The Tunnels: Escapes Under the Berlin Wall and the Historic Films the JFK White House Tried to Kill - Greg Mitchell (Book)

Title: The Tunnels: Escapes Under the Berlin Wall and the Historic Films the JFK White House Tried to Kill

Author: Greg Mitchell

Publisher: Crown Publishing Group

Publication Date: October 18, 2016

The Tunnels is a gripping non-fiction account that delves into the daring escape attempts from East Berlin during the Cold War. In the summer of 1962, a year after the Berlin Wall’s construction, a group of young West Germans risked imprisonment, torture, and death to dig tunnels beneath the Wall, aiming to rescue friends, family, and strangers trapped in East Berlin.

Greg Mitchell’s narrative brings to life the extraordinary individuals involved in these escape efforts: a legendary cyclist targeted by East German authorities, an American student from Stanford, an engineer who would later contribute to the Channel Tunnel, and a young mother who fled with her baby and later married one of the tunnelers. The book also uncovers the involvement of U.S. television networks NBC and CBS, which funded separate tunnel projects in exchange for exclusive filming rights. Their actions drew the attention of the Kennedy administration, which, concerned about escalating tensions with the Soviet Union, attempted to suppress the resulting documentaries.

Critics have praised The Tunnels for its meticulous research and compelling storytelling. The New York Times described it as “a stark reminder that barriers can never cut people off entirely but only succeed in driving them underground.” Author Frederick Forsyth remarked, “Every hour of my year in East Berlin - 1963/64 - the escape tunnels beneath our feet were being dug. This is their story: those who dug them, those who used them and those who betrayed them to the Stasi. Fascinating - and it is all true.”

The Tunnels offers a thrilling exploration of Cold War history, highlighting the courage of individuals who defied oppressive regimes and the complex interplay between media, politics, and human rights.