The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World's Most Notorious Nazi

by Neal Bascomb

Overview

A thrilling spy mission, a moving Holocaust story, and a first-class work of narrative nonfiction.

This Sydney Taylor Book Award- and YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award-winning story of Eichmann's capture is now a major motion picture starring Oscar Isaac and Ben Kingsley, Operation Finale!

In 1945, at the end of World War II, Adolf Eichmann, the head of operations for the Nazis' Final Solution, walked into the mountains of Germany and vanished from view. Sixteen years later, an elite team of spies captured him at a bus stop in Argentina and smuggled him to Israel, resulting in one of the century's most important trials -- one that cemented the Holocaust in the public imagination.

This is the thrilling and fascinating story of what happened between these two events. Illustrated with powerful photos throughout, impeccably researched, and told with powerful precision, THE NAZI HUNTERS is a can't-miss work of narrative nonfiction for middle-grade and YA readers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545431002
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	04/24/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	45,273
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

• Neal Bascomb is the author of The Nazi Hunters, winner of the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award, among numerous other awards. School Library Journal called his second young adult book, Sabotage, "excellent" in a starred review and The Grand Escape a "fantastic pick for avid history readers" also in a starred review. In addition, he is the author of six nonfiction books for adults on subjects ranging from a 1905 Russian submarine mutiny to a contemporary high school robotics team. The Perfect Mile, Winter Fortress, and Hunting Eichmann went on to be New York Times and international bestsellers. His book The Racers was named a BCCB Blue Ribbon Book and a starred review from School Library Journal called The Racers "Highly Recommended." Neal lives in Philadelphia with his family and rascal dog, Moses. Please visit his website at nealbascomb.com and follow him on Facebook @nealrbascomb.

Read an Excerpt

From THE NAZI HUNTERS:His hands numb from the cold and rain, Malkin held the binoculars up to his face. He saw a bus approach down Route 202. It stopped at the kiosk, and a man in a trench coat and hat got off.“That's him,” Shalom whispered.The sight of the lone figure walking through the driving rain burned in Malkin's mind: This was the man he had come to Argentina to capture.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for The Nazi Hunters:Winner of the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction AwardWinner of the Sydney Taylor Book Award for Teen Readers"The Nazi Hunters is a fabulously exciting piece of history that teens should know about -- and now they will! Bascomb's detailed scenes allow readers to live through this true tale of courage and daring as if they were there." -- Deborah Heiligman, Printz Honor-winning author of Charles and Emma and Intentions"I found The Nazi Hunters riveting, from its suspenseful search for Eichmann to the capture of the war criminal responsible for orchestrating the murder of eleven million people, including six million Jews. Neal Bascomb's book is incredibly well-researched and paced like an espionage thriller. The hunters' commitment to bringing Eichmann to justice is sure to captivate readers." -- Susan Campbell Bartoletti, Newbery Honor-winning author of Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow and The Boy Who Dared"From cafés in Buenos Aires to the halls of the fledgling Israeli government, from false identities to secret drops, this story has all the hallmarks of a spy novel. Bascomb has a knack for turning complex detail into a suspenseful, heart-pounding narrative." -- School Library Journal"Photographs are included throughout the text, adding not just to the evidence of Eichmann's guilt but to the reader's sense of being along on the mission." -- The Horn Book Magazine"Tension rises from the pages, thanks to Bascomb's command of pacing, judicious use of quoted material, inclusion of archival photographs and strong descriptions." -- Kirkus ReviewsPraise for Sabotage: The Mission to Destroy Hitler's Atomic Bomb:"This is an exciting and impeccably researched story of science, spies, and commando raids -- page-turning nonfiction at its best." -- Steve Sheinkin, Newbery Honor-winning author of Bomb: The Race to Build -- and Steal -- the World's Most Dangerous Weapon* "Bascomb is a master of taking complicated histories and turning them into exciting works of nonfiction... This excellent treatise on a little-known episode of World War II is a first choice." -- School Library Journal, starred review"Bascomb’s detailed narrative builds tension through each attempt, narrow escape, and comeback…vivid descriptions of the principal participants and their motivations, rigors of Norway’s climate and terrain, and the risks calculated (and those unforeseen), producing a gripping account of individual and collective heroic effort." -- Publishers Weekly"The book is enhanced by impressive supplemental material, including a helpful list of participants, photographs, maps, and an intriguing author's note. A rich, well-paced narrative." -- Kirkus Reviews"Bascomb admirably balances dramatic tension and context throughout... Sabotage will find its place in a growing body of narrative nonfiction centering on military and political history." -- Horn Book"Bascomb's clear-eyed account, helped along by photos, maps, and diagrams, of the thrilling mission and its many challenges... will handily engage teens." -- Booklist

From the Publisher

Gr 8 Up—The author of the adult book Hunting Eichmann (Houghton, 2009) tells the harrowing story of the Israeli agents responsible for tracking down Adolf Eichmann, a Nazi leader who orchestrated the extermination of six million Jews. In the years following World War II, many Jews were involved in attempts to find Nazi war criminals who had gone into hiding all over the globe and bring them to trial. Eichmann was a prime target, but no one had heard anything about him for years until an offhand comment in a letter led to a seven-year saga that involved a diverse cast including Mossad agents, regular citizens, and politicians, all with the single purpose of capturing this man. From cafés in Buenos Aires to the halls of the fledgling Israeli government, from false identities to secret drops, this story has all the hallmarks of a spy novel. Bascomb has a knack for turning complex detail into a suspenseful, heart-pounding narrative. Every face is catalogued, every procedure thoroughly outlined, every moment accounted for in this tale that requires patience and perseverance; at times it unfolds at a breakneck pace and at others, it is tantalizingly slow. The author depicts Eichmann as more than just a soulless Nazi monster and target; he is also seen as a father and husband, giving this account some balance. The depth of research in this fine work is evident in the level of information provided and in the extensive bibliography and source notes. An excellent choice for libraries looking to extend their World War II and Jewish history collections.—Jody Kopple, Shady Hill School, Cambridge, MA

School Library Journal

Adolf Eichmann was among the Gestapo war criminals who managed to escape from Europe and establish new lives in Argentina. The search for him involved an international group of Nazi hunters who left no stone unturned to determine where and how he had fled, find him and bring him to justice. The trail of the man, an exacting scheduler who oversaw the transportation of Jews to the concentration camps, went cold until one small clue led to another. He was finally traced to Argentina, captured and secretly removed to Israel for a public trial. Meticulously detailed plans with timing down to the minute involving several Israeli secret services, intelligence networks, other civilian and governmental agencies, and dedicated individuals brought him to justice. Drawing on a wealth of sources that include original interviews, Bascomb swiftly establishes background, introduces readers to the key players and takes them through the search. At any moment in the hunt something might have gone wrong, with those involved being captured as spies and allowing Eichmann to escape. Tension rises from the pages, thanks to Bascomb's command of pacing, judicious use of quoted material, inclusion of archival photographs and strong descriptions. It's nonfiction as thriller in its recounting of the actions of a midlevel, monstrous clerk and the work of a few dedicated people in delivering him to justice. (author's note, bibliography, notes, index [not seen]) (Nonfiction. 12 & up)

Kirkus Reviews