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2.49k reviews for:
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
Erik Larson
3.77 AVERAGE
2.49k reviews for:
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
Erik Larson
3.77 AVERAGE
dark
informative
medium-paced
This is the second Erik Larson book that I’ve read and once again, he is able to create a novel-like reading experience while writing about history. This particular book focuses on the lead up to the “Night of the Long Knives” in 1934, as experienced by the US ambassador to Germany and his family. It is a really entertaining and informative look at the personalities behind the Nazi officials and how things can seem to exist in a grey area (Dodd’s own antisemitism, the hospitality of the Germans) until they don’t!
informative
slow-paced
This book was fascinating. Erik Larson writes his non-fiction books so that they read like fiction, and that really lent itself to the subject of this book. If you are interested in early 20th century history this is a must read.
This book took twice as long to read as I had expected, only because half way through I traveled to Germany and then felt compelled to restart the book after all that I had learned while there. I really like the writing style of Erik Larson, he takes topics that could be rather dry and makes it a story that keeps you engaged.
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
slow-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
In the Garden of Beasts was a really unique take on a WWII historical nonfiction book. It specifically looked at the US Ambassador to Germany in the years leading up to the war and his experience with Hitler's rise to power. It was eye opening seeing all of the events that led to World War II as that is something that you don't usually read about, most books focus on the war itself. My only issue with this book was listening to it on audio was a bit tricky just because there were so many names and dates and places that I was getting a bit confused at times and wished I had a physical copy to flip back a few pages. But overall it was a great book, really well researched, and I remain a big Erik Larson fan.