Jay Neugeboren

Years ago, Dr. Eduard Bloch, an Austrian-Jewish physician, had attended Adolf Hitler's family, including the future dictator's dying mother. Now living in retirement/exile in New York City, the elderly doctor writes in his journal regarding his memories of young Hitler and his own growing involvement with Elizabeth, a divorced medical illustrator with a misunderstood, most likely autistic, son. Dr. Bloch is well aware that some pundits attribute Hitler's hatred of Jews to his dissatisfaction with Dr. Bloch; the doctor is out to set the record straight.

The characters in this novel, especially Dr. Bloch, are supposed to be erudite, but they come across as pompous and overbearing. The various plot strands (concerning Elizabeth’s father’s disappearance and her son’s escape from a mental institution) are uninvolving as well. From its unimaginative title to its vague ending, this novel just didn't work for me.… (more)