No Better Friend: One Man, One Dog, and Their Extraordinary Story of Courage and Survival in WWII

by Robert Weintraub

Overview

The extraordinary tale of survival and friendship between a man and a dog in World War II.

Flight technician Frank Williams and Judy, a purebred pointer, met in the most unlikely of places: an internment camp in the Pacific. Judy was a fiercely loyal dog, with a keen sense for who was friend and who was foe, and the pair's relationship deepened throughout their captivity. When the prisoners suffered beatings, Judy would repeatedly risk her life to intervene. She survived bombings and other near-death experiences and became a beacon not only for Frank but for all the men, who saw in her survival a flicker of hope for their own.

Judy's devotion to those she was interned with was matched by their love for her, which helped keep the men and their dog alive despite the ever-present threat of death by disease or the rifles of the guards. At one point, deep in despair and starvation, Frank contemplated killing himself and the dog to prevent either from watching the other die. But both were rescued, and Judy spent the rest of her life with Frank.

She became the war's only official canine POW, and after she died at age fourteen, Frank couldn't bring himself to ever have another dog. Their story -- of an unbreakable bond forged in the worst circumstances -- is one of the great undiscovered sagas of World War II.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316337120
Publisher:	Little, Brown and Company
Publication date:	05/05/2015
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	90,404
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Robert Weintraub is a frequent contributor to the New York Times and Slate and the author of the acclaimed books The House That Ruth Built, The Victory Season, and No Better Friend.

Table of Contents

A Note to the Reader xiii

Prologue 3

Chapter 1 Mascot 7

Chapter 2 Dog Overboard 18

Chapter 3 Shore Leave 26

Chapter 4 War 34

Chapter 5 Amour 40

Chapter 6 War Dogs 47

Chapter 7 Frank 61

Chapter 8 Force Z 72

Chapter 9 Flight 85

Chapter 10 Day of Destruction-February 14, 1942 99

Chapter 11 Posic 117

Chapter 12 Pompong 124

Chapter 13 Sumatra 134

Chapter 14 Padang 156

Chapter 15 Imprisoned 168

Chapter 16 Gloegoer 178

Chapter 17 POW #81-A 197

Chapter 18 Subterfuge 210

Chapter 19 Hell Ship 219

Chapter 20 Reunion 234

Chapter 21 Pakan Baroe 242

Chapter 22 Pig Face and King Kong 258

Chapter 23 Railway of Death 272

Chapter 24 Freedom 283

Chapter 25 Hero 299

Chapter 26 Africa 313

Epilogue 325

Acknowledgments 329

Notes 331

Bibliography 367

Index 377

Editorial Reviews

One of NPR's Maureen Corrigan's Best Books of 2015

New York Times Bestseller


"Weintraub... combines a gritty war story with a warm dog story — readers who like both will think they have gone to heaven.... Where he truly excels, though, is in finding the human dramas, some painful and some inspiring, that figured in Judy's saga."—Kate Tuttle, Boston Globe

"The most inspiring true life account I've ever read of a human-animal bond.... I know this summary makes No Better Friend sound like a canine version of Unbroken. And as a dog lover, I say what could be better than that?"—Maureen Corrigan, NPR

"This is the best dog book since the uber best-selling Marley and Me. But this is no fluffy little dog story. This is a book that will appeal to history buffs — even those who don't love dogs."—Linda Wilson Fuoco, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"No Better Friend personifies the relationship we all aspire to have with our dogs, and takes us on a harrowing journey to a place and time lost in the history books. A must read for every dog or animal lover."—Robin Hutton, author of Sgt. Reckless: America's War Horse

"In his new book, masterful storyteller Robert Weintraub delivers a spellbinding narrative that reclaims the lost history of two most unlikely heroes: a dog named Judy and fellow soldier Frank. Not only a testament to animal intelligence and a much overdue account of canine sacrifice and service, No Better Friend is also an unforgettable read. Soaring and graceful—like Hillenbrand's Unbroken and Seabiscuit—Weintraub's latest is the stuff of which Hollywood blockbusters are built."—Mim Eichler Rivas, author of Beautiful Jim Key: The Lost History of a Horse and a Man Who Changed the World

"We may have a best-seller on our hands with this carefully reported saga... The narrative of their survival thoroughly won over both readers who ordinarily shun animal stories and those who generally prefer to avoid reading books about war."—The Elle's Lettres 2015 Readers' Prize

"Exceptionally well researched and engaging... NO BETTER FRIEND is an inspiring story, and one that both dog lovers and history buffs will embrace."—Deborah Hopkinson, BookPage

"From Shanghai and the Yangtze River to the prison camps of Sumatra, the indomitable English pointer Judy proves to be more than just a survivor, but an inspiration to those who knew her during the ravages of the War in the Pacific. Robert Weintraub provides a meticulous chronicle of the strength and will to survive of both man and dog."—Lisa Rogak, author of Angry Optimist and Dogs of War

An "incredible saga.... Weintraub's paean to a remarkable dog will be seen by animal lovers as affirmation that all pets deserve our respect, because any one of them might save a life (or many lives) and inspire a nation, as Judy did — given the chance."—Barbara Bamberger Scott, BookReporter

"By turns harrowing and heartwarming."—William Hageman, Chicago Tribune

"Robert Weintraub captures the beauty and power of friendship and loyalty between man and animal in this captivating narrative. We'd all be lucky to have a dog like Judy by our sides in our darkest times."—Cate Lineberry, author of The Secret Rescue: An Untold Story of American Nurses and Medics Behind Nazi Lines

"An unusual and moving story of a singular hero among fellow POWs of the Japanese during World War II: a loyal British pointer named Judy. With bite and substance, Slate columnist Weintraub chronicles Judy's incredible life.... Weintraub's research on the prisoners' experiences in the camps is remarkable as he narrates Judy and Frank's heroic tale."—Kirkus

From the Publisher

2015-03-11
An unusual and moving story of a singular hero among fellow POWs of the Japanese during World War II: a loyal British pointer named Judy. With bite and substance, Slate columnist Weintraub (The Victory Season: The End of World War II and the Birth of Baseball's Golden Age, 2013, etc.) chronicles Judy's incredible life. Two British soldiers initially adopted her as a mascot for the HMS Gnat, which patrolled the Yangtze River, and she went on to a highly dangerous and decorated career with her captured crew. As a puppy at the Shanghai Dog Kennels, Judy (adapted from her Chinese given name, Shudi, meaning "peaceful") got kicked around by the invading Japanese sailors, so she learned early on aboard the Gnat who her friends were. The men adored her, and although she was not properly trained as a "gun dog," pointing at game, she became invaluable for her early warnings of danger. In telling Judy's adventures, as she was moved from Singapore to a stint in several miserable Japanese POW camps in the Dutch East Indies, Weintraub delineates the plight of the British sailors who took care of her and kept her safe. With the fall of Singapore in early 1942, a massive evacuation was undertaken in Keppel Harbor, from which many refugee boats took off but few survived the strafing by Japanese planes. Miraculously, Judy survived, but she was captured by the Japanese. In captivity, she met the man who would become her lifetime master, Londoner Frank Williams, formerly of the Merchant Navy, who was too tall to fly but worked in mechanics and radar. By mutual trust and aid, dog and man survived several brutal Japanese camps together, braving hunger, sadistic guards, snakes, and tigers. Weintraub's research on the prisoners' experiences in the camps is remarkable as he narrates Judy and Frank's heroic tale.

Kirkus Reviews