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    In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
    Unavailable
    In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
    Unavailable
    In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
    Audiobook12 hours

    In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin

    Written by Erik Larson

    Narrated by Stephen Hoye

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Erik Larson has been widely acclaimed as a master of narrative non-fiction, and in his new book, the bestselling author of Devil in the White City turns his hand to a remarkable story set during Hitler's rise to power.

    The time is 1933, the place, Berlin, when William E. Dodd becomes America's first ambassador to Hitler's Germany in a year that proved to be a turning point in history.

    A mild-mannered professor from Chicago, Dodd brings along his wife, son, and flamboyant daughter, Martha. At first Martha is entranced by the parties and pomp, and the handsome young men of the Third Reich with their infectious enthusiasm for restoring Germany to a position of world prominence. Enamored of the "New Germany," she has one affair after another, including with the suprisingly honorable first chief of the Gestapo, Rudolf Diels. But as evidence of Jewish persecution mounts, confirmed by chilling first-person testimony, her father telegraphs his concerns to a largely indifferent State Department back home. Dodd watches with alarm as Jews are attacked, the press is censored, and drafts of frightening new laws begin to circulate. As that first year unfolds and the shadows deepen, the Dodds experience days full of excitement, intrigue, romance-and ultimately, horror, when a climactic spasm of violence and murder reveals Hitler's true character and ruthless ambition.

    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. The result is a dazzling, addictively readable work that speaks volumes about why the world did not recognize the grave threat posed by Hitler until Berlin, and Europe, were awash in blood and terror.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateMay 10, 2011
    ISBN9780307914583
    Unavailable
    In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin

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    Reviews for In the Garden of Beasts

    4/5

    2,027 ratings211 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Three Stars

      Who doesn't want to start the year with a book about pre-WW II Nazi Germany? I mean, what better way to ease into an attempted double cannonball?

      Despite the subject matter, this book is not a challenging read. I read Mr. Larson's book about the Chicago World's Fair (Devil in the White City) either last year or the year before and found it to be good but tough to get through. This book flowed better, although it didn't really end. I mean, obviously, it did, but it felt more like I was reading a very long and exquisitely researched magazine article than a book with a narrative arc.

      In the Garden of Beasts follows the U.S. Ambassador to Germany from 1933-1934. William Dodd was a history professor in Chicago when he was asked by President Roosevelt to serve; he brought his wife and two adult children with him to Berlin. The story follows Mr. Dodd and his daughter Martha as they navigate Nazi German, when Hitler was Chancellor and there was still a President who was ostensibly in charge.

      The main point of the book is that Dodd wasn't the typical old boys club rich kid ambassador and as such was a bit less interested in the economic issues that the U.S. State Department wanted to address and was more concerned with what was going on with Hitler, the SS, the SA and all the players who we now know were instrumental in WW II and the Holocaust. I have not read a book on WW II or the Holocaust since Diary of Anne Frank, so I can't claim that everything in the book is wholly accurate, but Mr. Larson is known for writing truthful and well-researched historical non-fiction by telling the stories of the people involved, so I assume it is mostly correct.

      I'm not sure if I really learned much new by reading the book. I suppose I learned that the U.S. government was primarily concerned with getting back money from Germany as opposed to the oppression and murder of German residents. But I wasn't surprised to learn that. It sort of matches the priorities the political elite have always had: money first, then people – maybe, eventually, if there is time.

