You’ll Die in Singapore

by Charles McCormack

Weakened by hunger, thirst and ill-treatment, Charles McCormac, a World War Two prisoner-of-war in Japanese-occupied Singapore, knew that if he did not escape he'd die.

With sixteen others he broke out of Pasir Panjang camp and began the two-thousand-mile escape from Singapore to Australia.

Genres: Nonfiction, World War II, History, War, Memoir

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1957

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read a fair few WW2 books, but none have centered in Asia or featured the Japanese, so I was eager to read this memoir and especially because I've been to Singapore and like reading books on places I've visited.

I'm ashamed to say I thought the war mainly focussed on Europe, but I was wrong.

This is an interesting read about a British solider captured by the Japanese in Singapore and his escape to Australia.

I found this quite an eye opener.

Four stars.

[Pamela Huxtable · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't really know much about the Pacific war in WWII. The invasion of Singapore as told in this memoir is a horrific, unprecedented event, bewildering to the Europeans in the city.

McCormac's story is a brutal account of his escape from a POW camp in Singapore and his subsequent trek through Malaysia. He and his companions try to make their way back to the Allies, narrowly avoiding Japanese patrols and troops.

The author and his companions suffer illness, hunger, thirst, and all the dangers the jungle can throw at them. Their encounters with the people they meet are just as harrowing as the jungle dangers - can they trust the Javanese and Malaysians they meet? Are the villages helping the Japanese? Why are they being helped - is there an ulterior motive?

You'll Die in Singapore was a revelation to me, giving me a personal viewpoint of the war that affected me deeply. The author's style is blunt and clipped, but very descriptive at the same time. While reading, I felt anxious and fearful for McCormac and had to put the book down a few times to calm down.

[Stephanie Lin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this book because the author was a prisoner under the Japanese in Singapore and the book explains everything of how he escapes with his friends to Australia and surviving in the jungle with no food and water. The author describes the events that he was in with lots of smilies, metaphors, descriptions etc, how he felt and acted in that situation. The book has diagrams of the escape route he and his friends used to get to Australia with lots of labels to label everywhere he went to. This book is great to read because it shows and tells us how people in the war felt and how they survived in World War 2. I would recommend this book to my friends who really like survival and adventure stories.

[Wenny Wibisono · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an really awesome book that presents bravery and risk of life. This book tells about a group of men who escaped from the prison camp in Singapore and used no map and no compass and escaped from Singapore to Indonesia to Australia.

Based on a true story!

[Matthew Pennell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my normal sort of reading material - it came in a "surprise book" bundle from Etsy - but this was actually very readable; McCormac writes well, and there's only a very small amount of the era's thoughtless racism contained in the relatively short book.

[Gemma Searle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was very interested to read this I have visited Singapore and the war memorial there to look for my grandfather’s cousins name. It was interesting to read about someone who survived the battle and escaped Singapore

[GrabAsia · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible book about an incredible story. There are many books about the fall of Malaya - as it was called then - and Singapore, but the ones I like best are stories of individual units, or even better, of individuals. In this, the author recounts the story of his escape from a POW camp in Singapore. In the introduction he mentions that only one other person besides him reaches their final destination, but what happens to the others, where the 2 survivors eventually reached and what happens to his wife and unborn child must be discovered by reading this great book. Though written 12 years after it all started, the writing is vivid - seems like fiction or as if the events occured yesterday. I wonder what is the story of the people who helped them along the way.

[shanna washington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing survival story and pow escapee

Loved this book. Could not stop reading . The sheer acts of bravery and survival Charles McCormac displayed asre lessons to us all. Really makes you feel as though you are in the jungle with him running for your life . RIP Charles McCormac , you are a legend and an inspiration

[Vien Guenther · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story of survival. Others would have died from the unknown challenges they faced - hunger and thirst most of all - but courage and the will to survive was what pushed these two men to freedom. Understanding the local language helped.

We read mostly about the war in Europe but what happened in the Pacific during WWII was equally heinous. War is ugly and for what purpose?

[Marilyn Silva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very smart guy

Really exciting and amazing how clever and level-headed the guy was. It was also early in the war when the Japanese weren't as careful. He was so astute. A really exciting story

[Jo Locke · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating account of survival under the Japanese WWII

This is a fascinating insight into the Japanese invasion of Singapore and what life under their rule was like in the POW camps. Their escape was brave and brilliant. A very worthwhile read.

[Jo Tant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given this book to read when I wanted to know more about the war in the Pacific during WW2. This is a really good account of a WW2 escape that also happens to be a great story.

[Dave Gevaux · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brutal and gripping page turner. Shame about the typos.

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So brilliant!!

[Stuart · Rating 4 out of 5]

An shocking yet amazing true story.

