Synopses & Reviews
Describes the failed attempt of the Red Army to capture Budapest and Vienna in late 1944, in order to forestall the Western Allies in Central Europe—with previously unpublished photographsOctober 1944: Soviet troops launched a powerful attack on Budapest from the south, the culmination of a series of military, political, diplomatic, and underground moves undertaken by Hitler, Stalin, and Churchill since the collapse of the Axis front in the Balkans two months earlier. However, what had been planned as a bold stroke to knock Hungary out of the war and bring the Red Army as far as Munich quickly became a stalemate. The end result was that Stalin's forces failed to reach Bavaria, but the dictator was not disappointed: Soviet pressure against the German southern flank forced Hitler to transfer a considerable number of his armored reserves to Hungary, and thus largely facilitated Zhukov's drive on to Berlin. Here, Kamen Nevenkin tells the fascinating story of this "Market Garden"-like operation using a number of never before published German and Russian archival documents, including German papers exclusively held in the Russian military archive. Along with a detailed tactical narrative, this book also uses first-person accounts to render a human tale of war, creating an ultimately fascinating read.
Review
"As the foreword’s author, Carol Kahn Strauss, points out, Berlin is now a major destination for American Jewish tour groups. Jews loved Berlin —a city that alternately freed and destroyed them. Carefully recounting this confounding tale, Jews in Berlin honors the complexity of an unfathomable relationship." —Ira Wolfman, Jewish Book Council
Review
“Finally, a comprehensive book on the history of Jews in Berlin has arrived! Never has there been such a complete overview—supported by wonderful illustrations." —Berliner Zeitung
Review
“[Jews in Berlin] offers an outstanding and thorough overview of more than seven centuries of Jewish life in Berlin . . . An indispensible read on Berlin’s cultural history.” —Portal Kunstgeschichte
Review
“[Jews in Berlin] presents centuries of history of Jewish life in Berlin as a vivid and comprehensive impression of development, illustrated by a richness of documents, profiles, and images." —Katholische Kirchenzeitung
Synopsis
Leipzig is the city of books and music. Johann Sebastian Bach composed his cantatas in the St. Thomas Church; Martin Luther disputed the future of Christianity at Germany's second oldest university; and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's "Faust" got into a brawl at Auerbach's Keller, one of many historical trade-fair buildings. Leipzig, the site of one of the world's oldest and largest book fairs, is located at the meeting point of historic imperial roads between Paris and Moscow, and Rome and the Baltic Sea. It is the city where Richard Wagner was born, Clara met Franz Schumann, Edward Grieg learned to play the piano, Felix Mendelssohn rediscovered Bach, Erich Kästner visited the coffee house, and Kurt Masur directed the Gewandhaus. It is also the city whose rallies at the St. Nicholas Church led to the downfall of Communism in 1989. Since then, Leipzig has been splendidly rebuilt. In December 2015, the city will be one thousand years old. This book brings to life the stories of ordinary and famous Leipzigers.
Synopsis
Bringing to life the stories of the ordinary and famous Leipzigers, this book takes readers through the 1,000-year-old history of the city of books and music. This book contains a rich history of Leipzig, from St. Thomas Church where Johann Sebastian Bach composed his cantatas to Martin Luther’s dispute of the future of Christianity at Germany’s second oldest university to the rallies at the St. Nicholas Church that led to the downfall of Communism. Located at the meeting point of historic imperial roads, Leipzig is also the site of one of the world’s oldest and largest book fairs. A sweeping overview, this book highlights the famous stories of what is now a splendidly rebuilt city.
Synopsis
This richly-illustrated book depicts 750 years of Jewish history as well as Jewish life in Berlin today. The Prussian capital was, for many centuries, the center of Jewish life in Germany. Its Jewish citizens strongly influenced the city’s cultural and literary life and led the way in the sciences, from the 18th century salon of Rachel Varnhagen to the cabarets of the Weimar Republic. However, economic crisis, hyper-inflation, and the depression of 1929 provided rich soil for the growth of anti-Semitism and ultimately led to the Holocaust. Today, after tens of thousands of immigrants from Russia and Israel have arrived in the capital, Jewish life and culture are flourishing once again.
About the Author
Cindy Opitz earned a BA in German Language and Literature and Soviet Studies at Brown University, and spent two academic years in the former German Democratic Republic. She went on to earn an MFA in Literary Translation at the University of Iowa and currently lives in Iowa City (a UNESCO City of Literature), with her East-German husband, three children, and four cats. She also is the collections manager at the University of Iowa Museum of Natural History and was once described by an Austrian author as a "curator of words." Sebastian Ringel is a Leipzig novelist who grew up in a small town in Saxony. He studied history in Dresden, where he also became an occupational therapist. His first novel, The Monotony of Yeah, Yeah, Yeah came out in 2002, followed by a collection of stories and poems, My Dog the Fish. His latest novel, 5.8 People was inspired by a year-long sojourn in Australia. In addition to writing, he works as a tour guide in Leipzig.