      If you like history, and are interested in Germany just before WW II, I'm certain you could do worse than this book. Just don't expect a real beginning, middle and end. And be prepared, if you get the non-kindle-version, to mark out the swastikas on the cover. I get not burying that reality, but damn. I don't want to give people a heart attack while reading a book walking down the street that has a few scattered Nazi symbols on it.
    • 4/5
      How could the world not see what Hitler was doing? Larson gives us a view through the eyes of our ambassador to Germany from 1933-1937 and his family. Even though we think we know what was happening in Germany at the time, the surprise for me came in the rhetoric from our own State Department and the US population at large. Who knew that so many despised the Jews here? Mob mentality at its worst.
    • 4/5
      3.5 starsThis book follows the American Dodd family in Berlin in the 1930s, with the focus being 1933 and 1934. William Dodd, a history professor, was the US ambassador to Germany at the time, and his entire family, including his adult children in their 20s, moved to Berlin at this time, so they all experienced life in the German city during the rise of Hitler. The book primarily follows William and his 20-something year old (very promiscuous) daughter, Martha. The setting is certainly an interesting time and place, but I didn’t like it as much as the other books I’ve read by Larson. I found the descriptions of what was going on in Germany interesting, but there was a lot of politics that I didn’t find as engaging. Overall, though, I still thought the book was good, just not as good as his others, at least for me.
    • 4/5
      William E. Dodd was chosen by FDR to be the ambassador to Germany when Hitler came to power. His daughter decided to go with him instead of tried to fix a failed marriage because she thought it would be an adventure! A lot of Jewish refugees want to come to U.S. But FDR thought it would be bad for the economy. Much anti-Semitism in pockets of the US. There were a lot of political discussion at the the time on whether to accept the refugees or not.As I was listening to the CDs of this book I kept comparing what President Trump said and did to Hitler. I was very struck by the conversation that Ambassador Dodd had with Hitler when he was leaving his position. It makes me aware of the many similarities between the two.There was a real deal of emphasis on the love affairs of his daughter, she often treads on dangerous ground and it seemed to take a very long time to realize that the new Germany was not going in the right direction. Ambassador Dodd was not the typical diplomat. He hated the many parties and wasteful spending, but he had principals and he did not betray them.I highly recommend In the Garden of Beasts.
    • 4/5
      I love Erik Larson's non-fiction books. I wasn't sure exactly what this one was about when I picked it up. It covers the political climate in Germany starting in 1933 up to the Night of the Long Knives and its aftermath, primarily from the perspectives of the U.S. Ambassador and his family. I don't recall hearing about that event until I came across it in a documentary I saw a few years ago. It was certainly one that had intrigued me since, so I was quite glad to get a little more of the history about it.

      The book provides a window into the culture and politics of the times of both Germany and the U.S., and shows how they created the perfect environment for Hitler's evil to flourish.

      It did take a little bit for it to get off the ground, but I enjoyed it so much that was easily forgiven. Highly recommended!
    • 4/5
      A very good book (if a little dry). Very hard to read though. I learned a lot of history I was unaware of and most of it depressed me. I know it is easy to look back and ask, "how did the world let it happen?" but I still wonder.
    • 3/5
      Well I went into this book really hoping to love it. It has great reviews and my father through I would really enjoy it. Now that I am finished, I have to say that is was pretty much just OK. The second half of the book was very interesting as the everything starts happening in Hitler's Germany, but the first half of the book really dragged for me. There were so many names and obscure people mentioned that really didn't have a whole lot to do with the overall story. Also, I am no entirely sure if the author felt that Ambassador Dodd was a good leader or not. He seemed to go back and forth on him, but not in a way that made him feel objective.

