The Private Lives of the Auschwitz SS

A look at the perpetrators of the Auschwitz crimes from a new, little-known, and sometimes surprising perspective. The book contains selected accounts by Polish women who worked in the homes of officers and enlisted men from hte Auschwitz SS garnison. Each text vividly describes the family life and domestic relations that prevailed in the homes of these SS men. Specific fragments of the book: "At home, Hoess was ideal. He loved the children. He liked to lie down with them on the sofa in their room. He kissed them, caressed them, and talked to them in a lovely way. Past the threshold of the house he changed totally. He never said a word to me." - Danuta Rzempiel "Scholz seemed to be satisfied with his position. He was the lord of his house. He always came home for meals, which he wanted to be served to him in the dining room, and he checked that the tablecloth was changed for a clean one every day." - Weronika Chorąży "For me, the most unpleasant work was shining Frank's boots. To me, they stank of corpses. Once they had some visitors, and Frank took them for a tour of the camp. When they came back I was supposed to clean all their shoes, but I couldn't do the job because the shoes were so stinking that I had to turn away and kept feeling nauseous. Frau Frank even got angry with me for taking so long with the shoes when she needed me. She seemed not to understand many things." - Alfreda Babiuch