Rating: 
Summary: Good insight on pyschopathy...
Review: I originally read this book long time ago in its original British edition. One currently offered has some extra parts that may not really change the context of the book but will shine some more light on the unclear situations. It's not a masterpiece but a relation of events that really gets down to the basic facts and realities of concentration camps and mass murder. One constantly may have to refer to appendixes due to the fact that Hoss (unconsciously or not) is trying to defend himself; that's why information given by him may be distorted a bit from the truth. This book provides very interesting insight on the mentality of the hard-core SS officer as well as on the gears of Nazi war machine. Putting aside his excuses and explanations even if they are convincing one will see a human nature being ruled and overtaken by natural instincts and hate. It's one of the better books I read on the subject. I'm sorry I'm a forensic psychologist and perceive this book a little different.
Rating: 
Summary: Unbelievable!!!!
Review: I read this book because I wanted to know history from the point of view of the killers.
It was amazing how a man can count killing and murder of people like a green grocer counts vegetables Or let us say an accountant
calculates money.All the places this man has tried to sound human and emotional it some how sounds false.
My personnel perspective is that this man was emotionally dead.
This is an important book because it tells you the phyche of the people from the other side.
I gave 3 stars for the book for the person writting the book it is 0 stars this man deserves nothing.
What I also felt while reading the book was he was basically mentally unhinged and the system Hitler created actually took advantage of these kind of people.It was like some one unleashing mad dogs on people.This also tells us what happens if we bring up a generation of people by telling them to accept all that is told to them, by never questioning.One must learn to question , specially the traditions also the value system that is beeing taught to them else one can one day find himself hanging from a pole ,like what eventually happened to This man.
Rating: 
Summary: Why You Should Read This Book.....
Review: Primo Levi, in my opinion, is one of the more powerful moral philosophers of our time. If you have not read "Survival in Auschwitz" and "The Re-Awakening," you are cheating yourself. Levi's book "The Drowned & the Saved" is the single best book I have seen on the Shoah. And Levi's introduction to Hoss's book gives this work the framing it deserves.Levi begins by pointing out that when one writes an introduction to a book, the writer usually admires the work, or the author. Even if the book is poor, then at the very least the writing style is commendable. Levi then concludes that "Death Dealer" is poorly written, the author is an officious braggart, who blatently lies; and his lies are painfully transparent. "Reading this book," Levi says "is torture." So why should anyone read it? Because to best understand the beast, look in the belly--the mind--of a beast. Raul Hilberg, the holocaust historian, makes a point of saying he never asks the "big questions," because you will always be disappointed with the answers. So he only asks little questions. Don't ask "why did you personally send three & a half million people to their death?" Instead, ask "where did you come from? How were you able to physically do what you did?" While there certainly are questions about Hoss's candor in this memoir (he wrote it in a Polish prison, while on trial for war crimes by the Polish Government. The outcome of Hoss's trial was not a mystery to anyone--least of all Hoss), Hoss is who he is: a competent manager, totally devoid of any insight whatsoever. According to Hoss, one of the big turning points of his life happened during his prison years in the Weimar Republic. Imprisoned for his role in a political asassination, Hoss "discovers" that some people are just plain no good, no matter what you do for or to them. To illustrate this point, Hoss describes how an imate in a neighboring cell described a burglary, when the inmate bragged of not only killing the parents & servant, but also killed two small children. Hoss describes himself as being so outraged, he wanted to kill that other inmate--only the bars of his cell prevented him. On another occasion, entertainment troupe presented a show for the inmates, including a woman singer. Hoss was so moved by the beauty of her voice, that the walls of the prison fell away--then, as soon as she was finished, Hoss quotes another inmate murmuring to his neighbor how the inmate wanted to steal the jewels the singer was wearing. Again, Hoss was outraged: That inmate, at a time of transcendent beauty, could only think of stealing. Incorrigible. Nothing to do with those kinds of people--which is why the camps were necessary. Everybody that was sent to Auschwitz was an irredeemably bad person, according to the Kommandant. Now, if we are to believe the helpless rage of the imprisoned Hoss over the deaths of babies & imagined thefts of singer's jewelry, what are we to think of the countless children and innumerable "thefts" that occured under Hoss's own command? Nothing--that's what. Because Hoss doesn't see the contridiction. Hoss writes of an Auschwitz that is a summer camp for poor people, with a scarcity of supplies due to factors outside of his control--and yet through heroic efforts of administration on his part, the camp functioned. Meanwhile, out the other side of his mouth, Hoss can't help but brag on the numbers of "enemies" who perished inside the camp. Hoss saw himself as fighting a war, a war against the internal enemies of the Reich, of humanity. To the extent there were "problems" at Auschwitz, Hoss sees himself a victim of poor administration by his superiors. The camp is flooded with more & more prisoners, but less and less supplies. Not surprisingly, Hoss neglects to mention that he and his family managed to live very well on black market proceeds from supplies stolen from the prisoners. Poo Hoss is also cursed with incompetent subordinates, such as SS Captain Karl Fritzsch. Hoss dismisses Fritzsch as having "limited intelligence." Moreover, Fritzsch constantly issued orders that were the "opposite" of Hoss's own views. Fritzsch also threatened & treated the prisoners badly, to the point the prisoners were afraid of Hoss: "When I tried to learn something from the prisoners directly, I always found resisitance and evasive answers. The terror that was instituted by Fritzsch in Auschwitz could not be gotten rid of!" Poor Rudolf. Hoss has the temerity to conclude "Just think how much better Auschwitz would have run without people like Fritsch." Just think! Hoss [...] prides himself on not showing emotion, no matter what happens around him. He lies without seeing how foolish his lies are. He is just following orders, because there are real enemies out there--and it is Hoss's job to do what is "best" ie what he is told..........No doubt Hoss also held an unquestioning belief that the Jewish and Roma populations had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction in violation of then current international treaties, justifying invasions of their lands.
