Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power

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Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power

3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 · rating details · 278 ratings · 74 reviews

Hitler’s rise to power, Germany’s march to the abyss, as seen by Americans—diplomats, military, expats, visiting authors, Olympic athletes—who watched horrified and up close.Some of the Americans in Hitler’s Germany were merely casual observers, others deliberately blind, a few were Nazi apologists. But most began slowly to understand what was unfolding, even when they fou...more

Hardcover, 386 pages

Published March 13th 2012 by Simon & Schuster

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May 14, 2012 Lowell rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, historical-non-fiction

When I was taken into Phi Alpha Theta in the late 1980's, the speaker for the event was a German lady who experienced the Third Reich and the war as a young girl. Two things I remember to this day about her talk...

1. She had the opportunity to meet Hitler and shake his hand. She said that he had the most clear, deep blue and sincere-looking eyes that she had ever seen. They were such that one wanted to believe in and trust in any thing that he would offer.

2. Hitler's regime took her away from he...more

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Feb 26, 2013 Delene H. Allen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: history-military

This well-written book proves that Andrew Nagorski thoroughly researched the Nazi Rise to Power in the 1930s. Essentially, this story covers the account of American correspondents prior to when Hitler launched his attack on Poland. Hitler wiped Poland out in four short weeks. The account covers how Nazi officials dealt with the embassy staff for the United States Consulate, and Nagorski shows readers 1930s Germany from the perspective of the embassy staff. I found the interviews with Hilter to b...more

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Oct 22, 2012 Dan Durning rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book explores how Americans who lived or visited Germany from the early 1920s until December 1941 perceived Hitler and the Nazis. It was written by a journalist who unearthed several unpublished manuscripts, explored relevant archives, and conducted useful interviews in addition to drawing from books written by journalists and diplomats who were in Germany during these years.

The story is told as a compelling narrative that interweaves the tales of American observers in Germany who witnesse...more This book explores how Americans who lived or visited Germany from the early 1920s until December 1941 perceived Hitler and the Nazis. It was written by a journalist who unearthed several unpublished manuscripts, explored relevant archives, and conducted useful interviews in addition to drawing from books written by journalists and diplomats who were in Germany during these years.

The story is told as a compelling narrative that interweaves the tales of American observers in Germany who witnessed events and had their own take on them. Among the more interesting for me were several whose names were familiar, but whom I did not know much about. These include Edgar Ansel Mowrer, a reporter for the Chicago Daily News, and his wife Lilian; Louis Lochner, the Associated Press's reporter in Berlin until the very end; Ernest Hanfstaengl, half America, half-German graduate of Harvard who was a Hitler adviser and liaison with the U.S. press for many years; and George Messerschmidt, a diplomat sounding alarm about Hitler's intentions.

The narrative is enhanced by the views of the not-so-famous, including students, labor organizers, and businessmen who traveled to Germany for short-term visits. Also, it is strengthen by the stories of people such as Capt. Truman Smith who, accompanied by his wife Kay, was the military attache in Germany in the early years of the 1920s. He was the first American official to meet Hitler.

Reading the book reminds us that it not easy to make sense out of the world that we see around us or to observe objectively. Some visitors to Germany, such as Charles Lindbergh and Herbert Hoover, concluded that what they observed during their visits to Germany supported their beliefs that the U.S. should keep out of European affairs. Many of American spouses of Germans, who lived in Germany, became strong Nazi supporters. Some American visitors did not find much to be concerned about in Germany after Hitler took power. Others visitors, plus many journalists and diplomats who were in the country for many years, were shocked and sickened at what they saw happening there, and they were frustrated that others were not equally concerned with the direction of history.

In all, a well-researched, nicely written book. (less)

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May 15, 2012 Kathleen Hagen added it

Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power, by Andrew Nagorski, Narrated by Robert Sass, Produced by audible inc., downloaded from audible.com.

The publisher’s note says it as well as I could:
Hitler's rise to power, Germany's march to the abyss, as seen through the eyes of Americans - diplomats, military, expats, visiting authors, Olympic athletes
- who watched horrified and up close. By tapping a rich vein of personal testimonies, Hitlerland offers a gripping narrative full of su...more Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power, by Andrew Nagorski, Narrated by Robert Sass, Produced by audible inc., downloaded from audible.com.

