[It was surprising to me (or perhaps I am just naive) that so many people back in Washington thought Dodd a joke since he didn't have the "pedigree" or wealth of other members. It’s 1933. I also found it strange that he. Erik’s IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS, about America’s first ambassador to Nazi Germany and his daughter, has been optioned by Tom Hanks for development as a feature film. I had no idea at the time the US was isolationist and a bit anti-semitic. 15 questions answered. Interesting interplay of people from all sorts of perspectives in several countries. Dodd's opponents in the State Department wouldn't listen. A departure for Deaver, but there is no departure from his excellent writing. Meanwhile, the sympathetic hit man is having his own misadventures. He’s set up by the Feds and captured then offered a choice between working for them to assassinate a key Nazi official, Reinhold Ernst, or face the gas chamber. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. He uses the broader context of historical events and personalizes it, so that, in effect, the parts become greater than the sum of the whole. I love his Lincoln Rhyme series and he has also written Kathryn Dance and some stand alone novels. And what exactly is the system? The book shows how the ambassador's idealistic young daughter initially bought into Hitler's charisma, but soon realized the truth. Amazon Best Books of the Month, May 2011: In the Garden of Beasts is a vivid portrait of Berlin during the first years of Hitler’s reign, brought to life through the stories of two people: William E. Dodd, who in 1933 became America’s first ambassador to Hitler’s regime, and his scandalously carefree daughter, Martha. This story covers the Dodd family and their lives amongst the beast machine of Hitler's Nazi Germany. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of, Published b. Schopenhauer One which, if completed, will get him out of the crooked life. Suffused with the tense atmosphere of the period, and with unforgettable portraits of the bizarre Göring and the expectedly charming–yet wholly sinister–Goebbels, In the Garden of Beasts lends a stunning, eyewitness perspective on events as they unfold in real time, revealing an era of surprising nuance and complexity. Eric Larson, the author of this book, found interesting details about the diplomatic profession as a career job for the wealthy elite who displayed blinding prejudices, such as one about how it was impossible (not) for the stupid and mentally ill to win government office and take over the running of a country. An excellent look into the lives of "everyday" people caught up in the webs of spying and denouncements, black market dealings and smuggling, and the difficulties of just surviving as the National Socialists consolidate their political, military, and even municipal powers under Hitler et al. The book offers precisely what the title suggests, although there is much too much Martha's love life and the family was not an ordinary one. Ambassador Dodd, an unassuming and scholarly man, is an odd fit among the extravagance … A mild-mannered Chicago professor becomes America's first ambassador to Hitler's Germany just before the Nazis began to assert an iron grip across Europe. I've read nonfiction that tends to be too academic or matter-of-fa. This statement came almost six years after both he and Adolph Hitler had taken power, respectively, and almost six years after he had dispatched American professor William Dodd, a plain spoken Jeffersonian Democrat of Spartan means and simple tastes to serve as American Ambassador. I didn't think you could make the rise of Hitler boring, but...this was. The research for ‘In the Garden of Beasts’ is very good. Martha's memoir seems to have been particularly revealing in regard to her initial fascination with the Nazis and subsequent disillusionment. Set in Berlin in 1933 … As a 30 year old I can look back at the story of the Nazis and say, "What the?!! But he says the teeny room—a sort of foyer to the master bedroom’s closet—once served as the makeup room for a previous owner who was a prominent local newscaster. Erik Larson's. Sent to Germany under the cover of a journalist following the Olympics in Berlin, he’s soon involved in a serious cat-and-mouse game for a Nazi sympathizer has sent an anonymous note to the German High Command indicating that a “Russian” (Paul is supposed to use a forged Russian passport to escape followin. Garden of Beasts, also can be translated as Garden of "Thugs". I was used to the Lincoln Rhyme series by Jeffery Deaver, but this book was a pleasure to read. It's like he was there, but he wasn't, and it feels forced. Suffused with the tense atmosphere of the period, and with unforgettable portraits of the bizarre Göring and the expectedly charming--yet wholly sinister--Goebbels, In the Garden of Beasts lends a stunning, eyewitness perspective on events as they unfold in real time, revealing an era of surprising nuance and complexity. How could a whole international community even ALLOW this dynasty to begin?" This book is over-hyped. He travels to Berlin and within hours people around him are dying. Set against the backdrop of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, an American mob hit man is hired to "eliminate" someone in Hitler's inner circle. I've read nonfiction that tends to be too academic or matter-of-fact, if I may. Can anyone give me a reason to keep reading? Rosevelt asked Dodd to become the American ambassador to Hitler's Germany. That book was