Rating:
Summary: Why You Should Read This Book.....
Review: Primo Levi, in my opinion, is one of the more powerful moral philosophers of our time. If you have not read "Survival in Auschwitz" and "The Re-Awakening," you are cheating yourself. Levi's book "The Drowned & the Saved" is the single best book I have seen on the Shoah. And Levi's introduction to Hoss's book gives this work the framing it deserves. Levi begins by pointing out that when one writes an introduction to a book, the writer usually admires the work, or the author. Even if the book is poor, then at the very least the writing style is commendable. Levi then concludes that "Death Dealer" is poorly written, the author is an officious braggart, who blatently lies; and his lies are painfully transparent. "Reading this book," Levi says "is torture." So why should anyone read it? Because to best understand the beast, look in the belly--the mind--of a beast. Raul Hilberg, the holocaust historian, makes a point of saying he never asks the "big questions," because you will always be disappointed with the answers. So he only asks little questions. Don't ask "why did you personally send three & a half million people to their death?" Instead, ask "where did you come from? How were you able to physically do what you did?" While there certainly are questions about Hoss's candor in this memoir (he wrote it in a Polish prison, while on trial for war crimes by the Polish Government. The outcome of Hoss's trial was not a mystery to anyone--least of all Hoss), Hoss is who he is: a competent manager, totally devoid of any insight whatsoever. According to Hoss, one of the big turning points of his life happened during his prison years in the Weimar Republic. Imprisoned for his role in a political asassination, Hoss "discovers" that some people are just plain no good, no matter what you do for or to them. To illustrate this point, Hoss describes how an imate in a neighboring cell described a burglary, when the inmate bragged of not only killing the parents & servant, but also killed two small children. Hoss describes himself as being so outraged, he wanted to kill that other inmate--only the bars of his cell prevented him. On another occasion, entertainment troupe presented a show for the inmates, including a woman singer. Hoss was so moved by the beauty of her voice, that the walls of the prison fell away--then, as soon as she was finished, Hoss quotes another inmate murmuring to his neighbor how the inmate wanted to steal the jewels the singer was wearing. Again, Hoss was outraged: That inmate, at a time of transcendent beauty, could only think of stealing. Incorrigible. Nothing to do with those kinds of people--which is why the camps were necessary. Everybody that was sent to Auschwitz was an irredeemably bad person, according to the Kommandant. Now, if we are to believe the helpless rage of the imprisoned Hoss over the deaths of babies & imagined thefts of singer's jewelry, what are we to think of the countless children and innumerable "thefts" that occured under Hoss's own command? Nothing--that's what. Because Hoss doesn't see the contridiction. Hoss writes of an Auschwitz that is a summer camp for poor people, with a scarcity of supplies due to factors outside of his control--and yet through heroic efforts of administration on his part, the camp functioned. Meanwhile, out the other side of his mouth, Hoss can't help but brag on the numbers of "enemies" who perished inside the camp. Hoss saw himself as fighting a war, a war against the internal enemies of the Reich, of humanity. To the extent there were "problems" at Auschwitz, Hoss sees himself a victim of poor administration by his superiors. The camp is flooded with more & more prisoners, but less and less supplies. Not surprisingly, Hoss neglects to mention that he and his family managed to live very well on black market proceeds from supplies stolen from the prisoners. Poo Hoss is also cursed with incompetent subordinates, such as SS Captain Karl Fritzsch. Hoss dismisses Fritzsch as having "limited intelligence." Moreover, Fritzsch constantly issued orders that were the "opposite" of Hoss's own views. Fritzsch also threatened & treated the prisoners badly, to the point the prisoners were afraid of Hoss: "When I tried to learn something from the prisoners directly, I always found resisitance and evasive answers. The terror that was instituted by Fritzsch in Auschwitz could not be gotten rid of!" Poor Rudolf. Hoss has the temerity to conclude "Just think how much better Auschwitz would have run without people like Fritsch." Just think! Hoss is an idiot who prides himself on not showing emotion, no matter what happens around him. He lies without seeing how foolish his lies are. He is just following orders, because there are real enemies out there--and it is Hoss's job to do what is "best" ie what he is told..........No doubt Hoss also held an unquestioning belief that the Jewish and Roma populations had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction in violation of then current international treaties, justifying invasions of their lands.
