This true crime book is rather well-written for the genre. But is difficult reading, partly because we know what happened from the news stories. It is the bizarre story of how Josef Fritzl, husband, father, respectable businessman in a small city in Austria, sexually abused his daughter from the age of 11 and ultimately spent 3 years building an underground bunker where he imprisoned her for 24 years! He continued his abuse and she eventually gave birth to 7 of his children, one of whom died after three days. While one can understand the political atmosphere in which he grew up (Nazi dominated) and his over anxious, abusive, but powerful mother, his treatment of his daughter was cruel in the extreme and just plain evil. Elizabeth eventually was freed because of her daughter's illness and apparent mental breakdown and the crimes came to light. Fritzl is, of course, in prison. The amazing thing is that Elizabeth and her children are gradually healing from the horrendous ordeal he put them through. The book was copyrighted in 2009. I would be interested to know how they are doing. Highly recommended. This is a decent summary of what is known about the case. However, what is known about the case is quite limited. (The family has not done interviews.) Therefore, the scope and impact of the book is quite limited. In addition, the editing leaves a lot to be desired, as the same information is repeated on many occasions. Nevertheless, the case is so shocking that this mediocre treatment makes for fairly compelling reading anyway. Truly one of the most heinous crimes in human history.
What do You think about Secrets In The Cellar (2009)?
The most gruesome book I have ever read. Makes me believe in the death penalty!
—fullblowntechnicolor
Awesome, I really got into this book. A pretty moving story.
—Mich
Omg how anyone could do this to their own daughter
—Rodeen
From the free library at Birch Coffee.
—rohitkhandelwal828
