Hanns and Rudolf
Author: Thomas Harding
Genre: Historical Non-fiction
Released: 03 September 2013
Rating:
Two men, two stories. Rudolf Höss rose through the Nazi ranks to become Commandant of Auschwitz, overseeing the deaths of over a million people. Hanns Alexander was a German-Jewish refugee who fled to Britain and became a war crimes investigator tasked with hunting Höss down. A meticulous dual biography that traces both lives with unflinching detail, culminating in a final confrontation that carries the weight of history.
Really enjoyed this one. It was fascinating and morbid in equal measure. The detail that Harding shares of around the holocaust and what the Jews went through is bone chilling.
I knew about the holocaust and the concentration camps, of course, but I didn't know the details of how the camps when from inception, to ultimately murdering millions of Jews. Using Höss' diaries, Harding is able to give a unique insight to how this occurred.
The lion's share of the book focusses on the background of Höss and Alexander, and how their stories ultimately converge, which I liked as it gave an insight into Höss' mind and how he ended up doing what he did.
The irony of Höss being caught by a German Jew is very satisfying, I must say.
Overall, a very thought provoking and powerful book.
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