      However, with all of that said, it was an interesting story. To see Hitler's Geramny from the eyes of the American family in Berlin was a unique way to study the history. I am glad I read the book, but wish that it had done a better job grabbing my attention.
    • 5/5
      Probably one of the best Kindle Daily Deals I ever bought. It tells the tale of the American diplomat in Germany in 1930s, powerless to stop the rise of the worst aspects of Nazism, indeed unable to know what best to do. It is also about his daughter who had an affair with the Head of the Gestapo and a Russian spy. I would go to bed early or even convince myself i was unwell so I could read more.
    • 5/5
      Be prepared to stay up reading into the wee hours once you get your hands on this book. It held my interest better than any novel, and it filled in all the gaps in my understanding of how Hitler was able to gain so much power so quickly, with so little opposition. Erik Larson used the detailed diaries of William E. Dodd and his daughter Martha to reconstruct "a year in the life" for Americans in Berlin from 1933 to 1934.William Dodd had no idea what he was saying yes to when President Roosevelt offered him the position of ambassador to Germany in 1933. Dodd had fond memories of the Germany of 40 years before, when he'd attended college in Leipzig. Upon arrival in Berlin, he and his family discovered a Germany already in the grip of terror, a mere six months after Hitler had been appointed chancellor. Storm Troopers were attacking people in the streets. Communists and liberals were already being sent to concentration camps without due process. As ambassador, Dodd found he was required to attend diplomatic functions and rub shoulders with the monsters of the new regime. As the horrors worsened, he found this increasingly repugnant, and tried doggedly to convince those in Washington that intervention was necessary. His entreaties fell mostly on deaf ears. Dodd's bosses were more concerned about getting Germany to pay off their huge debt to America, while maintaining an isolationist position with regard to foreign conflicts. While Dodd struggled with his diplomatic duties, his young daughter Martha was treating her time in Berlin as a lark. She dated and consorted with highly placed Nazis, including some of the most abominable of Hitler's minions. At first, she enthusiastically endorsed the Nazi agenda and its effect on the "New Germany." By the winter of 1933-34, however, she too was living in terror. This didn't seem to put much of a damper on her dating life, though, and she gained a reputation as quite a round-heeled girl. In late June of 1934 came "The Night of the Long Knives," in which Hitler orchestrated the rapid execution of hundreds of Storm Troopers and other "enemies," some seemingly at random. That August, President Hindenburg died. Hitler quickly took control and achieved absolute power. William Dodd remained in his position as ambassador for three more years, during which American leaders continued to refuse his requests for intervention in Nazi Germany.This book has already earned a permanent place in my home library. I can't recommend it highly enough. Great care has been taken to provide all the little things that prevent confusion and make a book easier to read and understand. I would give it six stars if I could.
    • 5/5
      Amazing research. Fills in a lot of missing gaps.
    • 4/5
      Excellent read. Focuses most heavily on the years 1933-34 in Berlin (and Germany) from the perspective of the US Ambassador of the time. Ambassador Dodd arrived in 1933, just as Hitler was beginning his rise to power. My only wish is that the book had included more about the remaining years during which Dodd was in Germany. Great insider's view of the events of those pre-WWII years.
    • 3/5
      This was an engaging novelization of history. I say novelization because Larson weaves together a very particular kind of story about the Dodd family and 1930s Hitler in Germany. As fascinating as the dramatic tale was, Larson's obsession with Martha's overt sexuality and her many lovers was often needlessly speculative about who exactly she slept with and why. It was frustrating to read a complex woman boiled down to a sex-addicted thrill seeker. It was particularly noticeable due to the lack of depiction of her brother or mother. Again, this goes back to the very particular kind of story Larson wanted to tell about this time.
    • 4/5
      Was surprised by how little happened in this book with the main characters. Larson seems to leave you to make a verdict on their actions, although, to me, they didn't really stand out. What I valued most about this book was the detailing of Hitler's rise to power from 1933, i.e. His chancellorship and his capture of power upon the death of Pres Hindenburg. Would not recommend to my teen readers.
    • 4/5
      This is about William Dodd, an academic who became the American ambassador in Berlin from 1933 to 1938. At the time of his appointment by RooseveltDodd was a professor at the University of Chicago. He moved his family and settled in for what he anticipated would be a pleasurable, low key assignment. He was not a typical, wealthy career diplomat and was surprised at the amounts of personal wealth which former ambassadors had spent. He launched a campaign of frugality which angered his bosses in the Pretty Good Club. This group in turn distrusted and betrayed him because of his coat cutting approach. It was during this time that Hitler and his cronies were ascending to the top of Germany's government and Dodd became a critic of US and European isolationism vs the regime. Dodd's daughter Martha is a central character because of her many friendships/trysts with famous writers, Nazis, Soviets and other glitterati. Without her story, this book would have been very dull. The Night of the Long Knives in June 1934 is well told and very frightening. Dodd leaves Berlin in late 1938 and retires to his farm. His predictions of the rise of naziism, pogroms of Jews, the invasion of Poland, and the start of WW2 portray him as a thoughtful and insightful ambassador.
    • 3/5
      First of all let me say that I admire the amount of research and effort that Larson puts into each and every book. He obviously has spent a great deal of time meticulously combing through the archives. I just didn't find the subject matter all that interesting and I had a great deal of trouble trying to finish it. Sorry Eric Larson.
    • 4/5
      Not as good as Devil in the White City, but still a revealing glimpse into pre WW2 Germany.
    • 4/5
      A biography that reads like historical fiction. When reading biographical novels set around the time of WWII, it's often easy to get bogged down in details. Erik Larson keeps the story moving. I often found myself stopping and thinking, "wait a minute... this really happened." Seeing the build up to WWII through the eyes of the American ambassador and his family was very interesting. Since most of what I've read was from the German point of view, this gave me a different picture of the people involved in the rise of Hitler and the beginnings of the war. I'm definitely going to read more from this author!