The publisher’s note says it as well as I could:
Hitler's rise to power, Germany's march to the abyss, as seen through the eyes of Americans - diplomats, military, expats, visiting authors, Olympic athletes
- who watched horrified and up close. By tapping a rich vein of personal testimonies, Hitlerland offers a gripping narrative full of surprising twists
- and a startlingly fresh perspective on this heavily dissected era. Some of the Americans in Weimar and then Hitler's Germany were merely casual observers,
others deliberately blind; a few were Nazi apologists. But most slowly began to understand the horror of what was unfolding, even when they found it difficult
to grasp the breadth of the catastrophe. Among the journalists, William Shirer, Edgar Mowrer, and Dorothy Thompson were increasingly alarmed. Consul General
George Messersmith stood out among the American diplomats because of his passion and courage. Truman Smith, the first American official to meet Hitler,
was an astute political observer and a remarkably resourceful military attaché. Historian William Dodd, whom FDR tapped as ambassador in Hitler's Berlin,
left disillusioned; his daughter Martha scandalized the embassy with her procession of lovers from her initial infatuation with Nazis she took up with.
She ended as a Soviet spy. On the scene were George Kennan, who would become famous as the architect of containment; Richard Helms, who rose to the top
of the CIA; Howard K. Smith, who would one day coanchor the ABC Evening News. The list of prominent visitors included writers Sinclair Lewis and Thomas
Wolfe, famed aviator Charles Lindbergh, the great athlete Jesse Owens, newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst, and black sociologist and historian
W.E.B. Dubois. Observing Hitler and his movement up close, the most perceptive of these Americans helped their reluctant countrymen begin to understand
the nature of Nazi Germany as it ruthlessly eliminated political opponents, and instilled hatred of Jews.
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Apr 10, 2012 Matt Forsythe rated it 3 of 5 stars

The book "Hitlerland: American eyewitnesses to the Nazi rise to power" is about eyewitness accounts about before Hitler came into power as the dictator of Germany. It features many eyewitness accounts from the ambassador of Germany, his daughter, and many other people that witnessed the Nazi Rise to total domination in Germany. Also the historical book covers the years before Hitler ascended to power in Germany—roughly 1922 through 1933, focusing on opinions of Hitler held by Americans. It featu...more

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Mar 20, 2012 Alla rated it 5 of 5 stars

“Hitlerland” by Andrew Nagorski relays the years up to and during World War 2, told from the view points of various Americans who had the front row seats to the Germany drama playing out right in front of them. In the book, Nagorski compiles the narratives of American journalists stationed in Berlin such as Singrid Schultz, diplomats like Hugh Wilson, military attachés like Truman Smith, and many, many other characters who for various reasons happened to be present in Berlin during the twenties,...more “Hitlerland” by Andrew Nagorski relays the years up to and during World War 2, told from the view points of various Americans who had the front row seats to the Germany drama playing out right in front of them. In the book, Nagorski compiles the narratives of American journalists stationed in Berlin such as Singrid Schultz, diplomats like Hugh Wilson, military attachés like Truman Smith, and many, many other characters who for various reasons happened to be present in Berlin during the twenties, thirties, and early forties.

The main thing this book does is to present a detailed picture of the atmosphere leading up to Hitler’s rise and his eventual downfall. Nagorski paints a very bleak picture of Germany post-World War 1—a country that’s gone bankrupt, countrymen who struggle to survive, and a country mad at France and other allied powers for making debt re-payment nearly impossible. As the country lies in ruins, Hitler, who is largely unknown at this point, takes advantage of the situation to stage a failed revolutionary takeover—after which he is arrested and sent to prison for a short while, before he manages to come to power using legal methods.

An interesting sidekick to Hitler during all this time is Putzi Haefstangl, a half-German half-American Harvard grad who uses his connections to fuel propaganda for the Fuehrer and to introduce him in the upper circles.

