THE STORY OF BILLY YOUNG

By Anthony Hill   (LWH)

This is a wonderful biography of one of our youngest soldiers, at age 15, to be imprisoned by the Japanese in some of their notorious prisons. The story begins with Billy growing up in Sydney and Tasmania, when at an early age he became an orphan. From surviving on little food and money and selling items at Paddy's market in Sydney he decided joining up would give him a job and enough money to make him happy. Little did he know that he would be sent to Singapore, captured, and spend most of his teenage years in prison, experiencing some of the worst conditions and treatment imaginable. He was sent to Changi prison and then to Sandakan in Borneo, then after escaping he was recaptured and sent to the notorious Outram Road prison in Singapore, where he spent much of the next two years in solitary confinement.

It is a chilling account of what Billy had to endure, during some of the worst human degradation possible, and his extraordinary will to survive, along with the importance of mateship and comradship. Billy Young had previously written about his life, but Anythony Hill has expanded and brought the story to life. It includes photos and paintings that Billy has painted himself depicting some of his memories of his time in prison. Apart from the torture that the men had to endure it was an inspirational story.