Hope and Honor
Major General Sid Shachnow was more than a highly decorated Vietnam War veteran—receiving two silver and three bronze stars with V for Valor. He survived a crucible far crueler than the jungles of Vietnam: Nazi occupied Eastern Europe. As a child, he spent three years in the notorious Kovno Concentration Camp.\ But his next journey took him to America, where he worked his way through school and eventually enlisted in the US Army. He volunteered for U.S. Special Forces, and served proudly for...
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Major General Sid Shachnow is more than a highly decorated Vietnam War veteran with two Silver and three Bronze Stars with V for Valor. He survived a crucible far crueler than the jungles of Vietnam: Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe, spending three years in the notorious Kovno concentration camp as a child. At age ten, with nothing but rags on his back, he was finally able to flee that hellhole. Most of those he left behind died.After returning to his home in Lithuania, now occupied by the Soviets, and finding it unbearable, Shachnow and his family decided to head west, often on foot, across Europe to the U.S. zone in Germany, where they found refuge. To earn a living in the grim aftermath of war, he smuggled black market contraband for American GIs. His next journey was to America, where he worked his way through school and enlisted in the U.S. Army, volunteering for U.S. Special Forces, where he served for thirty-two years. His primary goal was to save others from the indignities he had endured and the deadly fate he so narrowly escaped.From Vietnam to the Middle East to the Berlin Wall, Sydney Shachnow served in Special Operations. He grew as Special Forces grew, receiving both a master's and a doctoral degree. He traveled the world, rising to major general, responsible for American Special Forces everywhere, but the lessons of Kovno stayed with him wherever he turned, wherever he soldiered. Hope and Honor is a powerful and dramatic memoir that shows how the will to live—-so painfully refined in the fires of that long-ago death camp—-was forged, at last, into truth of soul and wisdom of the heart. Publishers Weekly Part Holocaust memoir and part U.S. Army career narrative, this tale of an extraordinary life begins with young Schaja Shachnowski, a Lithuanian Jew, watching the Nazis march into his town. Taken with his family to a concentration camp, they survived by bribery, quick wits, the help of the Jewish camp police and the occasional assistance of local Lithuanians. Schaja was impressed by American GIs and remembered them after he and his family were eventually admitted to the U.S.: wanting to marry a Christian girl whom his family loathed and also unable to find a decent job, he enlisted in the army in 1955. This began a 40-year career, covered in the book's second half, that ended with him a much decorated major general, having spent most of his career in Special Forces, eventually becoming its commanding general. He served two tours in Vietnam, commanded the Berlin Brigade and fought for an enlarged role for Special Forces. He is also still married to his boyhood love, a remarkably enduring person in her own right. Schachnow's life certainly demonstrates the title qualities, as well as high professional integrity and a ferocious will to survive. His telling of it is not always graceful, but his story comes through clearly and with conviction. Agent, Elizabeth Winick for McIntosh & Otis Inc. (Oct.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
Acknowledgments9Prologue13Part IInto the Fire (1941-1945)15Part IIThe Road to Freedom (1945-1955)121Part IIIThe American Dream (1955-1994)219Epilogue393Appendix395
\ From the Publisher"From surviving the insanity of Hitler's holocaust to becoming commander of U.S. Special Forces, General Shachnow has accomplished the incredible. His is a story of hope, honor, heroism—-one that should be read by everyone who enjoys freedom . . . or longs for it."—W. E. B. Griffin on Hope and Honor\ "A gripping story of a warrior's survival and ultimate victory against all odds."—General Norman Schwarzkopf on Hope and Honor\ "A gripping memoir of personal tragedy, perserverence, and triumph. Very few soldiers achieve the rank of Major General in the U.S. Army Special Forces. That a survivor of the Kovno concentration camp could do so says great things about the U.S. Army. . . . Major General Shachnow is a great American who serves as an example to every American that freedom does not come free."—Paul Wolfowitz on Hope and Honor\ "Absolutely harrowing, as vivid and frightening as any Holocaust account I've read. His Special Forces experiences in Vietnam are also astonishing. General Shachnow had a vital role in shaping America's Special Forces into the tool it is today, at the precise time it is needed."—Larry Bond, author of the New York Times bestseller Red Phoenix on Hope and Honor\ "An inspiring story wonderfully told, General Shachnow's memoir is as deeply moving as it is fascinating. His journey from a childhood amid the Holocaust to become one of the U.S. Army's most effective and visionary generals is at once a testament to his personal courage, to human resilience and to America's greatness."—Ralph Peters, author of Beyond Baghdad and Fighting For The Future on Hope and Honor"What a book! Must reading! More riveting than any novel!"—-Thomas Fleming on Hope and Honor\ "Sid Shachnow's life is an inspiring story for us all. . . . His powerful narrative is a riveting read, moving and informative."—-Fred Franks, General U.S. Army (ret.), co-author with Tom Clancy of the New York Times #1 bestseller Into the Storm: A Study in Command on Hope and Honor\ \ \ \ \ \ W.E.B. GriffinA story of hope, honor, heroism—-one that should be read by everyone who enjoys freedom . . . or longs for it.\ \ \ Norman SchwarzkopfA gripping story of a warrior's survival and ultimate victory against all odds.\ \ \ \ \ Paul WolfowitzA gripping memoir of personal tragedy, perserverence, and triumph.\ \ \ \ \ Larry BondAbsolutely harrowing, as vivid and frightening as any Holocaust account I've read.\ \ \ \ \ author of Beyond Baghdad and Fighting For The FutureAn inspiring story wonderfully told, General Shachnow's memoir is as deeply moving as it is fascinating.\ \ \ \ \ Thomas FlemingWhat a book! Must reading! More riveting than any novel!\ \ \ \ \ co-author with Tom Clancy of the New York Times #1 bestseller Into the StormSid Shachnow's life is an inspiring story for us all....His powerful narrative is a riveting read, moving and informative.\ \
