Merciful Zeus. It's almost enough to make me wish I were a Christian, just so that I could believe in a special hell for some people. I can see why it was cathartic to write. I read a lot of WWII history and stories like this are harrowing but (I think) so important. They carry so many crucial lessons: about not closing your eyes to evil, yes, but also about the desperate danger inherent in marginalizing or demonizing a subgroup of people. Once you convince yourself that another group of people is less than human, you can do anything to them with a clear conscience. And that's the most horrifying thing of all...