As a young man, Alard Ages survived Nazi-occupied Holland and escaped at the age of 18. He eventually emigrated to Canada, where he lives on the west coast of British Columbia. For many years, Alard has taken time away from his professional life as an oceanographer to lecture high school students about the effects of oil spills on the marine environment. During these lectures, students and teachers were eager to hear of Alard's experiences during WWII. It is their enthusiasm that inspires this memoir, "Guarded by Angels." It was not a guardian angel who had guided Alard to freedom. The book is a tale of sympathetic countrymen, of total strangers who advised him on routes to take and who courageously helped him through danger. It is a tale of German guards who should have stopped and arrested him but who didn't. It is a tale of courage and resistance through the eyes of a young man during some of the world's darkest hours.