      I won an ARC of this book through Firstreads.
    • 5/5
      An eminently readable book...kept my interest throughout. Book helps to understand why Hitler and the Nazis were able to get by with what they did...whether it was the author's intent or not, the clear reasons for Hitler to get away with his murderous regime was anti-semitism existent in the US and Europe.
    • 3/5
      I honestly don't have much to say about this book. I found it readable but not all that exciting. My exact same opinion as I had for the only other book I've read by Larson, "Dead Wake", is that it was not hard to read but it wasn't hard to put down either. Again, I found the book much more political and militaristic than where my tastes lie. I'm more interested in social history and the lives of people. Since this book is mostly about William Dodd and his daughter Martha I was disappointed that they never fully came alive on the page. It's an interesting story which I hadn't known about before and I'm a lot wiser now as to why the US was so late to join WWII and it's early attitude towards Hitler. I'm glad to have read the book but it certainly was not a page-turner. I'll keep reading Larson's books as there are a couple that haven't anything to do with wars that I'm particularly interested in.
    • 4/5
      This is the story of the American ambassador to Hitler's Germany in the 1930s and his daughter. Seeing the Nazis from the social, pre-Holocaust days is kind of surreal. I never would have thought anyone would find Goebbels charming! I also hadn't quite realized how widespread antisemitism was. The American reactions to potential Jewish refugees were startlingly similar to today's reactions to other groups. An interesting and different angle to those turbulent years.
    • 3/5
      Interesting but often tedius and off-point.
    • 4/5
      tough read with all the various names, dates, and places, but dont give up as it provides thought provoking glimpses into the events and players of the emerging Third Reich and insight as to why the USA failed to take action regarding the persecution of the Jews.
    • 5/5
      I was already familiar with the early history of the Nazi regime Larson chronicles in this book but the perspective from which he approaches the subject is fresh, fascinating, compelling, and insightful. Superb storytelling!
    • 3/5
      Well-researched true story of the American ambassador to Germany in the 1930s. He along with his family have first hand seats to the horrific development of Nazi Germany.
    • 3/5
      This is not my favourite Larson book - - Isaac's Storm still holds that place in my heart. This was a perfectly serviceable history of a uniquely interesting time and place - Berlin in the mid 1930s - but for some reason it was rendered dull in the telling. I learned some things I didn't know before, but I don't particularly feel like I needed to learn some of them. A little unsatisfying.
    • 3/5
      This history and biography book explores the rise of the Third Reich from the perspective of one American family. Specifically that is the family of William E. Dodd, appointed to be ambassador to Germany by Franklin D. Roosevelt. Dodd and his adult daughter Martha are the main characters of the book. Dodd initially is supportive of Hitler and shares in some antisemitic beliefs. Martha, recently separated from her husband, enjoys the social life of Berlin and liaisons with several men including Soviet intelligence operative Boris Vinogradov. Over time the Dodd's became more aware of the violence and oppression of the Nazi state, and the ambassador begins to become more vocal in calling on the United States to oppose Hitler's regime (which in isolationist America proves to be an unpopular stance). This is an uncomfortable book to read. The Dodd's are not very likable people, but then they're contrasted with Nazis. No one comes off looking good. Still this is an interesting glimpse into a troubling time in history.
    • 5/5
      The story of the new American ambassador to Germany and his family,just as Hitler comes into power, interesting glimpse into Berlin, the Nazis, growing anti-semitism and escalation of Jewish persecution. It is fascinating and, of course appalling how Hitler and the Nazis gained more and more power,unchecked. Ambassador William Dodd's fears fall on deaf ears. This account gives a good glimpse into life in Berlin, growing tensions, increasing atrocities, the family life of the Dodds and diplomacy, social life including many prominent Nazis. Many prominent Nazis were also brutally murdered in a paranoic purge. Everyone lived in extreme fear, you could be jailed or killed because of often false accusations I will never understand how this great evil was allowed to happen.
    • 5/5
      Fantastic WWII book, and the narrator (audiobook) was excellent. I read so much about WWII itself but this is one of the few books that gives a casual and formal description of Germany prior to the war, and during the early development of Hitler as their leader. Though despicable, you get a better idea of the reasons people gave for jewish hatred, and how the fanaticism grew from Hitler being "chancellor" to the Night of Long Knives. The story of Mr. Dowd (spelling? I listened to the book so I don't know the names) and his family as embassadors to Germany prior to the war is excellent reading - you'll learn more about the war from this than you will any military treatise.
    • 4/5
      I've said this before, while its important that we learn about this material in school, we're being fed information at a time when we just don't care. I was in class in high school when we were introduced to some of the harsher subject matter of the second World War.. but I just didn't care. As sad as that is, I was more concerned about getting home on Friday afternoon, switching on my Nintendo 64 and enjoying some Goldeneye or whatever the hell I was playing at the time.

