A terrible darkness has fallen upon Jacob Weisz’s beloved Germany. The Nazi regime, under the leadership of Adolf Hitler, has surged to power and now hold Germany by the throat. All non-Aryans—especially Jews like Jacob and his family—are treated like dogs.
When tragedy strikes during one terrible night of violence, Jacob flees and joins rebel forces working to undermine the regime. But after a raid goes horribly wrong, Jacob finds himself in a living nightmare—trapped in a crowded, stinking car on the train to the Auschwitz death camp.
As World War II rages and Hitler begins implementing his “final solution” to systematically and ruthlessly exterminate the Jewish people, Jacob must rely on his wits and a God he’s not sure he believes in to somehow escape from Auschwitz and alert the world to the Nazi’s atrocities before Fascism overtakes all of Europe. The fate of millions hangs in the balance.
My review:
This was a fantastic, yet sobering read. Rosenberg has again written a masterpiece of a story, this time about the death camp at Auschwitz. Although the story is fictional, it is based on real events and people. I was again horrified as I read of the atrocities done on so many Jews by a madman determined to wipe all Jews off the face of the earth.
I again found myself wondering how so much of the world sat idly by as these events happened. I wondered why the USA didn't intervene sooner.
This was a book that was hard to read. While it described some terrible things that were done at the death camp, it was also interesting and gripping. I liked the characters he created who had to daily deal with the trials of living in a death camp that was intended to kill them all. I saw how evil can so easily prosper when good men do nothing. I saw how easily people can be convinced that evil politicians are not up to no good, when indeed they are.
Although this is a fictional book, it should be a warning to us all that our own country could be that way some day. We are headed there more and more each day, and just like there were people back then who did not believe the things they heard, there are countless people today who refuse to hear the bad thing they favorite politician has done and is up to. It is true we are bound to repeat history if we do not repeat it.
This was a darker read than I normally enjoy, but it was definitely worth reading, and I highly recommend it.
About the author:
Joel C. Rosenberg is the New York Times bestselling author of eight novels—The Last Jihad, The Last Days, The Ezekiel Option, The Copper Scroll, Dead Heat, The Twelfth Imam, The Tehran Initiative, and The Damascus Countdown—and five nonfiction books, Epicenter, Inside the Revolution, Implosion,Israel at War, and The Invested Life, with nearly 3 million copies sold. The Ezekiel Option received the Gold Medallion award as the "Best Novel of 2006" from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. Joel is the producer of two documentary films based on his nonfiction books. He is also the founder of The Joshua Fund, a nonprofit educational and charitable organization to mobilize Christians to "bless Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus" with food, clothing, medical supplies, and other humanitarian relief.
As a communications advisor, Joel has worked with a number of U.S. and Israeli leaders, including Steve Forbes, Rush Limbaugh, Natan Sharansky, and Benjamin Netanyahu. As an author, he has been interviewed on hundreds of radio and TV programs, including ABC's Nightline, CNN Headline News, FOX News Channel, The History Channel, MSNBC, The Rush Limbaugh Show, The Sean Hannity Show, and The Glenn Beck Show. He has been profiled by the New York Times, the Washington Times, the Jerusalem Post, and World magazine. He has addressed audiences all over the world, including those in Israel, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Russia, and the Philippines. He has also spoken at the White House, the Pentagon, and to members of Congress.
In 2008, Joel designed and hosted the first Epicenter Conference in Jerusalem. The event drew two thousand Christians who wanted to "learn, pray, give, and go" to the Lord's work in Israel and the Middle East. Subsequent Epicenter Conferences have been held in San Diego (2009); Manila, Philippines (2010); Philadelphia (2010); Jerusalem (2011); and Albuquerque, New Mexico (2012). The live webcast of the Philadelphia conference drew some thirty-four thousand people from more than ninety countries to listen to speakers such as Israeli Vice Prime Minister Moshe Ya'alon; pastors from the U.S., Israel, and Iran; Lt. General (ret.) Jerry Boykin; Kay Arthur; Janet Parshall; Tony Perkins; and Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of one of the founders of Hamas who has renounced Islam and terrorism and become a follower of Jesus Christ and a friend of both Israelis and Palestinians.
The son of a Jewish father and a Gentile mother, Joel is an evangelical Christian with a passion to make disciples of all nations and teach Bible prophecy. A graduate of Syracuse University with a BFA in filmmaking, he is married, has four sons, and lives near Washington, D.C.
To visit Joel's weblog—or sign up for his free weekly "Flash Traffic" e-mails—please visit
www.joelrosenberg.com.
Please also visit these other websites:
and Joel's "Epicenter Team" and the Joel C. Rosenberg public profile page on Facebook.
Auschwitz Escape is available from Tyndale Publishing.
I bought the book, and posted a review of my own accord.
I did love the book and couldn't put it down until I finished it. A truly great read.
