Children of the Flames: Dr. Josef Mengele and the Untold Story of the Twins of Auschwitz

Rating:
Summary: Compelling, moving
Review: A fascinating account of Nazi "scientist" and "doctor" Josef Mengele, who cheerfully "selected" thousands of Jews, Gypsies, and other people for quick death (gas chambers) or slow death (by exhaustion, malnutrition, and the filthy conditions) at Auschwitz, and who performed pseudoscientific "experiments" on many human prisoners, especially twin children. Delving into Mengele's past, as an endearing child known as "Beppo", and his life after the war (unrepetant to the end) the authors have created a fascinating portrait of this complex, twisted man. Juxtaposed with Mengele's story are the stories of the few twins who survived the experiments at Auschwitz. I found it especially poignant to see the contrast between Mengele's relatively easy life after the war--he used his family's wealth to start a successful business in South America and hobnobbed with other members of the South American Nazi "elite", and the lives of the twins after the war--most of them lost their families and lived in severe poverty, as well as being haunted throughout their lives by the horrors they suffered at Auschwitz. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: A SAD ACCOUNT BUT, NONETHELESS, A TRUE ACCOUNT
Review: Both my parents served in the armed forces overseas during World War II, and it was through them, as a young adult, I heard of the "children of the flames" and the horrors of the concentration camps. When the book was first published, it caught my attention for that very reason. "Children of the Flames" is not an easy book to read simply because of the subject matter. However, the authors have managed to relate the story in a way that tells of the evil acts committed but in as diplomatic a manner as possible. The attrocities are almost too bloodcurdling to conceive. For me, it was impossible to read "Children of the Flames" in one sitting, especially the interviews which actually describe life and the experiments at Auschwitz.

This is the story of Josef Mengele and his "children of Auschwitz". Selecting primarily twins (or others who caught his eye) from the multitudes of Jews headed for the gas chambers, Mengele used these innocent children to satisfy his own perverse needs, all in the name of research, as human guinea pigs for his own horrendous experiments. The book is based upon interviews with survivors of Mengele's twins, and the reader will quickly discover, there are few survivors. The interviews tell the life of survivors before capture, during their time at Auschwitz and after their release. Almost all victims have had a lifetime of horrific, unending nightmares except those who cannot remember. Those who cannot remember, and there are few, are perhaps blessed with the body's unique defence system to block out that which is too unbearable and too painful to remember.

It has been over fifty years since the Holocaust, but it will forever remain a part of our history. Perhaps we owe it to the survivors of the Holocaust, and the families of those who did not survive, to honour their memory by a book such as this. For those of us who were born after World Ward II, the book will give the reader a deeper appreciation of the freedom we have today in North America.

Rating:
Summary: A page-turner
Review: Interweaving quotes from twin-survivors about their stories both during and after Auschwitz with Dr. Mengele's own biography, the authors have created a truly compelling narrative. Their central thesis -- that Mengele's obsession with twins derived from the fact that in personality he was a "twin" with angelic and sadistic sides -- is a fascinating one. Moreover, the authors are skillful in presenting anecdotes about the twin's lives that contrast with or even mirror times in Dr. Mengele's own life: i.e., the twins are desperate to leave Europe for Israel after the war; Mengele is desperate to leave Europe for South America; the twins live in broken health; Mengele becomes a hypochondriac. Thus, there is always a rich subtext to simple "stories" about the twins' lives.

Moreover, there is nothing gruesome about the book; it avoids detailed accounts of the substance of the experiments, but simply makes the point that the countless procedures performed had no medical value, and were not understood by the twins themselves.

Truly excellent and original.

Rating:
Summary: True but Gruesome stories
Review: This book is definitely a fiery book, containing gruesome stories, accounts of horrid crimes, and documents of the life of Dr. Josef Mengele. This book is very deep and goes into detail of the life before the Holocaust, during the Holocaust, and after the Holocaust. This book is a must read, but may be very inappropriate for children under 13. I rate this book a 4 out of 5, due to the content and graphic images painted into my head.