VON RYAN'S EXPRESS by David Wesfheimer. 327 pages. Doubleday. $4.95.
The British and American officers interned in Campo Concentramento Prigionieri di Guerra 202 went about filthy and half-naked, and one chap kept a glass eye stuck in his navel so he could stare unblinkingly at the guards. Life was desperately droll, but then Colonel Joseph Ryan arrives and the fun departs. As senior-officer-in-captivity, Ryan sets about shaping the men up for the day of their great escape. "I do expect military haircuts," he begins, and the troops get restless. "Von Ryan," one agile wit...
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