Tuesday, July 17, 2018

THE CHILDREN OF NAZIS : THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF HIMMLER, GOERING, HOESS, MENGELE, AND OTHERS : LIVING WITH A FATHER'S MONSTROUS LEGACY
by Tania Crasnianski 

How do the sons and daughters of Nazis deal with the fact that their fathers were monstrous war criminals? Do they continue loving them or do they walk away? Can they judge a parent? As children they were unaware of what their fathers did away from home. These offspring of Himmler, Goering, Hess, Frank, Bormann, Hoess, Speer, and Mengele, were sheltered and lived a life of privilege. That would change when World War II ended with Germany's surrender and they were told of their fathers' crimes against humanity. So, how did they live (many of the descendants are still alive) knowing that they had a parent who was involved in the extermination of millions of innocent people?
The daughters remembered how much they were loved and absolutely worshiped their fathers. Some of them still do today. In their eyes, their fathers did nothing wrong. On the other hand, there are some sons who hate and totally reject their fathers. One of the most interesting aspects of all this is that most of these Nazi children did not change their names. Two of the sons have the same first name of their fathers. What a legacy!
The Children Of Nazis is most likely the first book where these eight individuals are no longer anonymous. With everything that has been written about the high-ranking Third Reich leaders, one never heard about their children. Author Tania Crasnianski delivers each portrait objectively and though at times it can be horrifying to read, you'll want to keep going on with it. These Nazis had loving relationships with their own children, but then thought nothing of killing Jewish children. To top it off, these men considered themselves to be highly moral. Incredible! 
A must read.
Highly recommended.