Description
In 1940, Private Raymond Bailey, a 21-year-old Vauxhall Motors apprentice serving with the 1st Kensington Regiment, was captured in Northern France and became a Nazi prisoner of war. But he wouldn't remain one for long.
The Longest Walk Home is the incredible account of his daring 2,000-mile escape across Europe and over the Pyrenees to the safety of British Gibraltar, and home in time for Christmas. Along the way, Ray has nerve-shredding encounters with German soldiers and the Spanish Civil Guard. Often he is exhausted and starving. All that keeps him going is his youthful energy, unfailing optimism, and the kindness of strangers who risk their own safety to help him.
Ray's escape is remarkable, but so too is his memoir. It was written within a year or two of the events it describes, when Ray was just 22. Despite Ray's obvious writing talent, it was lost for decades until it was discovered at auction in an unmarked box of World War II memorabilia by David Wilkins. Ray's is a true, unheard voice, and one of the last from this time.