The Nazi Holocaust : Its History and Meaning, Revised Third Edition

In this authoritative and indispensable work, the author, a founding director of the British Holocaust Educational Project, approaches the Holocaust experience by attempting to identify the right questions and then working toward the answers and the lessons to be inferred. Here are some of his probing queries: How, why, and when did the Nazis determine a policy of total annihilation of the Jews of Europe? How are we to judge the behavior and responsibility of other groups? Why do the Jews appear to have offered so little resistance? How was it possible for such a supposedly civilized society to produce such barbarity? And is this catastrophe an incomparable and unique historical phenomenon, or is it just one case in the large category of genocide? In his answers, Landau examines the entire complex of moral, psychological, and ethical issues raised by the Holocaust. This book is essential for both Jews and non-Jews, laypersons and scholars seeking to penetrate a deeper level of meaning to this monstrous and grotesque chapter in human history.

"Brief but surprisingly comprehensive, The Nazi Holocaust places the tragedy in historical perspective, summarizes the major events, and considers the moral, ethical, and psychological issues that have followed in its wake. An outstanding introduction, clearly and intelligently written….Landau helps the reader to confront the Holocaust within the frame of human experience, on a level we can all understand." — Margot Stern Strom, Facing History and Ourselves

"Landau has undertaken a massive project in writing this work. He summarizes Jewish history from 300 B.C.E. to the Holocaust, leading the reader to the horrific consequences of the Nazi decimation of the European Jewish community. The statistics of Hitler's "final solution" are staggering but do not tell the whole story. We learn how Hitler's foreign policy was driven by his racial views and about the process that led from the dehumanization to the annihilation of the Jews. A concluding chapter assesses the aftermath of the Holocaust along with the lessons it has for us today. An extensive bibliography and appendixes add to the value of Landau's work." - Dorothy Lilly, Grosse Pointe North H.S. Lib., Gross Pointe Woods, Mich.