Customer Reviews

Christ in Dachau

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Father Lenz states in Christ In Dachau's forward that "this book lays no great claim to literary merit." Unfortunately, this admonition is not a statement of humility. To put it kindly, Fr. Lenz under-emphasizes structure while telling his account. A particular person's story begins on one page, disappears for a time while Fr. Lenz explores another theme, then reappears pages later (possibly to be concluded, or to disappear again for another few pages). When such a characteristic is combined with poor sentence structure and the compromises that normally occur with a translation, one can confirm that this book was written by an amateur.

Fortunately, the emotion behind the story is not diminished by the poor writing. Fr. Lenz movingly depicts the daily struggles and commonplace horrors that existed at Dachau during his imprisonment. This uncompromising portrayal educates the reader, as well as serves as a fitting memorial to the prisoners and their faith.

My only regret when I recently toured Dachau was that I wasn't able to meet a survivor and hear their recollections. Thanks to Fr. Lenz, I now feel I have addressed that regret. Christ in Dachau is necessary reading for anyone who wishes to learn about either this dark period in humanity's history or the power of faith to sustain a person.

This book is a true story of faith and courage. It was all I expected and more. Most people do not know that Hitler hated the clergy and religious as much as he did the Jews. This story has special meaning for me since I have been to Dachau. A must for all believers.