Synopses & Reviews
Dieter Schlesaks haunting novel The Druggist of Auschwitz—beautifully translated from the German by John Hargraves—is a frighteningly vivid portrayal of the Holocaust as seen through the eyes of criminal and victim alike.
Adam, known as “the last Jew of Schäßburg,” recounts with disturbing clarity his imprisonment at the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp. Through Adams fictional narrative and excerpts of actual testimony from the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial of 1963-65, we come to learn of the true-life story of Dr. Victor Capesius, who, despite strong friendships with Jews before the war, quickly aided in and profited from their tragedy once the Nazis came to power. Interspersed with historical research and the authors face-to-face interviews with survivors, the novel follows Capesius from his assignment as the “sorter” of new arrivals at Auschwitz—deciding who will go directly to the gas chamber and who will be used for labor—through his life of lavish wealth after the war to his arrest and eventual trial.
Schlesaks seamless incorporation of factual data and testimony—woven into Adams dreamlike remembrance of a world turned upside down—makes The Druggist of Auschwitz a vital and unique addition to our understanding of the Holocaust.
Review
"Like the novels of W.G. Sebald...[The Druggist of Auschwitz] will fill you with despair and rage and terrible shame at the infinite ingenuity of human cruelty. By steeling himself not to flinch before the hideous reality of the Holocaust, Schlesak has created a beautiful book." The Seattle Times
Review
"That Dieter Schlesak could write this novel in what Adam calls the executioner's language serves as some small triumph. That he could look at all of this with a clear eye and help the reader to do the same is a major triumph." Alan Cheuse, NPR
Review
"Dieter Schlesak not only has created a shattering work of great literary power and authenticity...but also sheds light on the relationship between perpetrators and their victims." Claus Stephani, David: Jüdische Kulturzeitschrift (Austria)
Review
"Yet simply to dismiss the possibility of a 'second Holocaust,' to say confidently that it can't happen here, is to court inner doubts and reproaches. What could be more shameful than to follow in the footsteps of those German Jews we read about so often, with their super-patriotism and super-assimilation -- attempts at camouflage that were doubly disgraceful for being so totally ineffective? This dialectic of fear and guilt and suspicion makes it very difficult to see the Holocaust objectively -- which is one reason, perhaps, why many Jewish scholars have devoted their careers to doing exactly that." Adam Kirsch, The New Republic (Read the entire New Republic review)
Synopsis
Dieter Schlesak's haunting novel
The Druggist of Auschwitz — beautifully translated from the German by John Hargraves — is a frighteningly vivid portrayal of the Holocaust as seen through the eyes of criminal and victim alike.
Adam, known as "the last Jew of Schasburg," recounts with disturbing clarity his imprisonment at the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp. Through Adam's fictional narrative and excerpts of actual testimony from the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial of 1963-65, we come to learn of the true-life story of Dr. Victor Capesius, who, despite strong friendships with Jews before the war, quickly aided in and profited from their tragedy once the Nazis came to power. Interspersed with historical research and the author's face-to-face interviews with survivors, the novel follows Capesius from his assignment as the "sorter" of new arrivals at Auschwitz — deciding who will go directly to the gas chamber and who will be used for labor — through his life of lavish wealth after the war to his arrest and eventual trial.
Schlesak's seamless incorporation of factual data and testimony — woven into Adam's dreamlike remembrance of a world turned upside down — makes The Druggist of Auschwitz a vital and unique addition to our understanding of the Holocaust.
Synopsis
The Druggist of Auschwitz is a frighteningly vivid portrayal of the Holocaust as seen through the eyes of criminal and victim alike. Adam, "the last Jew of
Schäßburg," recounts with disturbing clarity his imprisonment at the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp. Through his fictional narrative and excerpts of actual testimony at the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial of 1963--1965, we come to learn the true-life story of Dr. Victor Capesius, who, despite strong friendships with Jews, was quick to profit from their tragedy once the Nazis came to power. Interspersed with historical research and interviews with actual survivors,
The Druggist of Auschwitz is a vital and unique addition to our understanding of the Holocaust.
About the Author
Dieter Schlesak is a German-Romanian poet, novelist, and essayist. He is a member of the German PEN Center and the PEN Centre of German-Speaking Writers Abroad, and has received scholarships and awards from numerous organizations, including the Schiller Foundation and the University of Bucharest. Schlesak was born in Transylvania in 1934 and has lived in Italy and Germany since 1973.
John Hargraves has taught German literature at Yale University and Connecticut College. He is the author of Music in the Works of Broch, Mann, and Kafka and has translated works by Hermann Broch and Elias Canetti, among others. His translation of Michael Krügers novel The Executor was awarded the Helen and Kurt Wolff Translators Prize. Hargraves lives in Manhattan and Connecticut.