The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World

Jonathan Freedland has written a compelling account of the extraordinary life of Rudolf Vrba. The narrative starts in Nazi dominated Slovakia, continues through German prison camps, ending with the post-escape period of Vrba’s life. The account of the brutality he witnessed and experience in Auchwitz and Birkenau is graphic and haunting. Nevertheless, his strength of mind and spirit of self preservation did not break. Would I recommend this book? Yes, with the caveat that the reader should be aware that the narrative contains detail that is at times horrifying; certainly, this book is not for everyone.

The first half of this book was as I expected…..a harrowing account of survival in a nazi death camp. It was well written and humbling yet exciting at the same time. I felt that the actual escape was somewhat glossed over. It was, after all, a tremendously brave feat. The second half of the book lets it down. Yes, there was obviously some blame in both the Jewish hierarchy and the leaders of the Allied nations to act quicker. A point well made but which the author tends to repeat and get bogged down for several chapters. As for the later part the protagonist comes across as quite an unpleasant character. Whether this was as a result of his suffering and what he saw in the camp, or, he was always like that and that helped him survive, is a point of debate. Nevertheless an eye-opening read.

I very much doubt there were many prisoners in not just Auschwitz, but many of the camps that were around during the war that managed to escape as well as live to tell the tale. Whilst Rudolf hasn’t told his story himself, the author spoke to his wives as well as went through documentation and letters from Rudolf’s personal possessions to be able to give a detailed account of this incredible man’s life. A good part of the novel is the time leading up to the escape from the camp where we get to know more about Rudolf in the time leading up to being a prisoner as well as his time in the camp where he met his first love as well as his friend that escaped the camp with him. If you have read numerous books on the holocaust and WW2, you would think that there is nothing else that could shock you anymore as you have already read of all the horrors that went on in the camps but sadly there were things within these pages that still shocked and horrified me as well as new things to learn. It’s sad to see the effect that it all has on Rudolf. He has a great lack of trust in anyone which is understandable to a certain degree after what he has been through but this lack of trust ruins his relationships as well as friendships. He was an integral part of bringing quite a few perpetrators to justice and was called as a witness during many trials. The Escape Artist is a harrowing yet informative read that is a must for anyone interested in non fiction, especially to do with WW2 and the holocaust. I was surprised at how much more I learned about that time in history from reading this book. Some parts are certainly not easy to digest but overall it is a compelling story of one man’s journey that needs to be seen and heard.

I'm the kind of person who learned about the Holocaust several decades ago. I went through my horrified obsession period. Nowadays I don't search out the topic. It was disgraceful, disgusting, must never be forgotten, and something I didn't need to read about. Until The Escape Artist changed my mind. First of all, it's not "just" a holocaust book. It's about an incredible man and his quest to escape Auschwitz and tell the world. Second, we learn through the eyes of our flawed hero Rudolf Vrba the facts and details of the Nazi slave camps and their death camps. Following his discoveries brings them fresh and sharp into the heart. Third, the book follows his attempts to bring the truth to the world, and his infuriating, frustrating, failures. In doing so Freedland is both forgiving of human frailties while leaving the reader to condemn. Truth, information, action. As authoritarianism and the climate crisis loom, the careful, sensitive yet fiery way Freedland explores the connection between these three words - as his hero did thoughout his troubled and vibrant life - is a powerful lesson to us all. A classic.

Jonathan Freedland's book, "The Escape Artist," presents the story of Walter Rosenberg (who later changed his name to Rudolf Vrba), a teenaged Slovakian Jewish lad, who suffered the indignities inflicted by the Nazi governments that took over Hitler's annexed areas. At first, Jews lost their right to education, to own property, to move about freely, and were forced to wear Yellow Stars. Then in February of 1942, Walter received notice that all Jews aged 16 to 30 were being "resettled" in Poland. He tried to flee to England but was caught and assigned to a labor camp. When he escaped that camp and was caught again, he was sent to a higher security facility, the infamous Auschwitz. A great deal of the book is devoted to describing the labor assignments of men and women who were deemed fit enough to work as slaves. Although it was not an immediate realization, Walter eventually figured out that 90 percent of the Jews who departed the cattle cars that brought them to the camp were immediately killed, as soon as they could walk to the gas chambers (that were represented to them as showers). The other 10 percent were kept as slaves until death. Once Walter assessed the true purpose of the camp, he was motivated by one overwhelming desire. If only he could escape and warn the world that concentration camps were extermination camps rather than areas of resettlement, people would stop getting on the trains and walking peacefully to their deaths. Walter shrewdly learned how to gain access to the most desirable work details. When he was a sorter of the goods that the killed Jews had brought with them to camp, he could pocket some valuable materials to trade for extra food and the leverage he would gain as potential blackmail material against the SS who accepted such goods from him. I had never read such details regarding the work assignments at the concentration camps. Major corporations still in business today benefited greatly from the slave labor that built industrial complexes near the camps. At the age of 19, Walter and a companion did what no one had never done before - they actually escaped from Auschwitz after memorizing the exact protocols for searching for missing prisoners and waiting them out while hiding underneath the ground. After a treacherous journey, Walter achieved his dream. He began warning the Jews in Hungary that they were the next to be shipped to the extermination camp. Unbelievably, despite the extraordinary details that Walter had memorized, his warnings were not passed on by Jewish leaders. Even the Allies, including America and Britain, were not moved to action by Walter's written reports. Each reader will need to decide for himself if this was because Walter's story was deemed too outlandish to be believed or if there were other various unacceptable reasons for not intervening. Walter's proposed solution wa...