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This is Really War

The Heroic True Story of Twelve Navy Nurse POWs in WWII

Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, PhD, author, journalist, and educator, will present the true story of twelve U.S. Navy nurses whose courage and bravery saved thousands of lives during World War II.

Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, PhD, author, journalist, and educator, will present the true story of twelve U.S. Navy nurses that were taken as prisoners of war in the Philippines by the Empire of Japan in 1941 during World War II. The nurses were soon transferred to a civilian concentration camp in Manila. Under the direction of Chief Nurse Laura Cobb, the nurses maintained rank and provided tireless care to thousands of inmates. In 1943, the nurses bravely agreed to transfer to a countryside prison camp where they would be the only medical care providers. The heroism of these twelve nurses saved thousands of lives.

Emilie's work has appeared in The New York Times, National Geographic, The Atlantic, and USA Today. She is a regular contributor to Discover magazine.  She is the author of three nonfiction books including "This is Really War: The Incredible True Story of a Navy Nurse POW in the Occupied Philippines" (Chicago Review, 2019). 

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