Elkhorn author John Durand writes of growing up with polio in his newly released memoir, Behind Enemy Lines. Durand was six years old when he was stricken with the disease in 1942.
   Once dreaded, paralytic polio annually killed and crippled thousands in America until discovery of the Salk vaccine in the 1950’s.
    “I didn’t realize how much polio shaped my personality and view of the world,” Durand says. “Only when I reached a mid-life crisis did I begin to explore this painful part of my past, and I’m so glad I did. Digging deep did much to heal some old wounds.”
   Because he lived in a small town, Durand was sent to live in a foster home and attend a special school for handicapped children. It was there he developed his fantasies about being trapped behind enemy lines. World War II raged at the time.
   “War news and patriotic fervor were a big part of my growing up,” Durand says.
   Another theme in Durand ’s memoir is his family’s struggle to keep going as his father became more and more incapacitated by cancer.
   “Despite some really hard times, my parents were determined to be self-sufficient. Only much later did I come to admire the character and perseverance they showed. I have regrets about being such a jerk back then."
   After following Durand through his graduation from high school, the memoir skips ahead to the recent appearance of post-polio syndrome and the new challenges posed by this late-life visitation of the disease. His concluding chapter is reflective.
   Advance readers were taken by the humor in the book, as Durand ’s view of his early years is often wry. Behind Enemy Lines includes a photo section that one reader found “fascinating.”