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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
Erik Larson weaved together a tale of quiet courage, much more subtle than Schindler's List but there nevertheless.
adventurous
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Not very engaging... I kept waiting for something exciting to happen and it never did.
Erik Larson, again, makes compelling reading out of history through the personal stories of U.S. Ambassador William Dodd and his family -- especially his irrepressible, irresponsible daughter Martha -- as they experience Hitler's consolidation of power in Germany from 1933-37. Larson explores the political and moral dilemma Hitler's regime posed to American and European diplomats and politicians, and details the ease with which evil was concealed by the appearance of normalcy and the reluctance of people -- people who truly should have known better -- to delve beneath the surface...lest they then have to take difficult action. Though hampered by his own prejudices, including anti-Semitism, by a romanticized idea of Germany from his student days in Leipzig, and by a fateful lack of skill in political gamesmanship, the scholarly and solidly pedestrian Dodd emerges as something of a hero -- a "diplomatic Cassandra" who could not get the elitists in the "Pretty Good Club" of the diplomatic corps to recognize that they were playing political pattycake with a man of truly ruthless cunning.
I hope that we are no longer so naive about the capacity of "civilized" people to commit horrors, but this history offers some chilling parallels to the current situation in the U.S. -- the kind of PTSD (for the Germans, the fallout of WWI; for us, of 9/11and the Bush Recession) that allows a people to be lied into war, the tendency of sane, moderate voices to discount the capacity of an extremist minority to seize power (this too shall pass, they really can't be as bad as you fear), the lack of outrage at atrocities at home and abroad (spurred by emotional exhaustion?), and the extreme rightward trajectory of our own Republican Party, which now inculcates magical thinking (tax cuts solve everything, science is Satanic, etc.) and bombards the political discourse non-stop with outright lies (climate change is a hoax, Obama is a Kenyan/Socialist/Communist/Atheist/Muslim/Marxist tyrant, Jeep is moving all its jobs to China). With luck, the size and diversity of the U.S. will keep us from sliding over the edge into an American version of fascism (wrapped in the flag, carrying a bible), but Larson's book illuminates just how easily that might occur...in any country.
I hope that we are no longer so naive about the capacity of "civilized" people to commit horrors, but this history offers some chilling parallels to the current situation in the U.S. -- the kind of PTSD (for the Germans, the fallout of WWI; for us, of 9/11and the Bush Recession) that allows a people to be lied into war, the tendency of sane, moderate voices to discount the capacity of an extremist minority to seize power (this too shall pass, they really can't be as bad as you fear), the lack of outrage at atrocities at home and abroad (spurred by emotional exhaustion?), and the extreme rightward trajectory of our own Republican Party, which now inculcates magical thinking (tax cuts solve everything, science is Satanic, etc.) and bombards the political discourse non-stop with outright lies (climate change is a hoax, Obama is a Kenyan/Socialist/Communist/Atheist/Muslim/Marxist tyrant, Jeep is moving all its jobs to China). With luck, the size and diversity of the U.S. will keep us from sliding over the edge into an American version of fascism (wrapped in the flag, carrying a bible), but Larson's book illuminates just how easily that might occur...in any country.
"In the Garden of Beasts" is an okay account of the Dodd family and their uncomfortable life in Berlin in the opening act of Hitler's rise to power. The book alleges to follow William Dodd's (the family patriarch) career between 1933 and 1937, but that is incorrect. Larson seems to equivocate between two protagonists: Ambassador Dodd and his daughter, Martha. The other members of the Dodd family are relegated to the deep background while William and Martha hog center stage. I can understand why Larson made this choice, but it does not work well.
Martha is described as an effervescent airhead with a rebellious streak. On the other hand, William Dodd is an admirable, but single-faceted character; obstinate and unyielding in his disapproval of Nazism. They are complete opposites in personality and temperament. Armed with this knowledge, one might assume the plot will showcase a significant disagreement between the two or a demonstration of how family disunity sunk Ambassador Dodd's diplomatic career. One would be wrong. This dichotomy and tension lead nowhere.
This brings me to my next complaint: Larson's signposting (signaling what's to come) throughout the book is poor. If the reader is unfamiliar with the Dodds (and I assume most people are), they are left to wonder where the story goes. Will Ambassador Dodd experience the hero's journey? Is Larson chronicling a tragedy? Maybe the true plot is how Martha overcomes diplomatic impossibilities and finds forbidden love!
Nope.
After finishing the Coda at the end, I felt like I had just wasted my time. There was nothing to take away. "In The Garden of Beasts" did not deliver a sufficiently unique perspective on the rise of the Third Reich to justify its publication.
The writing is excellent and the research is well done, but in the end, this story lacked purpose. Life is full of purposeless moments, but none of us need to waste our time reading about them.
Martha is described as an effervescent airhead with a rebellious streak. On the other hand, William Dodd is an admirable, but single-faceted character; obstinate and unyielding in his disapproval of Nazism. They are complete opposites in personality and temperament. Armed with this knowledge, one might assume the plot will showcase a significant disagreement between the two or a demonstration of how family disunity sunk Ambassador Dodd's diplomatic career. One would be wrong. This dichotomy and tension lead nowhere.
