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13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Great beginning but tedious reading afterwards, April 11, 2004
I really hate to criticize another man's work, but when buying a book is involved, the reader should know what he's getting into before he invests his time & money in it. That being said, I think Mr. Bower put a lot of time and effort into this book, and it shows with the numerous first-rate sources he quotes from. Unfortunately, the story itself could have been presented in a more user-friendly manner. I found the first 100-150 pages fascinating--I had no idea how sympathetic the Swiss were with the Nazis and how they turned their backs on the Nazis' victims. What was even more appaling was the Swiss behavior after the war: refusing to give back the looted money, heirless assets or even acknowledge they did anything wrong. But the 50 years between the war's end and the book's end could be summed up in one sentence: people asked the Swiss to right their wartime wrongs and the Swiss refused. Maybe it's because I never cared for legal dramas but it just seemed like he went on and on, page after page of American accusations and Swiss denials. It made the book a difficult read and not something I looked forward to opening again. At the same time it is a little biased--it is told primarily from the "crusaders'" point of view. Very rarely does he flesh out Switzerland's position or make enough distinction that this was mostly a crime of the Swiss Bankers and not the Swiss Government or the citizens themselves. Even so, it is difficult to have any pity for the Swiss after reading this, and you will cringe anytime you hear the words "Swiss neutrality." The Swiss were hardly neutral in the war. However, the book did have one positive side--by the time you get to the last chapter you are so frustrated that you are genuinely mad at the Swiss and feel a personal sense of justice when they are willing to own up to their actions. Unfortunately the book ends abruptly and you don't get a true feeling of resolution...but at the same time I'm glad I learned a lot about this often-forgotten chapter of the 20th century. However, I think there are many other books on the subject that should be looked at first...with all due respect to the author.
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10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Surprising, Well-Written Expose Of Swiss Complicity In WWII, June 12, 2002
Over the last decade much has been written regarding the wanton theft of money, precious stones and metals, and other treasures and loot during the Second World War by both the Nazis and the Swiss bankers who helped finance the German war effort. This interesting and fact-filled book by author Tom Bower details the horrifying facts surrounding the multitude of ways in which Jews and other victims of the Nazi regime were fleeced, both by the Nazi authorities in the first place, and then by a plethora of other villains after the fact. Particularly distasteful are the ways in which victims of the Holocaust were manipulated, tricked, or forced into giving all they had in an attempt to save themselves and their families, only to find they were both swindled of the valuables in the first place, and then betrayed and sent to the death camps after so doing. On many levels then, this is a shocking account of the plethora of ways in which those lost in the Holocaust were victimized. The primary story here is the well-documented system developed and employed by the Swiss banking systems to garner the money deposited by Jews and other potential victims attempting to flee fascism, and to then safeguard it against any and all attempts to withdraw the money by the legitimate survivors of those victims. At base, this is the story of the craven and deliberate theft of what is most likely many billions of dollars by the Swiss, who have stonewalled attempts to give some kind of accounting for the money and other valuables left behind by the Holocaust victims. It is, by the way, also the story of a small group of dedicated lawyers, accountants, and other professionals to force the Swiss into accounting for the money and compensating the families of the victims, even though it is clear that there is no way all of the money can ever be accounted for, or, for that matter, ever returned. Given this situation, then, what his book represents is the last grisly chapter in the history of the Holocaust, a chapter in which memories and dignities are shattered and held up to ridicule by bankers more interested in their own financial gains than in a fair accounting of the facts. Bower provides a stunning description of the truly despicable behavior displayed by the Swiss, and their nefarious role in denying victims' families knowledge about or access to any of the funds left in their care. He also describes a wide variety of ways in which the Swiss betrayed their pose of studied neutrality during the war by actively providing goods, materials, and money to the Germans, all of which aided and abetted the German war effort against the Allies. This book is scrupulously researched, meticulously documented, and carefully described, and as a result gives the reader a much better appreciation for the true nature of Swiss involvement was both during the war and thereafter. This is an interesting and worthwhile book, and one that I recommend to students of 20th century history. Enjoy!
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12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Well written, but a little drawn out., May 14, 2000
Bower writes a good book. The first 150 pages are very interesting. Here, Bower deals with Swiss complicity with Nazi Germany. The Swiss sold to Nazi Germany nearly a billion dollars in armaments, ballbearing and other materiel to support the German war machine. As a result, the Swiss may have prolonged the war by supporting the hard pressed Nazi war machine. In addition, we see what slimy, robber barons the Swiss bankers were. Jews, whose family members had accounts in Swiss banks (and whose parents died in the camps) find themselves turned away by callous Swiss bankers. We also learn how the Communists in Poland tried to gain capital by claiming the funds of Polish Jews who perished in the Holocaust. The Polish Communists, who would persecute Jews and expel their Jews in the 60's still wanted their cash! So, this and many other interesting points come out. Still, after about 150 pages, the book drags. Accordingly, I would read the first 150 pages. Then I would skip to the end to of the book to read about Edgar Bronfman's efforts on behalf of Jews who had money in Switzerland. Overall, a well researched book on the perfidities of the Swiss banks, but a little too long. Last but not least, this book convinced me (someone who was initially against going after the Swiss Banks, and a Jew for that matter) that the Swiss Banks should be held accountable for these crimes, and should pay some amount of restitution. Whether the survivors will get a cent after taxes and legal fees is another matter.
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