Release Date: August 27
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The review describes an uncorrected proof. The published version may be different.
Mossad vs. Eichmann! Simon Wiesenthal! David Ben-Gurion! Isreal's toughest agents risk everything to bring down the greatest living war criminal! Finally! I've been waiting years for someone to tell this story in a teen-friendly format, and I'm grateful to Neal Bascomb for taking up the challenge.
The title of this book is truth in advertising. As a reader, you follow the effort to catch Eichmann step by step over the many years it took to bring him to face justice in Israel. You cheer when the agents get closer, grit your teeth every time Eichmann lives one more day of freedom, and recoil at the inner workings of Eichmann's mind.
Bascomb's greatest strength is his vivid snapshot characterizations. Each character is introduced carefully, with distinguishing attributes that make them stand out in the reader's mind. The frequency that the Holocaust enters into the characters' lives serves as a constant reminder of the mission's importance.
As much as I was prepared to love this book, I was still irritated by the organization and pacing of the narrative. The whole book kicks off with an intimidating character list, followed by a cryptic prologue. It's a shame that these two obstacles come first, because I can see many middle school readers giving up before they reach the first chapter. The first chapter is one of the strongest points of the whole book, so why not lead with that? Structurally, this is a cops-and-robbers story. Extra front matter just clouds the narrative.
If a character list is necessary, I would rather see it as an appendix or parsed out at the chapter heads as in Bomb. The prologue is more confusing than suspenseful and should just be deleted.
The stretch of narrative between the beginning of Chapter 2 and Harel's spine-tingling speech at the end of Chapter 7 is very frustrating. Anyone who's seen the front cover of the book knows that the Israelis will eventually go after Eichmann, but here they have to plow through chapter after chapter of indecision. There's so little tension that the book loses connection with the audience. I am especially frustrated, because I wanted to love this book so much, and the problem looks to be easily fixable.
I don't know how I'm supposed to feel during these meandering chapters. How about some chapter titles? You could go with picaresque (In which Bauer scours the world for a team to hunt down a war criminal) or noirish (TRAINING THE JUSTICE-HUNTERS). Either one would impart a sense of movement to the narrative.
More importantly, there is excellent material on the bad guys that Bascomb holds back for much too long. Details about the lies and manipulations within the Eichmann family would make him seem like more of a threat and less of an impotent old man. Description of ongoing sympathy for Nazis within the Argentine government would create more suspense over whether the spies will be caught. Linking international threats to Israeli identity to the Holocaust would give more urgency to the mission. Finally, details about Argentine Neonazi gangs and the Eichmann sons' potential for participation in them would greatly boost the atmosphere of threat and evil. Any of these elements, judiciously used, would compel readers more urgently through those early chapters.
The payoff begins at the end of Chapter 7. The mission to capture Eichmann is described with depth, precision, and energy. The portion on the safe house was especially shocking, and it gave the entire book additional weight and purpose. I hope that readers persevere through the early chapters to arrive at this, the meat of the book.
The portion about the airplane started off weak. Again, I couldn't see how the mission was threatened. It seemed like Mossad overpreparing for something that was not going to be that hard. Gradually, Bascomb introduces information about the Tacuara Neonazi gang and the Argentine police's inclination to help Eichmann. This, paired with the Holocaust stories of the flight crew, boosts the urgency effectively. I just wish these elements had been pushed right at the beginning of the plane portion, and not closer to the end.
The closing chapters of this book are resonant and powerful. As I have claimed throughout this review, the material of this book is top-notch and long overdue. I only wish it had been organized and presented in a manner that would be accessible to the greatest possible number of readers.
If you love justice, then go find this book at The Blue Manatee or your nearest independent bookseller!
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