Hitler's Pawn: The Boy Assassin and the Holocaust

by Stephen Koch, James Anderson Foster (Reading)

A remarkable story of a forgotten seventeen-year-old Jew who was blamed by the Nazis for the anti-Semitic violence and terror known as the Kristallnacht, the pogrom still seen as an initiating event of the Holocaust

After learning about Nazi persecution of his family, Herschel Grynszpan, (pronounced "Greenspan"), an impoverished seventeen-year-old Jew living in Paris, bought a small handgun and on November 7, 1938, went to the German Embassy and shot the first German diplomat he saw. When the man died two days later, Hitler and Goebbels made the shooting their pretext for the great state-sponsored wave of anti-Semitic terror known as the Kristallnacht, still seen by many as an initiating event of the Holocaust.

Overnight, Grynszpan, a bright but naive teenager―and a perfect political nobody―was front-page news and a pawn in global power. When France fell, after a wild chase the Nazis captured Herschel and flew him to Berlin. The boy became a privileged prisoner of the Gestapo while Hitler and Goebbels plotted a massive show-trial to blame "the Jews" for starting the Second World War. A prisoner and alone, Herschel grasped Hitler’s intentions, and waged a battle of wits to sabotage the trial, knowing that even if he succeeded, he would certainly be murdered. The battle of wits was close, but Herschel finally won it. Based on the newest research, Hitler's Pawn is the richest telling of Grynszpan’s story to date.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Holocaust, Biography, World War II, Germany, Audiobook

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 8, 2019

About the author

Stephen Koch is the author of The Modern Library Writer’s Workshop: A Guide to the Craft of Fiction; The Breaking Point: Hemingway, Dos Passos, and the Murder of José Robles; Double Lives: Spies and Writers in the Secret Soviet War of Ideas Against the West; and other books. He previously taught creative writing at Columbia and Princeton universities for nearly twenty years.

Reviews

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a historian, it's always refreshing to read a book that teaches me something new--especially about a topic I've studied quite a bit. Koch's work recounts the tale of a Jewish male teenager living in exile in Paris, who decided to revenge the deportation of his family and 12,000 other Polish Jews from legal residence in Germany in October 1938. He shot a low-level German diplomat to bring light to Nazi atrocities, and Hitler and his minions seized on the action to justify Kristallnacht and, ultimately, the extermination of millions of Jews. The work is a history, but it's also a spotlight on today's scapegoating of minority groups and anti-immigration rhetoric plaguing many nations. It is both a lesson from the past and a warning for the modern world.

I received an early copy for honest review from Book of the Month Club.

[Charlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Received this ARC book thru Goodreads.com

The author really gets into the nitty-gritty stuff on this non-fiction story.
Herschel Grynszpan (pronounced "Greenspan") is a 17-year-old Jew living in Paris. His family already sent to concentration camps has Herschel on an angry spin. He's had enough and wanted to make the world know what's happening to the Jews in the real world. Buys a gun - shoots a German diplomat and the story begins.
Kristallnacht is born from this event. Hitler now has an excuse to vent his temper and claim the Jews were the problem for this event and the beginning of the full-blown continuation of WW11.
The book is very wordy and a bit of a flow challenge.

[Grumpus · Rating 4 out of 5]

The grumpus23 (23-Word Commentary)
Jewish teenager assassinates Nazi official in Paris. Hitler attempts to make the legal case that this is the reason for Kristallnacht and Holocaust.

[Hal Issen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A naive young Jewish refuge kills a German embassy official in Paris, setting off the Kristallnacht. This is a cautionary tale on two levels. The first involves Hitler, Gobbles, the Nazis, and their ability to manipulate the public perception of events to support their political agenda. It's an important lesson considering how the Russians were able to use Facebook to manipulate public perception during the 2016 US Presidential elections to support their political agenda. The second level involves the dangers of youthful fanaticism, and insularity of ideas and cultural identity. In no way am I blaming Herschel Grynszpan for trying to do something to stop the persecution of Jews by the Nazis, but his actions were not well thought out, and were used as an excuse to significantly increase violence against his people. Perhaps joining an organized underground resistance movement would have been a better choice. I write this from the comfort of an existence free from persecution and threat of violence against my family, and with maturity that comes with decades of experience; I doubt I would have had the courage to take any action if I were in his position at his age. The book itself reads like a series of articles instead of a cohesive book; facts are repeated, storylines drop off and pick up again, etc. In the end the historical significance of this one individual is of minor importance to me, about as important as that schmuck who killed Archduke Ferdinand; yes they served as the trigger but the whole damned thing was rigged to explode anyway, and I feel certain would have by some other event or fool if these individuals hadn't stumbled their way into history.

[Alex Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a tighly written examination of the life a relatively minor figure who casted a large shadow on the politics surrounding the Second World War. It is well researched and written in an easy to read style, with plenty of background information for those who are not intimently familiar with the time period. A good read for anyone interested in the events leading up to the Second World War and the Holocaust.

Received advanced reader copy.

[Naina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hitler's Pawn is a well-researched, non-fiction account of Hershel Grynszpan's impact as one of the catalysts of World War 2 and the Holocaust. Hershel Grynszpan was a seventeen-year-old Jewish boy seeking refuge in France from Germany. The rest of his family was still in Germany and had been subjected to horrible treatment by the Germans--they were rounded up with other Jewish families and deported to Poland without any notice or any of their belongings. Hearing of this, Hershel concocts a plan to shoot a German officer in France and eventually does so, ironically taking the life of Ernst vom Roth, a German diplomat not sympathetic to the Nazi regime. Hitler and other Nazis use this assassination to blame "old world Jewry" and use it as a reason for their poor treatment of Jews.

I had never heard of Hershel or the role he played in history, and I found this book fascinating and enlightening. If I learn something from a historical non-fiction book, that is a win for me.

Thank you to Book of the Month for my advanced readers copy.

[Nissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are interested in WWII or the Holocaust, you will want to read this book. No, it is not an easy book to read but, it moves quickly and is well-written. I highly recommend it.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author, Stephen Koch, presents a little-known footnote about the start of the Holocaust and WWII. Most people who read much about these topics know the sequence of Nazi Germany's takeovers of surrounding territory to "reunite" the German-speaking people to Germany. Persecutions and restrictions of Jews were already started and many Jews looked for ways to flee with their families to other countries. One of those families included Herschel Grynszpan, a teen who was successfully sent by his family to live with his uncle and aunt in Paris. He later learns about anti-semitic violence in Germany against his family and other Jews, he becomes determined to do something. At age seventeen, on November 7, 1938, he buys a gun and goes to the German embassy to shoot the first German diplomat he saw. When he entered the building, he walked past the Embassador who was on his way out and said he had an important message to be delivered in person. He was shown into the office of a minor diplomat and pulled out his gun and shot him. He then gave himself up. The diplomat lingered for a two days and then died. Hitler and his top people saw this as an opportunity to justify more violence against Jews and the result was the state-sponsored anti-semitic attacks known as Kristallnacht. Many people see this destructive event as the start of the Holocaust. Herschel became front page news and a pawn in the global power struggle between the Nazis and the much of the rest of Europe. Some of what happened to Herschel in Vichy French custody and then as a prisoner the the Nazi SS is documented and known. But eventually the trail went cold and it is not clear whether he survived the war (unlikely) or how and when he died! Fascinating read about a secondary story that was used to justify much of what led to the Holocaust.

[M Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's a foreshadowing technique that I see authors like Eric Larson use in books like this where important future events (which are all technically a matter of historical record, anyway) are strongly hinted at without detailing exactly what happens to build suspense.Koch attempted to do this but instead comes off as incredibly redundant - I felt like I was reading the same thing two or three times in multiple places.
I was also somewhat put off by Koch's pretentious criticism of various fellow historians, who he frequently accuses of mischaracterizing key players and offering subpar interpretations of events. I thought his book was well-researched but certainly didn't warrant the level of snobbery he directed at other authors.

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this as an ARC for my honest opinion.

A story of an unknown Jew boy named, Hershel Grynszpan. He left Germany and went to France to live with his Aunt and Uncle. He got upset about Germany's treatment of Jews and decided to take a stand. He did not realize that by taking this stand, he would start a great state-sponsored wave of anti-Semitic terror known as Kristallnacht. Many believe that this event initiated the Holocaust.

Overnight, Grynszpan became front page news and a pawn in a global power struggle. He became a privileged German prisoner and was lost to history. When he died or how is still in question.

