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Title: The Nazi Officer's Wife: How One Jewish Woman Survived the Holocaust
ISBN: 0349113793
Author:
Edith Hahn
Susan Dworkin
Publicate Date: 2001-03-01
Publish: 2001-03-01
List Price: $20.65
Average Customer Rating: 4.5
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $16.60
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $2.49
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Improbable, yet True
This Holocaust memoir was hard to put down. It tells the story of Edith Hahn, a well-educated Viennese Jewish woman who managed to survive working in a slave labor camp, avoided being deported, and lived as an Aryan Christian woman married to a Nazi officer through the use of false papers. The story is as completely improbable as it sounds, yet, it really happened. There were many insights into the causes and thinking behind the tremendous anti-semitism in Austria during that time, as well as the sheer terror she must have felt trying to live un-noticed and under the radar during that horrible time in history. It was impossible to put this book down!
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2: Kept me riveted
This book was recommended by a friend, and while it came highly-rated, I hesitated to read it because I find stories about the Holocaust too upsetting. When I did pick it up, I couldn't put it down! Admittedly, I turned the pages through the first third slowly, fearing I would read something disturbing but, by the end I couldn't get enough.
The book is written in Mrs. Hahn's voice and reads very much like a novel. Although she shares the most tragic details of her life with us, she does so in a way that emphasizes the compassion, warmth and kindness that she found rather than the sheer terror (although those times were also shared). It is understood that the time were worse than imaginable, but it was not presented in a way to shock the reader or cause you not to want to read on.
Mrs. Hahn's story and determination were remarkable and I kept asking myself if I could have found the courage to live as she did. Just as remarkable were the brave people who helped her and risked their lives so that this one person could survive such punishment and tragedy. They are all to be commended!
Don't hesitate to read this book...it's a must!
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3: A lucky, if not heroic, woman
While the focus of the story is how one woman survived the holocaust, the title sensationalizes a small part of the story (in fact, her husband wasn't a Nazi Officer until the German's were losing the war and drafting anyone left).
This is a book about one individual's survival, in large part due to some amazing luck and some good people. It is NOT a book of how the author used her fortune or took extraordinary risks to help others. Not that there's anything wrong about that. It was a time where no one should be judged for doing what they had to do to survive...and you have to admire anyone who did. Its jut different than the books on the true heroes of this time. The kindness and the weak moments is the human norm and we see both extremes in many of the principle characters, including both of the men who loved the author was well. So its a different story and any documented history of this horrible time is one we should all remember.
Its not the best writing but it gets better and is easily readable. I wanted to give this 4 stars because any true story from this time is recommended reading; however its far from the best I've read. If you want to read an uplifting story about a woman who risks her luck to help others, I'd highly recommend "In My Hands" but Irena Opdyke.
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4: important story, poor delivery
I would give 2 and a half stars. This is a good read in that any account of human experiences is important to remind us of the evils in the world, and human resilience nevertheless. The writing, however, is too rudimentary, and one dimensional.
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5: Just Ok
This book wasn't horrible, but it wasn't great either. This woman was smart, but the tale could have been told better so that there was a bit more profoundness in it.
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