A Special Mission: Hitler's Secret Plot to Seize the Vatican and Kidnap Pope Pius XII

Soso

Good info too long, same info stated over and over again

Nice Read

Enjoyed the book great background for another good read "Hitler's Pope"

A Surprising Novelistic Rendering of a True Story

Mr. Kurzman claims that this book has been thoroughly researched and that it is entirely unfictionalized. Looking at the list of sources, which seems to include interviews with everyone still living who was at all effected by the plot, there is no reason to doubt. This makes it still more amazing that it was possible to organize this fascinating story along narrative lines. There is even included dialogue, along with in-depth exploration of the characters' motivations. Particularly good are his depictions of the denial and mixed impulses which led General Karl Wolff and his superior Heinrich Himmler to play their particular roles and may give you a momentary feeling of pity for these poor, self-deluded murderers. Kurzman hesitates to explore the thinking of Pope Pius XII himself however, offering various interpretations by others instead. This is rather peculiar, since Kurzman seems at times to be using the plots against the Vatican to excuse what many have seen as Pius's negligence during the Holocaust. Related events such as the surrender of Italy, the ransoming of Rome's Jews, and the July 20 assassination attempt are also touched upon.

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