ABSTRACT
Australian servicemen, as well as nurses and civilians, were taken as prisoners of Axis forces in both Europe and the Pacific. In any area where Australians became captives of war, books, music, concerts and drama played an important part in providing the spiritual and intellectual nourishment necessary for survival. In Europe, the main enemy was boredom; in the Pacific, mental resilience had to be nurtured alongside surviving great physical hardship. By contrast, POWs in the Pacific were often reduced to a more fundamental fight for survival. Over 22,000 Australians became prisoners of the Japanese within three months of the beginning of the war with Japan. Soon after the outbreak of war, in February 1940, a meeting was held to initiate an Educational Books Scheme for Prisoners of War through the British Red Cross and Order of St John of Jerusalem. For women and civilians, the experience of being a prisoner of war was shared with soldiers.