Rating:
Summary: Why You Should Read This Book.....
Review: Primo Levi, in my opinion, is one of the more powerful moral philosophers of our time. If you have not read "Survival in Auschwitz" and "The Re-Awakening," you are cheating yourself. Levi's book "The Drowned & the Saved" is the single best book I have seen on the Shoah. And Levi's introduction to Hoss's book gives this work the framing it deserves. Levi begins by pointing out that when one writes an introduction to a book, the writer usually admires the work, or the author. Even if the book is poor, then at the very least the writing style is commendable. Levi then concludes that "Death Dealer" is poorly written, the author is an officious braggart, who blatently lies; and his lies are painfully transparent. "Reading this book," Levi says "is torture." So why should anyone read it? Because to best understand the beast, look in the belly--the mind--of a beast. Raul Hilberg, the holocaust historian, makes a point of saying he never asks the "big questions," because you will always be disappointed with the answers. So he only asks little questions. Don't ask "why did you personally send three & a half million people to their death?" Instead, ask "where did you come from? How were you able to physically do what you did?" While there certainly are questions about Hoss's candor in this memoir (he wrote it in a Polish prison, while on trial for war crimes by the Polish Government. The outcome of Hoss's trial was not a mystery to anyone--least of all Hoss), Hoss is who he is: a competent manager, totally devoid of any insight whatsoever. According to Hoss, one of the big turning points of his life happened during his prison years in the Weimar Republic. Imprisoned for his role in a political asassination, Hoss "discovers" that some people are just plain no good, no matter what you do for or to them. To illustrate this point, Hoss describes how an imate in a neighboring cell described a burglary, when the inmate bragged of not only killing the parents & servant, but also killed two small children. Hoss describes himself as being so outraged, he wanted to kill that other inmate--only the bars of his cell prevented him. On another occasion, entertainment troupe presented a show for the inmates, including a woman singer. Hoss was so moved by the beauty of her voice, that the walls of the prison fell away--then, as soon as she was finished, Hoss quotes another inmate murmuring to his neighbor how the inmate wanted to steal the jewels the singer was wearing. Again, Hoss was outraged: That inmate, at a time of transcendent beauty, could only think of stealing. Incorrigible. Nothing to do with those kinds of people--which is why the camps were necessary. Everybody that was sent to Auschwitz was an irredeemably bad person, according to the Kommandant. Now, if we are to believe the helpless rage of the imprisoned Hoss over the deaths of babies & imagined thefts of singer's jewelry, what are we to think of the countless children and innumerable "thefts" that occured under Hoss's own command? Nothing--that's what. Because Hoss doesn't see the contridiction. Hoss writes of an Auschwitz that is a summer camp for poor people, with a scarcity of supplies due to factors outside of his control--and yet through heroic efforts of administration on his part, the camp functioned. Meanwhile, out the other side of his mouth, Hoss can't help but brag on the numbers of "enemies" who perished inside the camp. Hoss saw himself as fighting a war, a war against the internal enemies of the Reich, of humanity. To the extent there were "problems" at Auschwitz, Hoss sees himself a victim of poor administration by his superiors. The camp is flooded with more & more prisoners, but less and less supplies. Not surprisingly, Hoss neglects to mention that he and his family managed to live very well on black market proceeds from supplies stolen from the prisoners. Poo Hoss is also cursed with incompetent subordinates, such as SS Captain Karl Fritzsch. Hoss dismisses Fritzsch as having "limited intelligence." Moreover, Fritzsch constantly issued orders that were the "opposite" of Hoss's own views. Fritzsch also threatened & treated the prisoners badly, to the point the prisoners were afraid of Hoss: "When I tried to learn something from the prisoners directly, I always found resisitance and evasive answers. The terror that was instituted by Fritzsch in Auschwitz could not be gotten rid of!" Poor Rudolf. Hoss has the temerity to conclude "Just think how much better Auschwitz would have run without people like Fritsch." Just think! Hoss [...] prides himself on not showing emotion, no matter what happens around him. He lies without seeing how foolish his lies are. He is just following orders, because there are real enemies out there--and it is Hoss's job to do what is "best" ie what he is told..........No doubt Hoss also held an unquestioning belief that the Jewish and Roma populations had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction in violation of then current international treaties, justifying invasions of their lands.
