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Charles Dukes

Born: 1923 in Georgetown, Illinois
Pen Name: None

Connection to Illinois: Dukes has lived in Georgetown, Illinois all of his life.

Biography: Charlie Dukes (Co. L, 413th Inf. 104th Timberwolf Div.) was one of the last documented World War II prisoners of war (POW) to be repatriated at the end of the war. He reached Allied lines at the Elbe river on May 27, 1945, some 20 days after the end of the war and after escaping from a Russian-controlled camp at Luckenwalde, Germany. He was a prisoner of war of both the Germans and the Russians and managed to escape not once but twice after he was recaptured the first time. He cut the bottom two rows of barbed wire fencing around the camp and crawled across mine fields to freedom. When Dukes finally made it to safety, he learned his weight had dropped from 180 pounds to 109. But the mental anguish was worse than the physical. After he returned home, he had constant nightmares. His wife encouraged him to write a book about his experiences, and he finally agreed. The result was ''Good Morning, but the Nightmares Never End.'' He said that after he sent the book to the publisher, he never had another nightmare. After his discharge from the Army, Dukes finished college and married his college sweetheart, Gracie Schwab, and helped raise their family of two boys and two girls in his native Georgetown, Illinois. Now retired from banking and his own business ventures, this combat veteran and former POW spends his time carrying his message to students in area schools as a 'living link to history.' Emphasizing freedom and self-discipline, he speaks about his experiences, beliefs and convictions, cautioning young people to guard their freedom zealously. Dukes has also opened a World War II museum of memorabilia he has collected over the years.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTaNjnGc0AA Click here] to see Charlie's Central Illinois World War II Stories - Oral History Interview.


Awards:

Primary Audience(s): Adult readers

Website: http://www.talespress.com/goodmorning.html
Charles Dukes on WorldCat : http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=charles+dukes


Selected Titles

Good morning-- :
ISBN: 0964142325 OCLC: 37854355

Tales, Inc., Urbana, Ill. : 1997.

 

 

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