Tag Archives: Nazi

Springtime for Northheim

Posted on November 13, 2025 by smellincoffee

“Tomorrow Belongs to Me” is one of the more disturbing songs in the musical Cabaret, not because of the song itself, but because of what the viewer knows it portends. It begins simply, with one sweet voice singing at a … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Accidental Nazi

Posted on October 22, 2025 by smellincoffee

Can you imagine the Russians marching through Berlin? And the Americans and the British in the Ruhr? It would be the end of everything.” “It almost seems as though you can see the future,” she said. “Do you think you … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 8 Comments

The Iron Dream

Posted on October 7, 2025 by smellincoffee

You know how I mentioned October would have a nod to German history, and maybe combine it with horror? …this is not now I expected that to happen. This will surely be my strangest book read for 2025. There I … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Bloodlands

Posted on February 7, 2025 by smellincoffee

On a scale of 1 to 10, how demoralized, depressed, and soul-dead do you want to be? Ten? Well, have I got a book for you! Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin examines the grim fate of Eastern Europe from … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Hitler’s Heralds: The Freikorps

Posted on December 7, 2024 by smellincoffee

I’ve had this review written since September, but had intended to feature it as part of a series on inter-war Germany. That’s not going to happen this year, as I’m certainly not spending Advent reading about Weimar and Nazis! After … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Hitlers amerikanische Freunde

Posted on December 5, 2023 by smellincoffee

Years ago when the History Channel was more interested in Hitler than aliens and ice road truckers, I happened upon a documentary there about German-Americans in the United States who supported the “New Germany” from their adopted country. I was … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Life and Death in the Third Reich

Posted on October 20, 2022 by smellincoffee

Life and Death in the Third Reich© 2009 Peter Fritzsche384 pages A few years ago I read Peter Fritzsche’s An Iron Wind: Europe Under Hitler, which examined how the Nazi conquest of most of Europe permeated into its culture in … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Germans: terror and tedium

Posted on November 9, 2021 by smellincoffee

In the past week I’ve read or mostly-read, in the case of The Vampire Economy, two books with a German connection. The first, The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, was by far the most interesting of the two. I read this … Continue reading →

Posted in Classics and Literary, General, Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Mephisto

Posted on October 2, 2021 by smellincoffee

Mephisto© 1936 Klaus Mann272 pages I was fortunate, in my time at the University, to have a class with my favorite professor every semester that I was there; he had an enormous command of late 19th century and early 20th … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

COVID Reviews #6 Cleaning Up with gangsters, Navajo, politicians, and so many Germans

Posted on October 20, 2020 by smellincoffee

Back in September and early October when I was under quarantine, I didn’t have computer access, so I couldn’t take many notes or write reviews when things were fresh on my mind. I tried to post comments intermittently, but some … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments