Forgotten Holocaust has become a classic of World War II literature. As Norman Davies noted; “Dr. Richard Lukas has rendered a valuable service; by showing that no one can properly analyze the fate of one ethnic community in occupied Poland without referring to the fates of others. In this sense; The Forgotten Holocaust is a powerful corrective.†The third edition includes a new preface by the author; a new foreword by Norman Davies; a short history of ZEGOTA; the underground government organization working to save the Jews; and an annotated listing of many Poles executed by the Germans for trying to shelter and save Jews.
#2811009 in Books 2005-11-01 2005-11-01Format: International EditionOriginal language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.27 x 1.13 x 6.35l; #File Name: 0771095775368 pages
Review
10 of 12 people found the following review helpful. Half the story; but a well-written halfBy Sergey RadchenkoThe book is a gripping account of espionage investigation and the political fallout from Igor Gouzenko's defection to Canada in September 1945. Knight argues that the Gouzenko case triggered a change of public perception of the Soviet Union; from that of a wartime ally to that of a deceitful enemy. This change of perception; and the political outrage in the West over Soviet espionage; precipitated anti-communist hysteria in the US and became the opening act of the drama of the Cold War.Knight's analysis is certainly interesting; placing her clearly in the ranks of revisionist historians (those inclined to blame the US for the Cold War). Her research is very impressive; recently declassified Canadian materials are consulted at great length. On the other hand; the Russian side of the story is inadequately covered. Knight resorts here to a few articles or interviews by former Soviet intelligence officers; omitting archival evidence altogether.Granted; as she quickly points out in the beginning; archival access in Russia remains problematic; and Gouzenko files at the GRU archive are certainly out of reach. But other archives (e.g. the Foreign Ministry; RGASPI) are more or less open to researchers; and Knight's omissions are regrettable.As matters stand; only half Gouzenko's story is told in the book; the other - the Russian half - still remains to be written. Still; Gouzenko's life and times are examined in great detail. Knight shows something of an ambivalent feeling towards Gouzenko's personality; admiring him for courage but censuring him for egoism and arrogance.The one important problem that is barely mentioned in the book is Stalin's policy in the early years of the Cold War. Only once does Knight offer her opinion about the underlying motivations of Soviet foreign policy - i.e. that Stalin wanted to cooperate with the West *before* Hiroshima - but this important observation is not buttressed by any evidence; except for a reference to the Zubok/Pleshakov book (Inside the Kremlin's Cold War).And yet; Stalin's side of the story is exceptionally important; for if he ruled out cooperation with the West in the aftermath of Hiroshima; then did it really matter what Gouzenko did; or what Washington witch-hunters thought - the Cold War had already begun! The book's title is "How the Cold War began"; but certainly without a greater examination of the Soviet side of the Cold War; we can never really tell how it all began. Nevertheless; it is an interesting book; well worth reading; well-written; full of insights and pertinent information.Also; towards the end the author defends Alger Hiss (arguing that he was not a Soviet spy); though she does not really offer much evidence to undermine the well-known public prejudice to the contrary.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Eye-opening!By Daniel SokolovA fascinating account of politics; political crimes; ineptitude; infighting; haplessness; confusion; and; yes; espionage and counterespionage. Before I forget: A couple Soviets are mentioned as well. :-)29 of 34 people found the following review helpful. RevisionismBy maskirovkaI looked this book over at Borders and decided not to buy it when I saw that the author claims that the jury is still out on whether Alger Hiss was a Soviet spy. Frankly; it's my opinion that the Venona decrypts of KGB messages during the World War II era have pretty much settled this issue. Hiss was a spy and so were a number of other people that Ms. Knight seems to assert "reasonable doubt on."Also; the assertion by her that the Gouzenko case marred amicable relations with the Soviet Union after World War II is ludicrous. To use Marxist terminology; that alliance collapsed of its own contradictions (democracies allied with expansionist totalitarian regime). Also; setting aside the Hiss and Harry Dexter White Cases; Venona indisputably proves that the Soviets were running an extremely aggressive intelligence collection program in the West of a scope and nature that is not normally associated with friendly intent.So I would give this a pass; but if you have to read it; you should also check out a book called "the FBI-KGB War" by Robert Lamphere. Lamphere was an FBI agent deeply involved in many of the cases that this book discusses and in my opinion; he has a lot clearer view of reality than Ms. Knight.
