37 of 52 in my 2011 book blogging challenge.
Erik Larson’s In the Garden of Beasts is a fascinating tale of the American ambassador to Germany during the years preceding World War II.
William Dodd was not what anyone would have expected of an ambassador. He was a college professor who lacked both the wealth and the lavish sensibilities of those who normally took such posts. He expected to live on his salary and annoyed the State Department with is many complaints about the excesses of others in the diplomatic service. He also brought with him to Germany his grown children.
Bill liked to party a bit too much, and Martha became more famous than her father by behaving “most indiscriminately” in her personal relationships. She had affairs with several top ranking Nazis, one of whom introduced her to Hitler himself in hopes that an American woman might have a calming influence. Martha was enamored with the Nazis at first. Later, when she began to understand the atrocities of the Nazi regime, she fell in love with a Russian, who persuaded her that communism was the most attractive revolution of her day. She eventually married a wealthy American, but she and her husband ended up exiled from the US due to a small matter of espionage charges. She never did believe she had spied against her own country, though. She believed she had done a noble thing in spying against the Nazis, a whole different proposition entirely.
Martha is an intriguing character who overshadows her father in the story of his time as ambassador. Even she is not the real story, though.
This is a story about how and why America maintained relations with Germany throughout Hitler’s rise to power without doing anything to prevent it and even making any strong statements against it.
One, there was a whole lot of denial going on. No one wanted to believe the worst of the stories they were hearing about the Nazis.
Two, everyone wanted to avoid another war if at all possible. The prevailing attitude toward Hitler in the State Department was “we need to work with him” for as long as they could possibly hold onto this opinion.
Three, America had troubles enough at home without provoking foreign leaders. There was a depression going on, and Americans didn’t have to look any further than the KKK lynchings at home to find civil rights horrors to concern themselves with.
Four, Americans were staunchly isolationist. They wanted Europe to solve its own problems.
All this is brought out in the story of the awkward and strange ambassador, who was often at odds with both his superiors and his subordinates, but who was also a vastly wise and courageous man. He refused to attend a celebration in honor of Hitler at one point, despite the fact that it would have been considered part of his duty as ambassador. He did so because he took to heart Roosevelt’s personal request that he be a beacon of American ideals, and by that time, even when no one was listening to him, he did not believe he could toast Hitler and be a Beacon for America at the same time.
This is a quick and interesting read that also happens to be highly informative. Pick it up if you want to learn a little more about the days leading up to World War II. It will be well worth your time.
