HHhH

by Laurent Binet

I READ A brilliant book set against the backdrop of Heydrich’s assassination. It’s a novel written by a Czech, Jiří Weil, entitled Mendelssohn Is on the Roof. The title is taken from the first chapter, which reads almost like a joke. Some Czech workmen are on the roof of the Opera House in Prague in order to take down a statue of Mendelssohn, the composer, because he’s a Jew. The order has come directly from Heydrich, recently named Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, and a connoisseur of classical music. But there’s a whole row of statues on the roof, and Heydrich hasn’t specified which is Mendelssohn. Now, apart from Heydrich, it seems that nobody – even among the Germans – is capable of recognizing the Jewish composer. But nobody dares disturb Heydrich just for that. So the SS guards supervising the operation decide to point out the statue with the biggest nose. Well, they’re looking for a Jew, aren’t they? But – disaster! – the statue the workmen start to remove is actually Wagner!