According to Nagorski’s portrait of the times, few Americans take Hitler seriously and many visiting Americans, at least initially, make nothing out of him. Some, even, mistake him as being good for Germany—such as Martha Dodd, the daughter of American ambassador to Germany William Dodd, who is initially infatuated with the Nazi Germany and goes on to romance several high-level Nazis, before falling for a Russian Communist.

Enter mass rallies, the constant presence of German soldiers on the streets even before the war actually started, induced obsession over Aryans and non-Aryans, and a hatred-filled atmosphere that passed itself off as patriotism, and you have Nagorski’s many stories of the times. If you’re interested in the second World War, or simply intrigued by Americans in Berlin during this time period, than you will probably be intrigued by Nagorski’s portrayal of the times.
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Apr 01, 2012 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Could the U.S. have known what was coming, or is hindsight 20/20? That is a central theme--along with some mind-boggling photographs obtained by former "Newsweek" corro Nagorski--that makes this terrific book in the spirit of William Shirer's "Berlin Diary," stand out in a crowded field. I found "Hitlerland," to be superior to Erik Larson's "In the Garden of the Beasts," a recent bestseller about pre-WW II Berlin. While "Garden" focuses on Nazi-era U.S. ambassador William Dodd and his family --...more

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Elizabeth On my mom's side: Russia, Bulgaria, Berlin, Hungary. On my dad's side: Gdansk, Poland - Hence my last name, Danzig, Warsaw, Lithuania, England, and Ir...more
Apr 02, 2012 01:23pm

Elizabeth I haven't read HITLERLAND yet, but I'm quite certain that I'll agree with everything you wrote above. It will be interesting to see how it compares to...more I haven't read HITLERLAND yet, but I'm quite certain that I'll agree with everything you wrote above. It will be interesting to see how it compares to "In The Garden of the Beasts" which I have read. I know what I'd answer to the question that you've pinpointed as the main theme in "HITLERLAND". I believe: Yes, the Americans, the British, and all too many other countries could have and did see what was coming. What's more despicable to me is that when the allied powers, especially Roosevelt and Churchill, knew with proof certain about the atrocities being committed across Europe that they did NOTHING to try to interrupt let alone end them. They could have bombed and destroyed the railways that "they" knew were being used to transport masses to their death in concentration camps and slave labor camps. They knew that entire villages were being gunned down and murdered, naked, falling into massive pits. They knew about the conditions in the ghettos where children and adults either starved to death, were killed while there, or in transport and/or arrival at the death camps. The U.S. actually lowered the number/quota of people who would be allowed to seek refuge in the U.S. from what it was prior to the war. I could go on and on about this, but goodreads is not a forum to express my personal opinions about things that are not directly related to books. So I'll stop here except to say that there is also proof positive that Roosevelt and others knew that Pearl Harbor was going to be attacked but they gave no advance warning. The attack gave Roosevelt the ammunition he needed to convince Americans to support getting involved in the war. Nothing like a good wipeout of Americans serving their country in uniform and dying to gain support for just about anything. BTW, my father was at Pearl Harbor at the time of the attack. He was wounded, but obviously survived because I'm here speaking loudly and passionately. P.S. I look forward to reading your and Anmyriam's reviews. You both write in depth and exciting reviews without "spoilers." I'm not surprised...(less)
Apr 04, 2012 01:41pm

Nov 21, 2012 Sean O'Hara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: history-american, history-europe, wwii, politics

There's been a thing in the last few years for histories of Americans abroad during WWII -- Citizens of London, Americans in Paris, etc., with Hitlerland being the latest entry. Although using sources other historians have used for their own histories, by focusing on the sources themselves instead of building a composite picture, the books give more of a ground-level view of things.

