"The Disappearance of Josef Mengele", by Olivier Guez

Original title :“La Disparition de Josef Mengele”

Just reading the tile is enough to cause a chill up the spine...who has never heard of Josef Mengele, the Nazi doctor of Auschwitz.

In this debut English language novel the author gives us a sober portrait of “The Angel of Death” the monstrous man at Auschwitz who after the war secured a series of false identities and relocated in South America in 1949. For the next 30 years or so he hid in Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil where he sought favours from powerful figures such as Adof Eichmann, Juan Peron and a network of Nazis to survive. As time passed and the horrors of the Holocaust were better known, a hunt for Mengele and other high-ranking Nazis began. The most notorious hunter of Nazis was Simon Wiesenthal.

This novel recreates from eyewitness accounts, letters, journals, historical records and biographies the passage of time involving Mengele in hiding. This book is rigorously researched as Olivier Guez traces Mengele’s footsteps through the years of flight. What a chilling novel, the narration situates us in a manhunt of one of the most elusive and evil figures of the 20th century.

Mr. Guez added personal touches to his account to make our experience more enjoyable. The words are weighed carefully to make contact with his audience and to instill some human elements despite all the repulsive actions. Mengele till his death continued to believe in Nazi ideology....and never was brought to justice.....All characters in this novel gives you shivers....

Interesting read

This arc was provided by Verso Books via Netgalley for my thoughts.