The Nazi Hunters: Behind the Worldwide Search for Nazi War Criminals

by Charles R. Ashman, Robert J. Wagman

With unprecedented access to public & private Nazi hunters in DC, NYC, LA, London, Toronto, Berlin, Vienna, Tel Aviv, Zagreb & Melbourne & the records of the World Jewish Congress, Ashman & Wagman uncover new information about war criminals hiding in the USA, UK, Canada, S. America, Australia & several European Countries, & about those committed to chasing them down.
Authors' Preface & Acknowledgments
Most Wanted
Behind Closed Doors
Who Is a War Criminal?
What Is a War Crime?
Waldheim: What Is the Truth?
The Big Three
The Nazi Child Killer
The American Nazi Hunt
A Paperclip Coverup?
A Russian Plot?
Canada & Australia
Her Majesty's Less Than Finest Hour
West Germany--A Mixed Record
The Private Hunters
The Future Hunt
Appendix
Index

Genres: History, Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1988

Reviews

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

I daresay I've some interest in Kant's old idea of establishing international law and the means to enforce it. Books tangent to this subject are of interest. The most readily accessible ones seem to be about Nazi war crimes and their occasional punishments.

The general tenor of this particular book is that a great number of persons, some of them victims or relatives of victims, have devoted a great amount of time and effort to seeking justice against the Axis perpetrators of violence against civilians before and during WWII. Often, very often, these aggrieved individuals have had to do it alone, their own governments being unhelpful or, in far too many cases, obstructive.

It's depressing but true that the USA, like some other allied states and, notably so far as protection went, the Vatican, pursued a policy of selective punishment, incarcerating or killing some war criminals, protecting and even hiring others. The Cold War and the post-war status of Germany was responsible for some of this behavior. If we didn't get their espionage professionals, rocket scientists and concentration camp medical experts, the Soviets might have. If we didn't get the popular support of the German people, the Soviets might have gotten Germany.

Despite the depressing history of governmental indifference to ethics when matters of high policy, or the cover-up of such, are concerned, the authors still manage to convey a sense of some hope in the stories of some very ordinary persons seeking and occasionally obtaining justice in the face of the powers and principalities of this world.

[Rafan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a very informative yet entertaining book. Since the book is nonfiction, there is much that one can learn from this book. There are some parts that are controversial and others that are very violent, so this book is not very good for kids. The authors provide a lot of information that can be used for an assignment but is also a good book to read in your free time. Not many people know about what happened to the Nazi war criminals after WW2, and this book talks about that in a great amount of detail. Not only does the book talk about the Nazis, but it also talks about events that were related to these war criminals.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very interesting book. Written in 1988, there are a few loose ends but does a nice job summarizing some of the great Post WWII Nazi hunts up til that point.

The book also dives into some of the nonesense around international extradition rules, and the typical legal and political obstacles which hinder some of the prosecution of these criminals.

Pretty incredible hove several of the worst offenders managed to evade capture and live fairly long lives out of captivity.

Pretty good summaries on Eichman, Mengele, and Ivan the Terrible.

Pretty facinating read for me. Well written. I liked it.

Give this a solid 3.5 stars.

[Jaycob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well-researched and informative, but I went in expecting to learn a lot more about the private individuals who dedicated their lives to finding war criminals. This book is mostly about the legal entanglements that have made prosecution different for post-war governments. There was one chapter about the private individuals and organizations, but would have liked to have seen more.

[Amanda Kitten · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the premise behind this book and I learned a lot of new things about Nazis after the war, but it is fairly dry. I had to keep reminding myself that this book was written almost 30 years ago and that got me through it. Still a good read if you can manage to tough it out.

[Efrain Guzman-Rosario · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this during my Junior High School years