[S. Jeyran Main · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Healing of a Psychotherapist: A Journey of Rebellion, Reflection, and Redemption” by Charles McCormack is a profoundly moving and deeply introspective memoir that takes readers on a journey through the author’s tumultuous life, both personal and professional. McCormack’s candid narrative is an exploration of how an unhappy childhood can shape our adult lives and impact our ability to find joy and meaning in our successes. McCormack writes with unflinching honesty, sharing his struggles with vulnerability and courage. His story, while unique in its details, resonates with a universal theme—the enduring impact of our formative years and the complex journey toward healing and self-discovery. McCormack’s narrative is not just a recounting of events but a reflection on the lessons learned and the wisdom gained through a lifetime of experiences.

One of the most poignant aspects of the book is the advice given to McCormack by his mother on her deathbed, urging him to “have a good life.” This moment becomes a turning point for McCormack, setting him on a path to understand what it means to truly live well. His journey of rebellion, reflection, and, ultimately, redemption is not only a personal tale but also an invitation for readers to embark on their own path of introspection and healing.

McCormack’s professional insights as a psychotherapist add depth to his narrative, providing a unique perspective on the process of self-healing. His experiences and observations offer valuable lessons on resilience, self-acceptance, and the transformative power of confronting and embracing one’s past.

Overall, “Healing of a Psychotherapist” is not just a memoir but a powerful testament to the human capacity for growth and change. McCormack’s journey inspires hope and offers guidance to anyone grappling with the shadows of their past. This book is a compelling read for anyone interested in personal development, psychology, or simply a story of human resilience and the quest for a meaningful life.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb first person account of a mass escape from a Japanese POW camp in Singapore in WW II. I had never heard of this event, but it became all too real while reading this story. The six month two thousand mile journey from Singapore to Australia through the jungles of Sumatra and Java was incredible. The courage not just of the dwindling band of escapees, but the local natives who risked their lives to help these strangers from the Japanese was remarkable. I guarantee you will come out of this story inspired, but also haunted by the brutality of the Japanese who treated all, especially the Europeans with such contempt and cruelty. One of the best escape books i have ever read.

[Simon Eadie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If Unbroken or The Hiding Place didn’t already, You’ll Die in Singapore proves that nothing gets to me like these WWII concentration camp books. A part of me hates reading them but another part finds them extremely interesting.

MacCormac is a good author and recounts his story with impressively small details. There were at least 10 typos I caught but that’s not a big deal.

It’s hard not to recommend to anyone who’s a fan of these types of books and I thought it brought a light to a very unique side of the war.

[Ian Yates · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating story of unbelievable horror and human suffering. I am sure it was even worse than portrayed here. It’s amazing what humans can endure! Note to the publishers: for fucks sake, try using spellcheck!! I’ve never read a book with so many spelling mistakes, omitted words and typos. It just detracted from a wonderful story of personal triumph.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting account from a little-known chapter of WW2. McCormac's experiences are fascinating though the book does have quite a lot of typos. Some of the details are also not quite consistent, such as saying they set off at dusk, but then they walk for hours in the daylight. So, it could have used more thorough editing. Overall though, this was well worth the read.

[Gill Schell · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8 stars : An amazing account of a POW's escape from Japanese-occupied Singapore, and the hardships he endured over 5 months to reach Australia. I feel that more factual detail about the escape and less literary description would have made this account work better.

[Traceyjford · Rating 3 out of 5]

These survival stories are always fascinating and hard to imagine…but this one ended so abruptly. I wanted more details on being reunited with his wife and daughter who must have assumed he was dead after all those months.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read. A truly remarkable escape.

[Neil · Rating 5 out of 5]

An ultimate escape reality that will have you spellbound for its duration. Cleverly written, and proves for me at least that nonfiction trumps fiction just about every time. A real winner.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow what a story - a real testament to the will to survive against all odds and indeed against the odds

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible story. This edition ruined by numerous publishing mistakes.

[user7878787892 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredible story, gave perspective on what parts of East Asia were like during WWII

[W J · Rating 4 out of 5]

good biography told well

[José Van Rosmalen]

In het Nederlands: Singapore zal je graf zijn. Prismaboek 231

[Haley Kilgour · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to start by saying just how eloquently this book was written. It’s amazing how well McCormac was able to write about this experience and make the reader feel both horrified… yet not.

As someone who enjoys WWII POW memoirs, this is the first one I’ve read set in Southeast Asia, and it’s startling just how different the story is. There are no delusions that the Japanese abide by the Geneva convention, but the area through which the men must escape is decidedly more difficult and deadly, but they also cannot blend in with the locals.

This story is gripping and opens your eyes to not only what a man can do when motivated, but to the kindness that strangers will show unprompted.

I highly recommend this book. It’s both powerful and educational.