      World War II had ended 50 years prior to when I was in the eleventh grade and I had no way to fathom it. However, now that I'm a little older, a little wiser (allegedly) and a little more willing to explore history, I've gained an interest in the past and how we got to this point.

      Since high school, I've watched more than a few movies about WWII (Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan, Inglorious Basterds, etc.) or generally that period in history. Now, I'm like some Nazi sponge (to clarify, I'm not a Nazi product myself.. I just can't get enough information about that awful group of people) - I find it just mind blowing.

      The book looks at the life and observations of an American family living in Berlin during Hitler's rise to power. It's just stunning how almost everything he proposed was passed; stunning that a civilization would turn so quickly on a segment of the population. Hitler was truly a monster (not that I needed to tell you that) and Larson does a fine job building the atmosphere that any foreigner would be uncomfortable experiencing at the time.

      Narrative non fiction is a fantastic genre. This being my first real experience with it, I'm interested in reading some more. Larson seems to have a pretty impressive cannon of material for me to check out, so I shouldn't be without it for long.

      Its amazing how a few years can pass and I can become a totally different person in terms of interests. As a teen, you couldn't give me this book and pay me to read it.. but at my age now, I paid someone for the chance to read it. This observation is really here nor there.. I just thought I would bring it up.
    • 3/5
      Interesting tale of the professor/ambassodor Dodd who has to confront the evil of the Nazis from 1933-1937. Even though he is somewhat of an anti-Semite he nonetheless confronts the horror of Hitler's Germany in his own way. It is surprising that he is sacked by FDR in 1937 since he and FDR seem to agree on the danger Hitler represents. The only negative is the events of the Olympics and 1937 do not receive much attention. The climax in the book is Hitler's purge of the Brown Shirts and the murder of Ernst Rohm and others.