The purpose of the German submarine attack was to destroy an American military base on one of the main islands.

It was February, 1942, when the Germans attacked.

The possibility of a German attack on his island terrified Phillip.

Since there was no school because of the Germans, Phillip's mother gave him permission to go down to the old fort and watch for submarines.

Phillip found the fort, which was usually like something out of a storybook, filled with soldiers, rifles, and machine guns.

The German attack on the other islands had not caused much damage.

Holland had been captured by the Nazis, but Henrik still believed the Dutch navy would come to the islands.

An army officer ordered Phillip and Henrik to leave the Queen Emma bridge because they could easily be killed by a torpedo

The boys became frightened when they realized there wasn't a single ship on the sea.

Phillip didn't tell his mother the truth about where he and Henrik had been.

The governor of the Netherlands's West Indies had appealed to Washington for help in defending the islands.

It was unusual for Phillip's mother to be nervous and concerned about his safety.

At the refinery, Phillip's father worked on the program to increase the production of aviation gas.

Because of his dad's job, Phillip and his father had never done a lot of things together.

Phillip and his mother planned to sleep on the second floor of the house as usual.

The islanders had no weapons to use against the German submarines.

Royal Dutch Shell had borrowed Phillip's father, who was an expert in refineries and gasoline production, from his American company.

When his family moved from their home in Virginia to the Caribbean, Phillip was only seven.

Phillip's mother loved the island and the different types of people who lived or visited there.