The One Man

I received an ARC of The One Man by Andrew Gross for review.

To sum up before I start: WOW! WHAT A BOOK! It is so good that I wrote it in as my vote for book of the year on Goodreads.com.

Most who read my reviews know I am not given to hyperbole, but this book is awesome. It is not an easy read in that it deals with a very gruesome topic; the Nazi death camps of WWII.

I don't generally read books of this type because, I know that what happened in these camps was one of the great examples of mans inhumanity to man (to put it into sanitized language) and I don't really need to spend time there in my reading. More real is that it represents the most horrific evil most people can imagine. Enough commentary, back to the book.

With The One Man, Andrew Gross has written a story of history, action, despair, cruelty, love and honor. In his authors note, Gross explains how the book is fiction yet based on true events and people. Even the knowledge of this after the fact, did not change the effect the book had on me; I was that moved. Not having experienced any such place, nor talking with anyone who has (I met a woman once who had a number tattooed on her forearm. She admitted it was from a concentration camp, but wouldn't talk any more about it), I can't speak to the accuracy of the account of life in Auschwitz, but the images of horror presented, burn those images into the readers mind.

Our hero (faint praise) Nathan, a Polish Jew, infiltrates Auschwitz to rescue a physicist. Okay, that is the main story line. The stories that intertwine are incredibly moving. The ideals of honor, and love are so well developed, they just blew me away. There is political intrigue, military action, espionage, even a little sex. You should read The One Man for yourself to see how it all works out, I think you'll be surprised.

Gross's characters are very well developed, even the Germans are portrayed (for the most part) as humans, some conflicted about their actions. Not to say the author lets them off easy, but I didn't read the story as anti-German or even pro-Jew. It is a tale of honor in a time where to abandon ones personal honor would be the easy way to go. At its core The One Man is a story of family honor and is decidedly uplifting in the final analysis (deep, huh?).

But seriously; If you are up for a powerful story that will move you emotionally (it sure did me), I strongly recommend The One Man by Andrew Gross. You won't be disappointed. Even though it may sound a little strange, I still close with; Enjoy!

Mike