Still, why Americans? The books could accomplish just as much by focusing on the natives. But then these are books...more

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May 01, 2012 Lora King rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

As a history major, I feel compelled to read some good old non-fiction history books occasionally. Hitlerland is just that, a good peek at Germany during the period following WWI and the beginning of WWII. In contrast to Eric Larson's "In The Garden of Beasts" last year, which focused more on the US Ambassador Dodd's time there, this book pulls on the reporters who covered the events in Germany during this time period. Using reports, memoirs (published & unpublished)& interviews, Nagorsk...more

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Nov 23, 2012 Lynn Joshua rated it 4 of 5 stars

In storytelling style, the author weaves together the comments and opinions of American correspondents, diplomats and visitors living in Berlin during the period of Hitler's rise to power. The author fills in narrative details, but mostly lets the characters speak in their own words about how they viewed events at the time. While I know exactly what is going to happen, those reporting on the events do not. Some were impressed by Hitler, some recognized the threat, some underestimated him, some s...more

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Jun 04, 2012 alana rated it 4 of 5 stars

so interesting... made me wish that i was in a book club so that i could discuss it.
a couple of things i took away. Hilter had super blue eyes (i don't think i ever gave a thought to his eye color, but if i did, i probably would have guessed them to be black, or bat-shit crazy).

Hilter narrowly missed death on two occasions. once at the beer hall putsch (he was slightly wounded, but his friend that he was marching alongside was shot and killed). the other time was directly after the beer hall pu...more

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Jul 23, 2012 Scott rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a compelling read which gives you the vantage point of Hitler's slow rise from the American correspondents and diplomats living in Berlin. Nagorski is a talented researcher and writer and successfully shows how difficult it is to judge anyone with historical 20/20. Very few of these smart journalists predicted Hitler would amount to much and most thought of him as a marginal figure without the capacity to appeal to a large number of Germans, much less a majority. Particularly interesting...more

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Jul 06, 2012 John rated it 5 of 5 stars

Fascinating insight into human group dynamics and how a technically advanced, educated, and cultured populace became entranced with the promises of the Nazi party. Covering 10+ years prior to the outset of WWII, this is an excellent accounting of the rise of the Nazi party and how unchecked power can instill deep-rooted fear in a society. Similar to "In the Garden of Beasts" by Erik Larson, but also much broader in scope and more interesting, in my opinion, because this book is not as singularly...more

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May 16, 2012 Leslie Doll rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a very good, well-researched book about a timeframe during WWII that has not had much coverage - until recently. While In the Garden of the Beasts' Larson explored the life of one family in pre-WW II Berlin (Ambassador Dodd and his family), this book covered more territory in terms of American reporters, State Department staff and U.S. Military staff - almost too many too keep up with. It was interesting to see how some Americans saw Hitler as harmless, and did not see the coming danger...more

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Aug 11, 2012 Naomi rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book chronicles the rise to power of the Nazi party and their leader, Adolf Hitler. Seen through the eyes of newspaper reporters, journalists and embassy employees and their familes it shows that their opinions were all over the place. Most seem to agree the German people who had just come through the worst inflation ever when it took a wheelbarrow full of reichmarks to purchase a loaf of bread (something a person who lived in Germany at the time told me happened to her father) appreciated...more

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Dec 29, 2012 Lewis Weinstein rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: history, ch-research, ch-reviews

This is the first "research for my writing" book I am reading on Kindle. I have figured our how to highlight and record notes from a Kindle book. It actually works very well.

MORE TO COME ...

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Jul 04, 2012 Brendan Lyons rated it 4 of 5 stars

This ties in with two of the other books I have recently reviewed ( 'In the Garden of Beasts' and 'Berlin Diary') and it becomes apparent that many of the people involved knew one another. Correspondents and resident business people knew that the regime was dangerous but the people at home and the occasional visitors just didn't want to know. Hitler could have been stopped in his tracks up to the Rheinland crossing in 1936. He wasn't. Reading these books (I include the two mentioned above and se...more

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Sep 08, 2012 Andrew Salmon rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a fascinating account, from the perspective of US citizens living in Germany (Berlin mostly), as the Nazis rose to power in the year before WW2. I found the research to be excellent and the writing engaging. My only knock against the book, and this has to with the history not the writer, is that towards the end the book gets a tad repetitive. Americans discount Hitler and are later surprised, they see the terrible things being committed by Nazi thugs but are forbidden to report them, the...more

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May 05, 2012 Beth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012

This is exactly the type of non-fiction I love -- it tells a story about something that I want to learn more about and it does so in a way that is entirely accessible. In this case, the author compiles the journals and writings of those American diplomats and correspondents who were in Germany as the Weimar republic collapsed and the Nazis rose to power, providing a fascinating perpective on a truly terrifying time.