This brings me to my next complaint: Larson's signposting (signaling what's to come) throughout the book is poor. If the reader is unfamiliar with the Dodds (and I assume most people are), they are left to wonder where the story goes. Will Ambassador Dodd experience the hero's journey? Is Larson chronicling a tragedy? Maybe the true plot is how Martha overcomes diplomatic impossibilities and finds forbidden love!
Nope.
After finishing the Coda at the end, I felt like I had just wasted my time. There was nothing to take away. "In The Garden of Beasts" did not deliver a sufficiently unique perspective on the rise of the Third Reich to justify its publication.
The writing is excellent and the research is well done, but in the end, this story lacked purpose. Life is full of purposeless moments, but none of us need to waste our time reading about them.
challenging
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
not a bad read for the first 2/3 but gets very rushed at the end. The reader is not given a comprehensive telling of Ambassador Dodd's time in berlin after 1934. I gained a little insight along the way, but wish I was satisfied with the ending.
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Having read most of Erik Larson’s other work, and found it without exception to be compelling reading, I was surprised when I repeatedly had to push myself to get through each chapter of this book. I’m not sure what the difference here is, but I think it has little to do with Mr. Larson’s writing, which remains crisp and deft in use of quotation and historical fact. I think it is more reflective of the change in his subject matter. As in previous works, the juxtaposition of a historical event with a personal experience during that event allows a view into how contemporary figures experienced events, lending immediacy to the events. But in the past, the personal study has been one of intrigue, a criminal investigation, a murder mystery, or a personal tragedy. Now, events unfold for Ambassador Dodd that are important, and his daughter engages in affairs that it might be imagined were exciting, but none of these really reach the level that begins to match the overall story of the rise of the Third Reich. While in past books, I found both story arches compelling, however tenuous their connection sometimes was, here I found the more traditional history fascinating, while the biographical segments left me feeling flat. It’s hard to imagine the personal events that would have had to transpire to make an American diplomat’s career moves, or his daughter’s philandering, gain equal footing with the stunning rise of a fascist regime. When climactic events include terse exchanges at a dinner party, it does seem like there might have been a more compelling personal story to highlight.
Although this book reads like a novel, it's important to remember that this is a non-fiction account about historical figures. As such, the usual expectations for interesting characters or exciting plots that actual novels have may not apply here. Once the right expectations are set, however, this will be a very interesting read.
My main takeaway from this book is its depiction of the widespread reluctance of almost every major political figure at the time to recognize the nazi threat, not only for Germany but for Europe. Even ambassador Dodd and his daughter Martha, the main protagonists of the book, took a considerable amount of time to realize that the nazis were, as the book title says, violent beasts. Not only that, but when Dodd was able to see through Hitler's facade of"peace", he tried to warn the US about Hitler's true intentions of invading every country in his path, and for this, Dodd was ridiculed by almost everyone in Washington.
Although Dodd was an atypical choice for the job, Roosevelt was able to see how this man would be able to do the job he had for him: represent his country's stance against the rise of fascism in Europe. Dodd was able to stay true to his beliefs and values, even to his detriment. The nazis took much from many people, and Ambassador Dodd was no exception, and he saw how his hopes and dreams slowly slipped through his fingers during his time in Berlin.
I also found the story about Martha, the ambassador's daughter, to be fascinating. A very open-minded woman in the 1930s, who had affairs with nazis, Soviet spies, scientists, French diplomats, and even a prince, sometimes dating several simultaneously. But most importantly, even this young woman, who initially came to Berlin to have a good time, witnessed violence and cruelty and became disilussioned with the nazis, whom she had admired during her first months in Berlin.
Overall the book was very interesting and informative, I only felt that the ending was somewhat rushed, but despite this it was still very entertaining.
My main takeaway from this book is its depiction of the widespread reluctance of almost every major political figure at the time to recognize the nazi threat, not only for Germany but for Europe. Even ambassador Dodd and his daughter Martha, the main protagonists of the book, took a considerable amount of time to realize that the nazis were, as the book title says, violent beasts. Not only that, but when Dodd was able to see through Hitler's facade of"peace", he tried to warn the US about Hitler's true intentions of invading every country in his path, and for this, Dodd was ridiculed by almost everyone in Washington.
Although Dodd was an atypical choice for the job, Roosevelt was able to see how this man would be able to do the job he had for him: represent his country's stance against the rise of fascism in Europe. Dodd was able to stay true to his beliefs and values, even to his detriment. The nazis took much from many people, and Ambassador Dodd was no exception, and he saw how his hopes and dreams slowly slipped through his fingers during his time in Berlin.
I also found the story about Martha, the ambassador's daughter, to be fascinating. A very open-minded woman in the 1930s, who had affairs with nazis, Soviet spies, scientists, French diplomats, and even a prince, sometimes dating several simultaneously. But most importantly, even this young woman, who initially came to Berlin to have a good time, witnessed violence and cruelty and became disilussioned with the nazis, whom she had admired during her first months in Berlin.
Overall the book was very interesting and informative, I only felt that the ending was somewhat rushed, but despite this it was still very entertaining.