In the Non-Fiction Corner With Lauren: The Immortals

In the Non-Fiction Corner With Lauren

The Immortals by Steven T. Collis is not your ordinary World War II novel. Collis looks into the lives of four chaplains that became heroes in the midst of war. The writing style is unique in that it is able to switch from person to person seamlessly and weave together a beautiful story that is entertaining as well thought-provoking. These men deserve to be hailed as heroes, and the author does a great job at honoring their memory.

I thoroughly enjoyed the beginning of this book, and getting to know each man through their background story. Their heroics are much more meaningful when you think of all the sacrifice it took to get to where they were that fateful day. Each man had a unique life experience that prepared him to help others in their time of need. For example, Alex is treated unfairly in the US because he is a Jew. He questions how he and others are going to fight for the lives of Jewish people in Germany when they aren’t even treated fairly in these soldier's home country. Even though each of these men were from different religious and cultural backgrounds, they joined together when they needed to most and set aside their differences for greater good. The end of the book is particularly touching, and if you enjoy WWII stories, it is one you don’t want to miss.

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Here's the back copy:

The celebrated story of the Immortal Chaplains is now joined for the first time in print by the largely untold story of another hero of the sinking of the Dorchester: Charles Walter David, Jr. was a young Black petty officer aboard a Coast Guard cutter traveling with the convoy who bravely dived into the glacial water over and over again, even with hypothermia setting in, to try to rescue the men the chaplains had first helped and inspired to never give up. Through his efforts, he joins the Chaplains as one of “The Immortals.”

Thoroughly researched and told in an engrossing non-fiction narrative, the book alternates between accounts told from the perspective of the Nazi U-boat captain and his crew (as found in their journals and later interviews), and the hunted—the men of the American convoy. Using his expertise as a law professor specializing in religious freedom and constitutional law, the author, Steven T. Collis, also paints a thought-provoking portrait of religious life in America during wartime and how American views of faith affected the chaplains and the men they served.

Page-turning and inspiring, The Immortals explores the power of faith and religious conviction and powerfully narrates the lives of five heroic men who believed in something greater than themselves, living lives of service and sacrifice for their country and their fellow man.