Rating:
Summary: No Great Revelations.
Review: Remarkable primarily in the fact that it exists at all, and frankly recommended solely on that basis. The memoir of SS-Obersturmbannfuehrer Hoess will disappoint those used to the dramatics, overarching moralizations, and lurid examples of grisly sadism generally a mainstay of books on this topic (and seemingly promised by the foreward and cover blurbs). Hoess was largely a narrow-minded bureaucratic functionary, and as such transcendant revelations about his role at Auschwitz Birkenau are not forthcoming. Technically, the translation is quite sloppy in places, and there are numerous quite inexplicable German misspellings throughout.
Rating:
Summary: Insider view of concentration camp life (and death).
Review: Rudolf Hoess was captured shortly after the war and wrote this amazing collection of thoughts observations and descriptions while on trial and while waiting to be executed. Hoess explains very clearly the history, structure and mission of the camps (not just Auschwitz) to include just about every aspect, from blockleader, Kapo, guard to Kommandant, even discussing the pros and cons of using dogs as guards. His descriptions of the gassing process are spellbinding and shocking all at once, you feel almost obcene while reading them as if you were the one looking through the peep-hole in the door as these poor peole die...it is that vivid. He describes the architectural concerns that were taken into account while designing and building (book contains diagrams and photos as well) the crematoriums. He does not deny his role, but he does fall back on the old "just following orders" excuse, and saying that he was betrayed by the higher up in the Nazi party. He describes some unusual things in this book, for example, he tells of how well his children got along with the inmates, asking for cigarettes to pass out to them, he speaks of the most daring and ingenious escapes that he witnessed while while in the camps, he speaks of the difficulties that could be avoided by fooling inmates into thinking up to the last moment that they were really only going the shower, not an execution/murder, he recalls some of the most haunting words and deeds of prisoners just before the doors to the gas chamber were closed. There is one recollection that really disturbed me, it concerned a young girl who somehow survives the Cyclone-B gassing under a pile of fellow prisoners, is revived, given food and clothes only to be discovered by a guard and executed. Hoess describes fellow SS personalities from Himmler down to common guards. There are lots of other things of intrest in this book, too many to list. Hoess claims that he was beaten into his confession, yet he provides astounding details when finally given the chance to speak. He tried to change his name and hide after the war, that alone should tell you he knew he had done wrong. He does admit to being the largest mass murderer in history in this book. This is disturbing book, it will stay with you a long time after you are finished reading.
Rating:
Summary: interesting but opens the door for questions
Review: The background information on Hoess' life is interesting but the details are lacking about the day to day details about how camp life really was. Reading this, you would say that Hoess cared a great deal about prisoners but that doesn't seem to be the case. Hoess provides interesting information about other SS figures. Well worth reading but one must read other material. The foreword goes a little overboard with emotion, just give us the facts please.
Rating:
Summary: The truth still out there!!
Review: The only reason I'm writting this review is that, of my knoeledge, this biography is not actually accurate. Kommandant Rudolf Hoess (Hoss), was captured by the Soviet soldiers the same day auschwitz was liberated. He was incarcelated. During this period, Hoess was forced-obligated to write a full confessional biography about what really happened in the camp. He was brutally beaten and tortured by six officer, including a few jews every day until he stood trial at Nuremberg and was sentenced to death for the murder of 2.5 million people. During his trial, he was so tired and beaten up that what he spoke or wrote seemed unaccurate. He even spoke about an unexisting death camp named Wozer and many other topis that looked made up. For some reason, it seems that a big part of his testimony was forced to be written, and the other part fiercely accurate. In the 80's, when the soviet army released al the archival they cofiscated from the Auschwitz files...only 74.000 victims where registered and only 30.000 were Jews. Now, having information that a lot of trains and deportation to the camp were not registered, it seem that the first 4.1 million turned into 2.5 million, then into 1.1 million and now 74.000. We all know that 74.000 seems pretty low, but someone has to do the math!. Nobody, no one, not even Hoess, knows exactly how many people were murdered at Auschwitz-Bikernau. I gave it only 3 stars, because I don't know how accurate it is!...If what Hoess confessed turn out to be extremely true and wasn't manipulated and translated with false and made up material like it seems...then this book deserves a 100 stars. It's a very enjoyable book, very terrifying and still one of the biggest accounts of the biggest crime against humanity ever commited.
Rating:
Summary: Historically significant.
Review: The power of this book is beyond description. I think that Rudolph is obviously less than honest and downplays his significance in the Holocaust. The power in this book is the fact that you are reading the words, including letters, of one of the most notorious Nazi's of the war. You will be affected by this book when you are through reading.
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