Howard Blum is the author of New York Times bestsellers including Dark Invasion, the Edgar Award–winner American Lightning, as well as Wanted!, The Gold Exodus, Gangland, and The Floor of Heaven. Blum is a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. While at the New York Times, he was twice nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting. He is the father of three children, and lives in Connecticut.
I'd read Blum's Out There, a history of some of the US coverup of supposed UFO evidence, previously. Having just seen Mike Miley in San Francisco, who had loaned me that book on a previous visit, got me in mind to read more of him upon return to Chicago. Wanted, like Out There, is about a coverup, this time of those Nazis and their fellow travellers who had been sheltered in the USA by our government. His perspective is not, however, that of Operation Paperclip in the early postwar years, the secret program to smuggle useful Nazis into the USA. It is rather that of several individuals who, for various reasons, discovered some of the beneficiaries of such largesse, were upset and wanted to do something about it--and how their efforts were hampered, in many cases by agencies of the United States government.
I had hoped there would be information about additional Nazis in America but this book only covers a few. With that being said, the book seems very thorough talking about the search and attempted extradition of them.
I also didn't check the date written until I finished so the information is very out-of-date.
The book contains a chapter on Tscherim Soobzokov wherein allegations were made by howard blum that are completely false that resulted in a defamation action in the Southern District Court in New York. The lawsuit was filed in 1977 and settled in 1984. In 1985 Mr. Soobzokov was assassinated by a bomb placed at his home.
The falsity of blum's book was a direct cause of the killing of my father. It created hate that was based on a false premise. Blum knew that Mr. Soobzokov was innocent but he sought notoriety and fame as a Nazi hunter over truth. That is and will be his legacy.
Blum will never be the recipient of justice for his complicity in betraying the oath of honor.
This is an interesting book. Although many of the allegations were never proven there is enough evidence to make one think they might be true. Whether they are true or not, it is a good read about true cases that are now a part of American History. The true question is, what happened to the missing Nazi war criminals? Many have claimed that Odessa didn't exist, Blum makes a good case for this not being the case. Any student of missing Nazis should read this book.
A very interesting book with great almost thriller-like stories. The anger and the need for revenge burns through the pages as you are reading about the cover ups of corrupt government officials and count the years war criminals spent free living a good life. The one thing I didn't like is Blum's sensationist, often tabloid-like style. Recommended for those who like light documentarist writings.