A lost world man eating tribesmen lush andimpenetrable jungles stranded American fliers one of them a dame withgreat gams for heaven s sake a startling rescue mission This is atrue story made in heaven for a writer as talented as Mitchell Zuckoff Whew what an utterly compelling and deeplysatisfying read Simon Winchester author of Atlantic Award winning former Boston Globe reporter Mitchell Zuckoffunleashes the exhilarating untold story of an extraordinary World War IIrescue mission where a plane crash in the South Pacific plunged a trio of U S military personnel into a land that time forgot Fans of Hampton Sides Ghost Soldiers Marcus Luttrell s Lone Survivor and David Grann s The Lost Cityof Z will be captivated by Zuckoff s masterfullyrecounted all true story of danger daring determination and discovery injungle clad New Guinea during the final days of WWII Former Boston Globe reporter Zuckoff unleashes the exhilarating untold story of an extraordinary World War II rescue mission A plane crash in the South Pacific plunges a trio of U S military personnel into the unknown land of jungle clad New Guinea On May 13 1945 a would be pleasure tour for twenty four U S Army servicemen and WACs turned into an unforgettable battle for survival when their plane crashed in the mysterious New Guinean valley known as Shangri La Only three emerged from the wreckage Emotionally devastated and badly injured they faced certain death unless they braved a harrowing hike down the mountainsidea journey into the unknown that would lead them to a primitive tribe of superstitious natives who had never before seen a white manor woman On May 13 1945 twenty four American servicemen and WACs boarded a transport plane for a sightseeing trip over Shangri La a beautiful and mysterious valley deep within the jungle covered mountains of Dutch New Guinea Unlike the peaceful Tibetan monks of James Hilton s bestselling novel Lost Horizon this Shangr