wonderful and this was amazing, both in different ways. The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz The author of The Devil In The White City returns with another novelistic history about evil deeds, this time in Nazi Germany.In The Garden Of Beasts primarily follows William E. Dodd, America’s ambassador to Hitler’s Germany from 1933 through 1937, and his daughter, Martha. “Recalling his first impression of Hitler, Hanfstaengl wrote, "Hitler looked like a suburban hairdresser on his day off.” ― Erik Larson, In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS Audio CD by Erik Larson: In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin [Audiobook United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a harsh condemnation, stating that “he could scarcely believe such a thing could happen in a twentieth century civilization”. I like how Deaver uses a slang to a hit-man. Great book. To make things even worse, the author often called the main charact. I really appreciated the information and content. "Mundane" is not a term I would use though I agree the beginning may not be as gripping as a good Tom Clancy novel. d. Nietzche, Which character says " A nation is as strong as its army"? But it didn't take him too long to figure out just how horrible the Nazis already were in 1933 and 1934. Characterization was very, very important in this novel as we follow American Gangster Paul Schumman, a hired killer, who is blackmailed into an assasination plot. What age group would you recommend for this book? My favorite JD book. “No system which implies control by privilege seekers has ever ended in any other way than collapse.”, “The smell of peace is abroad, the air is cold, the skies are brittle, and the leaves have finally fallen. We’d love your help. It is a compelling read. Loved it, that's for sure. This story takes place in Berlin during the time of the 1936 Olympics. Start by marking “Garden of Beasts” as Want to Read: Error rating book. One of the few remaining honest, hard working German detectives who has not bought into Nazism, is assigned to that case, and finds himself possibly in out of his depth. Under the cover of the 1936 Olympics mobster hitman Paul Schumann is targeting Reinhard Ernst, a key figure in the rearmament of Germany. The book is about a “button-man” named Paul. But there is a complicating "accidental" murder. This book is over 500 pages, but worth it. Its title was 'Burning Ice'. I would've vastly preferred a book about characters named only briefly, like Bella Fromm or Sigrid Schulz. I have been a fan of Jeffery Deaver for quite a while. If you're mostly a fiction reader, this book still has the appeal of a novel. This stand alone novel is quite different from the other Deaver I have read. He found a story within the details and laid it bare. Readers’ questions about In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin. Thunderstruck Erik Larson. An insider's view of Hitler's rise, In the Garden of Beasts details William E. Dodd's time as the United States Ambassador to Germany from 1933-1937. I don't want to write about what happens in the story. The book is impeccably researched and well written (with a few hiccups);we see developments in real time rather than ín the rear view mirror. Martha's memoir seems to have been particularly revealing in regard to her initial fascination wit. I didn't think you could make the rise of Hitler boring, but...this was. “In the Garden of Beasts” at times seems derivative of a 1940 memoir, “Through Embassy Eyes,” by Martha Dodd, one of the main characters of his tale. Welcome back. Jeffrey Deaver may be the master of psychological thrillers, but. Great pacing and suspenseful storytelling. If he accepts, Paul will be pardoned and get the financial means to restore his life. Enamored of the New Germany, she has one affair after another, including with the surprisingly honorable first chief of the Gestapo, Rudolf Diels. In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin--Erik Larson--4 stars, In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin (Feb 14 - Apr 30, 2020), (+Listopia) In the Garden of Beasts / Erik Larson. But when a hit goes wrong and Schumann is nabbed, he’s offered a stark choice: kill Reinhard Ernst, the man behind Hitler’s rearmament scheme, and walk free forever—or be sent to Sing-Sing and the electric chai. In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin ... Crown, $26 (464p) ISBN 978-0-307-40884-6. Jeffery Deaver is a master. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Refresh and try again. This one, not so. Set in the run-up to the 1936 Berlin Olympics, Deaver manages to work in a couple of the U.S.' star athletes as an undercover operation unfolds. Eric Larsen has a talent for taking a big event, like the Galveston flood of 1900 (Isaac's Storm), the Chicago World's Fair of 1893 (The Devil in the White City) , or the implementation of the transatlantic cable (Thunderstruck) and combining it with a compelling individual's story. Interested, I gravitate towards the book and read the summary. Those twenty-four hours are a whirlwind for Paul, who I was kinda in love with by the end of the story. Their experiences serve as both a cautionary tale about the insidiousness of evil and a harbinger of the hard realization that the rest of America was forced to make in a few short years. Garden of Beasts, also can be translated as Garden of "Thugs". The sense of impending dread and souls being consumed by the Reich’s madness is palpable. 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