Family Madness [Paperback]

Thomas Keneally has added to our awareness of these conditions with A FAMILY MADNESS. Many survivors of Nazi Germany fled Europe at war's end. So much attention has been given to those who found sanctuary in South America, that we tend to forget there were other places to hide from justice. Australia was a fine refuge for many European exiles in the post-war years. But those émigrés often carried a heavy mental and emotional burden.

Rudi Kabbel, Sydney security firm owner, is one such, his father having been a police chief in Nazi- occupied Belorussia. The weight of being the son of a man who assisted with the settlement of "the Jewish problem" in his nation rests severely on him. Belorussia, the Ukraine and other Soviet Union members took the view that Jews were the foundation of the Bolshevik movement. Russia, as the driving force in expanding Communism and degrading national aspirations. These nations had engaged in pogroms against the Jews at earlier times in their history. It was no novelty to continue it under the Nazis as an element in their resistance to Russian hegemony. So Stanislaw Kabbelski willingly became an instrument against the hated enemy of Russian Communist Jewry.

Keneally's method of tracing this complex time is by the creation of a Kabbelski family history and a diary of the elder Kabbelski. The family now lives in Sydney, running the security agency. Terry Delaney, becomes involved with the Kabbels as an employee of the agency. He complicates his association by having an affair with Rudi's daughter Danielle. As their situation evolves, Delaney becomes increasingly aware of Rudi's disturbed mental state. War criminal fugitives and their families are falling under increasing scrutiny. Rudi understands that "history makes its claim - history comes up and grabs people". Now it is reaching up to seize him and his family. And Terry Delaney is being swept up in its grip.

With the blood of Irish rebels in his veins and as an ardent leader in the Australian Republican Movement, Thomas Keneally is well versed it nationalist ideals. He's expressed his ideals in fiction and autobiography. He knows how it can be expressed and what pitfalls may be encountered. He doesn't have to be Belorussian to understand the workings of the Kabbelski mind. Nor does he fall into the trap of his strong nationalist sense overlooking brutality done in its name. Keneally's sense of humanity is only excelled by his ability to relate a story with consummate skill.

Keneally's greatest talent lies in how his words can convey the thoughts of others. Here, he's given us a view of some of the hidden events of World War II. We must be grateful to him for that effort. In today's environment of numerous bushfire wars and "incidents" in the name of nationalist aspirations, this book reminds us not to be caught by accepting simple answers to complex issues. Dig deeper, he cautions. Accept no superficial evidence for there is certain to be further evidence buried away - either by design or oversight. This book carries valuable reminders for us all.