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July 2024 Vol. 61 No. 11

Wittstock, a journalist and author who resides in Germany, has written a riveting and timely book that should be welcomed by scholars while still being accessible to general readers. He describes the trials and tribulations of the mostly Left artistic community upon Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor of the Weimar Republic in 1933. Despite promising to retain the republic's democratic constitution, Hitler turned the country into a dictatorship only 30 days after taking office by blaming the communists for the Reichstag fire. Novelists such as Thomas and Heinrich Mann and dramatists like Bertolt Brecht observed on a daily basis the paramilitary SA (Brownshirts) engage in violence against its perceived enemies, especially the Jewish population, with increasing fear. Wittstock notes an alarming early speech by Hitler wherein he claimed he would establish a national tribunal that would settle scores with his adversaries and make "heads roll," which led many German subjects to agonize over whether they should leave Germany or stay and vote against the Nazis in the March 1933 election. Drawing on unpublished archival materials and biographical sketches of the many artists and intellectuals who were about to be arrested by the Nazis, Wittstock’s meticulously researched book is a warning to all to remain vigilant to the forces that threaten democracy.

--J. Fischel, emeritus, Millersville University

Summing Up: Recommended. General readers, advanced undergraduates through faculty, and professionals.