Happy Reading ☺

[Rodrigo Blanco Calderón · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maravilloso.

[Don INTJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

בס"ד

אמנם קוך קמעה הוליך אותי במעגלים (במיוחד לקראת הסוף), כך או כך רותקתי באופן יוצא דופן לסיפורו ולדמותו הפזיזה וחסרת המורא של הרשל גרינשפן.

[Julian · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of Herschel Grynszpan is interesting. A Polish Jewish kid in Nazi Germany, he escapes to Paris but his family is deported. He knows the hell that is coming from his people and assassinates a German diplomat to draw attention. He is then used, or attempted to be used, as a propaganda tool.

The book is well researched with tons of information. The context is well built and you can really understand how different forces were playing around Grynszpan. But the author tries to give the work a historical novel approach and it just doesn't work. Instead, the book comes up as a long Wikipedia article. He's also very repetitive. Yes, we understand the homosexual defense wanted to make the ideal Germans look bad. We get it. You don't need to mention it 20 times.

This was just OK, not good or bad.

[Nathaniel Flakin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I briefly recounted Grynszpan's story in my biography of Martin Monath. Monath and Grynszpan had a lot in common, even if Monath was almost ten years older. Both were stateless / Polish Jews from Germany. Both had family that were deported by the Nazis in 1938 (Grynszpan's parents and sister, Monath's brother). Both dedicated their lives to getting revenge against the Nazis. But they chose very different paths. Grynszpan got a gun, whereas Monath joined the underground Trotskyist movement and organized rank-and-file German soldiers to fight against the Nazis.

This book, unfortunately, misses the connection to Trotsky. It mentions two main conspiracy theories surrounding Grynszpan's action: that he was an agent of the "Jewish World Conspiracy"; or, that he was an agent of the Gestapo. But there is also a third conspiracy theory: The French Stalinists, in their paper L'Humanité, claimed that Grynszpan was a Trotskyist, and that he had been manipulated on order to provoke a war. In response to this claim, Trotsky himself wrote a moving essay in defense of Grynszpan.

I enjoyed this very detailed recounting of Grynszpan's story. I don't know if it counts as historical research — more like a journalistic recounting of the existing literature, and an easy read. I was happy to see that the version of Grynszpan's story in my book was accurate. Except: numerous writers emphasize that Ernst vom Rath, the official at the German embassy who died from his wounds, was not in fact a convinced Nazi but actually rather critical. But for me, that seems like an artificial distinction. If you are working in a building with a big swastika flag outside, then you are a Nazi official.

A friend of mine — whose grandfather was an Ostjude from Hannover who lived in the same street as the Grynszpans — had told me about the theories that Herschel had been romantically or sexually involved with vom Rath, and that this was the real motivation for the assassination. Fascinating to see the origins of this "homosexual defense," and that Herschel himself used it — and also to see that it can be so definitively rejected. In my eyes, this is a story of a heroic protest against injustice, and it never felt right to turn it into a crime of passion.

[Sandy Brehl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm by no means a WWII/Holocaust scholar, but I've done some deep dives in research for writing and now in training to be an outreach educator for Holocaust History. Even so, this provided new-to-me valuable information about historic events and the intricacies of various players in the Third Reich echelons.
The detailed research cites reliable sources, and the events and personalities unfold with surprising revelations. I confess to feeling that the author fell into a pattern of repeating information from earlier portions of the text a fair amount, usually to set up the subsequent developments. Perhaps it was intended to make the work more comprehensible when reading single chapters, but it became a bit tedious toward the end.
Even so, I recommend this as a worthy read for curious and/or scholarly readers, and I'm grateful to have read it.

[Joyce · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess this is too insignificant a footnote to capture my interest--or perhaps it was the flat narration that did me in. This story of the young Polish Jew in Paris who took revenge for the imprisonment of European Jews by shooting a Nazi diplomat in Paris never took off for me. His action might have contributed to Kristallnacht, but likely that would have occurred in any case. Perhaps I'm simply too much of a fiction reader--I like to be able to sympathize with characters or at least feel their actions are well motivated. I guess real life is messier. Not a lot of action, many familiar WWII details and personalities. Well-researched and fact filled. It is a chilling look at pre-WWII France and the chauvinistic anti-immigration stance. In that sense, a book for our times.

By the way, author's name is actually KOCH, not KOCK

[Monica San Miguel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una de esas historias que si la ves en una película piensas que no puede ser verdad

[Steve Maxwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️ and a half stars.

This is the story of Herschel Grynszpan, a seventeen year old Jewish boy who fled Poland for France in the lead up to WW II. Herschel, in a protest to what was happening to the Jewish people in Poland, purchased a gun and shot a low-level bureaucrat in the German embassy in France. With the death of the bureaucrat, Hitler and the Nazis tried to place the cause of the Holocaust onto Jewry throughout Europe.

An informative read.

[Sharon Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

We've all heard about Krystalnacht, but do we know what started it?

It turns out a Jewish kid in Paris shot an employee at the German embassy, and that provided the initiative for the anti-Semitic actions Hitler and his people wanted to do.

This book is all about that kid, Krystalnacht, and what happened to the kid afterwards. It's amazing that there's enough to build a whole book on, but there is.

[Lila Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually read memoirs with their feelings. This was straight facts in paragraph form. That being said the book was great for what it was for!

[Shira · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Robert LoCicero · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title struck me as different and possibly intriguing. After reading this rather short tome I can say that it was worth picking up and reading. The amazing story of a Jewish assassin, one Herschel Grynszpan (pronounced "Greenspan"), is a little told tale from before the start of World War II but at the beginning of the Nazi underpinnings for their future Holocaust. It is November 1938 and deportations of displaced German Jews living in France to the Polish frontier is underway. Families are uprooted and impoverished by the brutality of the forced movement of Jewish families to the isolation and despair of the Polish countryside. One such family is the Grynspans and their young adult son Herschel hounded by legal processes in France (his illegal entry into France the cause) and an eager but deluded thought to wake the world up about these deportations, proceeds to shot a minor functionary in the Paris office of the German Embassy. This victim would be Ernst von Rath, who as it turns out is not really a dyed in the wool Nazi. The murder and the subsequent uproar, much of it begun by the assassin's statements and notion to publicize his action becomes a cause celebre for activists worldwide. Much to the shock of the world and particularly to Grynszpan himself, this shooting triggers the infamous German Nazi Kristallnacht, in which the violence and death of the future Holocaust is thrust upon the Jews of Germany for all the world to see. The shooting makes good timing for the Nazi hierarchy of Hitler and Goebbels to initiate their anti-Semitic campaign and the events revolving around this campaign and the fate of the assassin are the meat of this book. Well-researched and written in easy and fluid style, the book is engrossing and the story should never be forgotten. The ramifications of his act and the insidious plans of the Nazi killers are too easily replicated in our current environment in which anti-semitism and violent rhetoric are heard within our United States Congress by Representatives pushing Leftist and Islamic terrorist agendas against Israel, Jews and their American supporters. Additionally, the drive by Leftist and anarchist groups to silence discussion on our American university campuses and in our public schools is leading to a lack of historical knowledge or concern for the basic Constitutional freedoms that we Americans have enjoyed for over 200 years. These enemies of our nation must be confronted and with knowledge of how easy events can unfold from simple violent acts (as told in this fascinating true story) we will be better equipped to fight these domestic (and foreign) enemies. I certainly recommend this book and author to all interested and concerned patriots.

[Laura Valenziano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stephen Koch is a terrific author! His style is engaging and tongue-in-cheek. I have been puzzled why Herschel Grynszpan is mentioned in almost all WWII history and holocaust books but only briefly and wondered what became of him. This book explains how and why he shot Ernst von Rath, as well as what transpired before and after he did so. It was enlightening. The book is short but well worth reading!

[BagelBitch 69 · Rating 1 out of 5]

good example of how to not write history. very interesting topic, but the author inserts his own assumptions about what was inside the heads of these real people and passes that off as historical fact. poorly written, poorly edited.

[Jim Blessing · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book started out interesting, but I lost interest.

[RICK "SHAQ" GOLDSTEIN · Rating 5 out of 5]

RICK “SHAQ” GOLDSTEIN SAYS: 11/9/38 “MUNICH SWARMED WITH NAZIS THE WAY AN INFECTION SWARMS IN A FESTERING WOUND”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On November 7, 1938, Herschel Grynszpan (pronounced Greenspan)… a 5 foot 1 inch… 100 pound… 17 year-old Jewish boy… who had never owned a gun… or fired one… walked into the German Embassy in France and shot the first German diplomat he saw.

