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Andrew Gross's novel THE ONE MAN includes many of the ingredients of a rollicking good read: a hair-raising suspenseful plot with danger at every turn, an interesting cast of characters including some based on real historical figures, and an ample supply of tugs at the heart strings. The storyline was that the US government is desperately trying to rescue Mendl, an eminent Jewish physicist who is trapped in Auschwitz. His scientific knowledge is considered essential for the US to be first to be able to manufacture an atom bomb that will provide the turning point in World War II. Nathan Blum, a young Jewish refugee from Poland who has narrowly escaped from the Nazi horrors and now works for the US intelligence service seems like the perfect candidate for the job. And if you are able to suspend belief for a few hours, the insertion of Blum into Auschwitz and his daring escape does make for exciting reading.
There are a number of other pivotal characters, including Leo, the teenager at the camp who is a master chess player with a fabulous memory and a taste for numbers, Greta, the lovely wife of the camp commandant who is cursed with a conscience, to name only two. Even President Franklin Roosevelt makes an appearance. There were also characters who a good editor might have suggested be omitted from the book because they didn't seem to advance the story. There were others who play an important role in the beginning of the novel who just seem to disappear; I found myself wondering what had happened to them.
There is simplicity in the telling of this tale – it is clear who the good guys are, and who are the evildoers. Gross does attempt to create some more complex characters in the concentration camp who do what they have to do to survive. As someone who has done a bit of reading about this period, I was disturbed that the Americans in positions of power were portrayed as being totally unaware of the extent of the genocide that was going on in Europe. There were streams of refugees coming out of Europe as well as principled diplomats that were desperately trying to inform the political leadership in the United States of how dire the situation was. Gross's portrayal of the President and his staff as being unaware of the horrors of the holocaust seems at the very least naïve.
THE ONE MAN does offer a mystery of sorts – the ending of the novel came as somewhat as a surprise. I wouldn't dream of giving it away here. Even with the flaws in the book, I found it a compelling read – a heck of yarn imperfectly told.
§ Phyllis Onstad has been a writer, editor, civil servant, teacher and voracious reader. She currently lives in the California wine country.
Reviewed by Phyllis Onstad, September 2016
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