory Sodomy.

Of course, page 69 is an infinitely sensible point to delve into any book since it is almost always the story's point of no return.

But when delving into my own book, the WWII narrative history A Perfect Hell I realized I was right the first time. I had hoped that my page 69 would be a moment of deadly decision on the part of my characters: the men of the First Special Service Force (FSSF), the U.S. commando unit history would remember as the Black Devils and the pioneers of today's Special Forces.

In fact, page 69, true to the best French calculus, described a fanciful moment of romance between four characters during a summer of one of the most terrible years of 20th Century.

1942: a new unit promising extreme danger and early entry to combat is created, and volunteers are called across the U.S. and Canada. Two young men, Joe Glass and Lorin Waling – the former, a Great Lakes seaman; the latter, a prairie farm boy – answer the call, and end up in Helena, Montana, where the secret unit (and 2000 fellow commandos) is based. Helena's town fathers adopt the young warriors. And so do the daughters. On page 69 the fast wartime friends, would-be commandos Joe and Lorin, sneak from their beds, barracks, and base, and rendezvous with their two local girlfriends.

The women, Dorothy and Steffie, have driven a car, headlights darkened, to the rear of the base where there are only snakes, coolies, and a limitless nightscape of prairie. They avoid capture from a sentry by hiding under a blanket on the floorboards until the boys arrive. And when Joe and Lorin get there, the two couples drive to Helena for an AWOL night on the town.

This evening of desertion is the start of a romance that would survive a world war and last a lifetime.

Thanks to John for the input.

Read the prologue to the Canadian edition and the prologue to the US edition.

Among the praise for A Perfect Hell:

"[A] superb popular history.... This solidly researched and smartly written volume is a fitting tribute to a unique group of warriors."
—Publishers Weekly

“Well-written, simply crafted and deeply evocative, Nadler's blend of storytelling and research puts a human face on the war, one not often seen in military histories. In A Perfect Hell, the anonymous soldiers become men, with their own stories and memories.”
—Winnipeg Free Press

“A Perfect Hell is a solid addition to the many histories on Canada’s proud war tradition, and a darn good read about the outsized acts of decent, ordinary men.” –Toronto Star