Herschel was a Polish German Jew who had illegally fled to France… while his beloved parents, brother and sister remained in Germany.. until they along with 12-18,000 other Jews were deported to Poland by the Nazi’s … after the Nazi’s took all their money and worldly possessions… and then in squalid conditions were literally dumped “into the cold and abandoned, without money, food, provisions, or help of any kind whatever.” This is what pushed young… diminutive… and frail… Herschel… to walk into the German Embassy and fire a gun for the first time… which led to the death of Ernst vom Rath two days later.

On November 9, 1938 the Nazi’s executed “Kristallnacht” (THE NIGHT OF BROKEN GLASS) the history changing pogrom against the Jews in Germany. “the number of people murdered and damage done has never been fully assessed. It has been estimated at least 236 murdered…. With more than 600 permanently maimed. Hundreds more died in concentration camps during the next few weeks. Some 7,500 stores were ransacked, looted, and destroyed. In addition arson or other wreckage destroyed 267 synagogues. Jewish community centers, cemetery chapels, and the like were burned to the ground.” After the pogrom massive “fines” were levied… all wholesale and retail Jewish businesses were shutdown. “Jews were required to surrender any stocks they owned, and jewelry, precious stones and metals, as well as art objects had to be sold to state purchasing offices”.

And how did Hitler… Goebbels… and the other Nazi madmen justify this? They were internally thrilled… to blame the whole thing on young Herschel Grynszpan. Goebbels… the Nazi propaganda chief… with Hitler’s enthusiastic backing… planned and attempted a worldwide propaganda/marketing blitz that stated Herschel was part of a worldwide Jewish conspiracy. When they arrested Herschel he was exploited and over time transferred from prison to prison to concentration camp to prison. The Nazi’s planned a trial for the world to see… that a young Jew was directed by Jewish world leaders to commit this murder… and thus give the Nazi’s the “ability” to blame the “Night of Broken Glass”… and even the coming Holocaust on Herschel.

The author does a brilliant job in laying out the landscape of Europe and the plight of the Jews… and the madness of the Nazi’s. Herschel with advice from one of his lawyer’s (he was obviously guilty of murder) changed his confession to say he did it because of a homosexual lover’s dispute with the German official. The idea being that the Nazi’s would be too embarrassed to have this played out on the world stage. The timing of the Nuremberg Laws… the Munich Agreement (a defeat of France without a battle)… are all interwoven into this… easy to read… yet compelling narrative.

As reporter Dorothy Thompson put it: “There must be some kind of higher justice for this young boy.” One of his attorney’s Serge Weill-Goudchaux wrote: “Yes, Grynszpan was the first “resister” in the terrible and abject struggle the Nazi’s created.” “That doubtless exaggerates, but the fact remains that he did, AT LEAST, FIGHT BACK, AND HE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST.”

Note to potential readers: Do NOT skip A NOTE ON SOURCES at the end of this wonderful book. It illuminates even further this episode in history!

[Kimba Tichenor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book attempts to bridge the gap between popular history and academic history and for the most part it succeeds. It recounts the fascinating story of seventeen-year-old Hershel Grynszpan who walked into the German embassy in Paris on November 9, 1938 and shot the junior embassy official Ernst von Rath. As most history books briefly note, this assassination was used by the Nazis as the pretext for launching Kristallnacht, a multi-day attack on Jewish persons and properties in Germany. But that is where the story usually ends. Koch, however, continues the story, telling of the show trial that Hitler and Goebbels had planned. At this show trial, the Nazis planned to claim that Grynszpan was an "agent of World Jewry," thereby making "the destruction of Jewry...a prerequisite for the coming European new order." In short, his trial would provide the justification for the Final Solution. The author details the battle of wits that ensued as the young Jewish prisoner tried not to become a pawn in this game. Grynszpan changed his story, claiming now that he had killed Rath because he had been in a homosexual relationship with him. Aware that the claim was false, the Nazis nevertheless proved unwilling to risk the triple ignominy of a German diplomat accused of homosexuality; having a homosexual affair with a minor; and conducting it with one who was not only a minor but also a Jew.