Many of the journalists and diplomats whose observations Nagorski includes in hi...more

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Feb 06, 2013 Peter Fortune rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: miscellaneous, history

2012--"Citizens of London" was about Americans in London during the Blitz and after. This book is about Americans in Berlin during the 1930s. Among hem were William Shirer (author of a history of the Third Reich), William Dodd (FDR's ambassador to Germany and the center of "In the Garden of Beasts"), George Kennan (diplomat, geopolitical realist, and advocate of the Cold War) and Richard Helms (CIA Director many years later). These are all astute observers of Hitler's rise, but none of them thou...more

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Mar 16, 2013 Steven Z. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Hitlerland is a useful survey of the attitudes expressed by Americans who witnessed the rise of the Nazis to power from the 1920s onward and their reactions to Nazi policies in the 1930s. The author integrates a number of important Americans, ie; US Ambassador Wiiliam Dodd, the journalist William L. Shirer, George kennan, Dorothy Thompson etc in ascertaining what Americans thought concerning the events that they witnessed. If you want to get a flavor of what it was like for Americans in Germany...more

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Jul 03, 2012 Liz rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Chilling. Absolutely chilling. This is a study of the juxtaposition of a man who could restore Germany (or perhaps invent Germany) as a country of clean streets and orderly neighborhoods, in the same body as a man who would throw a tantrum worthy of a two-year-old at the suggestion that he might be wrong about any of his favorite topics (Jews, the Eastern Front, whether to conquer the Ukraine or Moscow first). If anyone needs proof that this fellow was nuts, this is the book. If anyone needs pro...more

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May 03, 2013 Eddy Allen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: arts-and-historical

Hitler’s rise to power, Germany’s march to the abyss, as seen by Americans—diplomats, military, expats, visiting authors, Olympic athletes—who watched horrified and up close.Some of the Americans in Hitler’s Germany were merely casual observers, others deliberately blind, a few were Nazi apologists. But most began slowly to understand what was unfolding, even when they found it difficult to grasp the breadth of the catastrophe.

Among the journalists, William Shirer understood what was happening....more

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Apr 01, 2013 Michael Arden rated it 5 of 5 stars

In this superb history based on copious research, the author documents the large number of Americans who visited or lived in Germany during the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in the 1920s and '30s. They included the famous such as former President Herbert Hoover, aviator Charles Lindbergh, and author Sinclair Lewis, well-known journalists of the time, most notably William Shirer, author of THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH, many state department officials, including three ambassadors...more In this superb history based on copious research, the author documents the large number of Americans who visited or lived in Germany during the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in the 1920s and '30s. They included the famous such as former President Herbert Hoover, aviator Charles Lindbergh, and author Sinclair Lewis, well-known journalists of the time, most notably William Shirer, author of THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH, many state department officials, including three ambassadors, and many others from all walks of life. Beginning in 1933, when Hitler became Chancellor of Germany, the nightmare began unfolding that culminated in the German invasion of Poland launching World War II on September 1, 1939. Americans stayed on in Germany until war was declared following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, at which time all remaining Americans, mostly journalists, were interned under crude conditions in an isolated, mothballed hotel. Amazingly, while many American observers were well aware of (and condemned) the vicious Nazi persecution of Jews and other minorities, some were Nazi apologists right up to wartime. Partly this is explained by the fact that many were German-Americans and partly by the fact that racism and anti-Semitism were rampant everywhere in the 1930s. Also, outside the political realm, Germans and Americans generally were prone to hold each other in high esteem despite the tension created by the rise of Nazism. Still, it is mind-boggling to find that some Americans could be so blind to the gross human rights violations perpetrated by Hitler's regime.

