In Norman Mailer's latest novel, "The Castle in the Forest," the famous author attempts to explain why Hitler became one of history's most evil men by examining Adolf's early childhood in Austria. The story is told, I must add, by one of Satan's devils who has been sent to "oversee" the young Hitler, as well as to orchestrate other horrors in the world of the 1890s. For fifty pages right in the middle of the novel, the author makes an abrupt shift. The devil is "transferred" to Russia in time for Nicholas II's Coronation. As baffling as this all sounds, Mailer has done his research. The facts regarding Nicholas and Alexandra are accurate, right down to their letters and diary entries. And of course, the Khodnynka Field tragedy is supposedly the work of "you know who." Some readers will find this book one of Mailer's best, although others will, at best, think it is a strangely disappointing novel, and at worst, just plain bizarre. Please note: This should be considered an "R-rated" novel.
M. Breheny