The Koch astutely uses primary and secondary sources to contextualize Grynszpan's story within the broader framework of World War II and the Holocaust. However, the author, a former chairman of the Creative Writing Division in the School of Arts at Columbia University occasionally lets his creative writing side get the best of him and the result is sentences such as the following: "While these demonic plans were being laid, this very young man, so recently a child, confronted history—monster history—alone and entirely defenseless.” These artsy flourishes may attract the casual reader, but for a trained historian, they are cringe worthy. However, the author does not take liberties on matters of causation. For example, he painstakingly explains that the assassination was "pretext" not the cause of Kristallnacht. So if you can tolerate such cringe worthy sentences, this is a fascinating account of a little-known dimension of this era.

[Bob Rosenbaum · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never heard the story of Herschel Grynszpan - which for a Jewish person strikes me as similar to my late discovery, as an American, of the Tulsa Massacre.

Grynszpan was a Jewish German adolescent in the buildup to WWII who was shipped off for safekeeping with an aunt and uncle in Paris. Soon after, the Nazis roust every Jew in his hometown out of their houses and force them at gunpoint across the border into Poland - which was not at all welcoming. Grynszpan responds by making a statement the whole world will notice; he assassinates a low-level Nazi official at the German embassy in Paris.

It was the event that Hitler and Joseph Goebbels used to spark the Kristallnacht pograms - orgiastic violence against Germany's Jews that immediately preceded the Holocaust.

It's a history worth reading, especially for its obvious parallels today in America today. It's all about Germany's attempt to link Grynszpan's act to a global Jewish conspiracy to start a World War that Hitler had, in fact, already started.

The similarities to the government's use of violence, dehumanization and conspiracy were so conspicuous that I checked the publication date to see if the author was cherry picking his information to emphasize them. (Unlikely. It was published in 2019 - researched during Trump's first term but well before the authoritarianism was organized and systemic).

Koch loses a star for eye-rolling repetitiveness and excessive conjecture about what the subject of his book must have been thinking at any point in time. If he makes a good point, you can be sure he'll make it three or four more times. The book could have been 25 percent shorter without losing a single insight.

[Veronica · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating biography on Herschel Grynszpan, the young man who assassinated a German official in 1938. The Nazis used this as a catalyst to unleash the worst pogrom in history, Kristallnacht. Koch details Herschel's origins and his history, as well as his motives for committing murder. Nothing is ever black and white, there are grey zones and this young man often fell into them. Perhaps suffering from mental illness and a product of his time, Herschel believed he was doing God's will in killing a Nazi, to shed light on his people's suffering. After the arrest and Kristallnacht, the Nazis intended to hold a propaganda trial and "judge" Herschel, however, it never took place. Herschel did what he could to ruin it, concocting schemes and lies to foil their plans. Eventually the war took a turn for the worse and Herschel was "forgotten" about. He vanished from history and to this day his outcome remains a mystery.

"Hitler's Pawn" is well written and the author manages to enthrall the read. Despite Herschel's mistakes, you feel compassion for him and hope he somehow escapes. The book addressed some of the theories in regards to Herschel's fate, but I felt it lacking in one respect. In 2016, a 1946 photograph was discovered of a young man who looked identical to Herschel. A test was conducted and there was a 95% likelihood that the young man was Herschel. Which leads one to wonder if Herschel survived the war and made a life for himself. However, the book never discusses this at all. Other than that, I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in WWII or the Holocaust, or who wants to learn more about the young man history has all but forgotten.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hitler's Pawn: The Boy Assassin and the Holocaust by Stephen Koch is a mesmerizing and captivating read about a period much-forgotten history for many.

The story of the boy who started the events which many believed led to the horrors experienced by the Jewish people is one which is not taught in schools today. His story appears to have been lost to our current generation and one which would like to be forgotten by past generations.

Koch writes with great skill, compassion, and research. He leaves few details out when discussing the youth described as the catalyst for Hitler's plan to remove the Jewish population.

In my opinion, this book should be on the reading list in all high school history classes, colleges and in every home library. This book is important. This is a part of history which should not be forgotten.

Thank you to Stephen Koch, the publishers, and Goodreads for sending me this book to review. I won this book after entering a giveaway on Goodreads.
CH