Among the colorful figures profiled in depth is the half-American Harvard College graduate, Ernest "Putzi" Hanfstaengl, who married another German-American from Hoboken, New Jersey. Husband and wife moved to Germany and became close friends and confidantes of Adolf Hitler when he was still struggling politically, and, in fact, Frau Hanfstaengl likely talked a despairing Hitler out of blowing his brains out with his pistol, much to humanity's misfortune. Putzi became a fervent Nazi, albeit somewhat of a jester and buffoon with his outsized physique and a personality to match who would jovially befriend American visitors and introduce them to the top Nazi leadership. Later he fell from grace and had to flee Germany for his life. Despite this, he never got over his awe for Hitler to his dying day. Another is Martha Dodd, the daughter of Ambassador William E. Dodd, who is profiled here in depth as she was in Erik Larson's IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS: LOVE, TERROR, AND AN AMERICAN FAMILY IN HITLER'S BERLIN. Martha's is an intriguing case, because she was initially attracted to the Nazis and was somewhat of an apologist (and a lover of the first Gestapo chief, Rudolf Diels). However, when she discovered the ugly face of Nazi persecution and fell in love with a Russian envoy, she turned the tables and began spying for the Soviets. Martha and the wealthy American she eventually married, both longstanding Soviet spies, eventually fled to Prague, where she died in exile just before the fall of Communism. Still, her fate was not as grim as that of her good American friend during Berlin days, Mildred Harnack, one of the Red Orchestra Soviet spies, who was beheaded by the Gestapo along with her German husband, the only American woman to be executed by direct order of Adolf Hitler. Her last words were, "I loved Germany so much." Very highly recommended, particularly for twentieth century history buffs.
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May 09, 2013 Erica Drayton rated it 5 of 5 stars

My Review: I can't remember ever reading a book that I took such an interest in that was factually based on history. Everything I knew prior to reading this book on Hitler I got from history text books and what I was taught in school. I was amazed by how much I did not know. I came out of this asking questions, which, I believe, is essential to great literature. When your mind is further engaged to want to do further research on what you've just read, then the author has truly done their job. Of...more

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Dec 31, 2012 Cathy rated it 5 of 5 stars

There were a lot of journalists in Berlin during the 1920s and into the 40s, because newspapers were in their prime then. This book studies the writings of those men and women and also those of our embassy staffers. Nagorski also gives a wonderful perspective on the happenings during that time period, although I find his writing a bit difficult to easily read; it doesn't flow as well as many other works of non-fiction. Hitler is described as an amazingly interesting man of some complexities, alw...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Jay rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: history

This is an excellent book that describes Hitler’s rise to power, and Germany’s march to the abyss, as seen through the eyes of American diplomats, military, expats, visiting authors, and Olympic athletes who watched horrified and close up. At any given point in time prior to the beginning of WWII, the reader learns about the conflicting views of journalists, ambassadors, and politicians regarding Hitler’s intentions and actions. The book offers a gripping narrative full of surprising twists and...more

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Jan 07, 2013 Steve Bookman rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book's appearance is especially timely for those who just read the new book about US Ambassador Dodd and his first year in Berlin - 1933-1934. Readers of that book may have been curious to know more about the reporters whose names were mentioned. This volume satisfies such curiousity in a comprehensive and vivid manner -- covering almost the entire Weimar Republic era as well as the NSDAP years 1933-1941 (until just after the US and Germany were at war).

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Aug 18, 2012 Øivind rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book is very well written and was unusually difficult to put down for a history book. It gives an interesting inside view of The Third Reich. I guess american reporters and diplomats were well placed to tell the story, since they were more popular among germans than the french or the british. I was perhaps a little bit surprised that there were so few germans in opposition to the Hitlers regime. It seems like many germans went temporarily crazy. That's a bit frightening, because if it can h...more

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Oct 09, 2012 Mary rated it 5 of 5 stars

A wonderfully readable and detailed book about Americans living in Germany during Hitler's rise to power up to U. s. entry in WW2. Most of the content is base on reports and memoirs of reporters, diplomats, a military attaché, and their wives. While some never thought it possible that such a "clown" could ever lead the German people, others had Hitler figured out from the beginning. A tragedy of epic proportions that the world did not listen to them. A great book.

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About Andrew Nagorski

From back cover:
Andrew Nagorski, award-winning journalist, is vice president and director of public policy at the EastWest Institute, a New York-based international affairs think tank. During a long career at Newsweek, he served as the magazine's bureau chief in Hong Kong, Moscow, Rome, Bonn, Warsaw, and Berlin. He lives in Pelham Manor, New York.

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