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The Nazis Next Door: How America Became a Safe Haven for Hitler’s Men

The Nazis Next Door Book Cover The Nazis Next Door
Eric Lichtblau
History
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH)
2014-10-28
288

A revelatory secret history of how America became home to thousands of Nazi war criminals after World War II, many of whom were brought here by the OSS and CIA—by the New York Times reporter who broke the story and who has interviewed dozens of agents for the first time.

 

Review:

“The Nazis Next Door” is a book about the various Nazis living in our country after the war, along with how our government not only helped bring them here but helped them avoid prosecution through various means, including forged documents.

As opposed to many history books, this one is easily read and accessible not only to the novice, but also provides little known information to historians.  My major was history, with a concentration in Jewish history, and I was appalled by just how much has been hidden for so long.  The fact that Patton himself was an anti-Semite made me feel physically ill.

A secondary benefit to the history lesson is the knowledge at just how carefully we need to question the actions of our own intelligence agencies.  This is certainly a timely topic, and one that we could all use a reminder regarding.

If a reader has an interest in the Holocaust, especially the more unexplored topics surrounding it, I cannot recommend “The Nazis Next Door” enough.  Novice or professional, it is an excellent resource.

This review is based upon an advance copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

 

Content Warning:

As this is a book meant for adults, no content warning will be given.