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Hanns and Rudolf: The True Story of the German Jew Who Tracked Down and Caught the Kommandant of Auschwitz

Hanns and Rudolf: The True Story of the German Jew Who Tracked Down and Caught the Kommandant of Auschwitz - Thomas   Harding Fascinating and at times deeply disturbing but a book that will stay with me for a long time.

This is my second book by the author Thomas Harding having read and really enjoyed [b:The House by the Lake|26210499|The House by the Lake|Thomas Harding|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1461946175s/26210499.jpg|44363048][bc:The House by the Lake|26210499|The House by the Lake|Thomas Harding|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1461946175s/26210499.jpg|44363048] I decided to try another of his books and this one sounded fascinating.

While attending his great uncle’s funeral in 2006 Thomas Harding discovers that Hanns Alexander, whose Jewish family fled to Britain from Nazi Germany in the 1930s, was responsibable for hunting down and capturing the notorious and ruthless commandant of Autwitz Rudolf Höss at the end of World War Two. In this engaging account based on archival materials, family letters, tape recordings, and interviews with survivors, Harding takes us through the two men's lives and we lean a great deal about both and their backgrounds. This was probably the most fascinating part of the book for me as I thoroughly enjoyed reading the early life's of these two men and their families.

I loved the fact that the writing is clear and concise and Harding has a story to tell and does so in a fashion that is easy to follow and entertaining for the reader. I had come across Höss in a number of accounts before and while I knew he was a a monster this books enlightens us to his early career and his family which was new material for me. Hanns Alexander a German Jew living in England Is the other protagonist of this book and his early life and family and how he became a Nazi Hunter makes for entertaing reading. The book contains Family trees, photos and maps which for me is really important when reading books on historical figures.

This was just the book I needed to take me out of my reading slump and while I may have read a great deal about this period in history I still find something new and educational in every book I pick up. A book that entertained, educated and at times make me gasp out loud is the reason this one gets the 5 * treatment from me.