I write this story for the man I killed and for the man I wanted to kill.
I write for the men who tried to kill me.
I write for the women who loved some part or all of me and I them.
I write for the sixth string, which my people, centuries ago, may or may not have added to an Arabic lute to create the guitar.
And I write for that guitar—my blessing, my passport, my alibi, and my curse.
So begins Nicholae, a prodigiously talented flamenco guitarist who is also, in his own words, "a liar and a fraud," as he tells his story of wandering through Europe where he trades the threat of civil war in Spain for the terrible grasp of Nazi Germany.
Armed with his guitar, a bitter family history, and unquenchable thirsts for women and alcohol, Nicholae takes us on a rowdy and tragic journey. Surviving Auschwitz and bent on revenge, he sets off after Dr. Josef Mengele, the infamous Angel of Death. Although surrounded by true love and musical celebrity in the Gypsy barrio of Buenos Aires, Nicholae knows he must finish his search for vengeance, a hunt that ends in a shattering final confrontation with "the good doctor."
The Sixth String is a tale of sensuality, irreverence, and horror; it is a touching romance, a gripping suspense story, a meditation on the evil men do, and, above all, a celebration of love and art.
