December 2022 MBR The Biography Shelf

The Biography Shelf

I Feel Your Stare: An Autobiography
Cheryl Gillespie
Fingertip Books
9780995005624, $24.75, PB, 242pp

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/i-feel-your-stare-cheryl-gillespie/1141909611

Synopsis: The life story of a woman as told by herself, "I Feel Your Stare: An Autobiography" by Cheryl Gillespie is a living example of how with a positive effort and a lot of hard work, life's most beneficial opportunities can arise from life's most challenging hardships and physical disabilities. How when mastering our own lives we can be propelled into a constructive and successful existence with our selves and with others.

Critique: Exceptionally well written, blending insight and aspiration, "I Feel Your Stare: An Autobiography" is an inspired and inspiring life story that is at once intensely personal yet universal with respect to the human condition in our time. With a very special appeal to readers with an interest in exceptionally well told life stories with uplifting messages, "I Feel Your Stare: An Autobiography" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal reading lists and community library American Biography/Memoir collections. It should be noted that "I Feel Your Stare: An Autobiography" is also available in an ebook format (2940166731456, $10.95).

Editorial Note: A childhood diagnosis of Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, with associated blindness, coupled with physical and societal barriers, has proven only to strengthen the resolve of Cheryl Gillespie. Following graduation from Fredericton High School, Cheryl advanced in her private studies through the Royal Conservatory of Music, attaining First Class Honours in piano, theory and history. Today, well established in her teaching career, she takes pride in the education of her students, highlighted by a two-time provincial medal winner through Mount Allison's Local Centre Examinations Department of Music. Through her active role within the Fredericton Music Teachers' Association, Cheryl has built invaluable, longstanding friendships with her colleagues. In 1993, Cheryl was the recipient of the Stanley B. Cassidy Memorial Award, presented by the Fredericton Music Society, recognizing her dedication to excellence and personal achievements. She is also the author of the children's book, "Tigger and Jasper's New Home."

Family Matters
Lance Lee
LWL Books
9798218025397, $34.99 Hardcover/$14.99 Kindle

https://www.amazon.com/Family-Matters-couldnt-dysfunctional-Americas/dp/B0B9QM992N

"Family Matters: Dreams I Couldn't Share - And How A Dysfunctional Family Became America's Darling" covers several generations of Addams family dysfunction and ties from 1865 to 1971, surveying interlaced dreams, failures, and transformations.

The vast stretch under examination allows for a focus that departs from the usual family memoir by considering the myths handed down between generations and how these perceptions were not only transmitted, but broken. More so than most, Lance Lee pinpoints how myth and falsifications "found a permanent place in our collective psyche" and transmitted damage from past to future until its grasp was finally identified and the trajectory altered.

Many words of philosophical and psychological wisdom permeate this account: "Truth can't be taken for granted; it can be overexposed. It can require nurturing. Yet at other times it can strike with the force of revelation and we realize it was always there, only waiting for the right time. But there aren't any guarantees about there being a right time, are there?"

The appearance of "Family Matters" proves there is a right time, represented by its very incarnation beyond family boundaries and into book form for the reading public to absorb and learn from. What begins as a singular family experience evolves into precise descriptions of dysfunction, myths, and magical thinking that centers on the author's parents and siblings that reflect on how these traits and perceptions were handed down and incarnated between generations.

Illustrative material that might have made the book too weighty or expensive are provided through an online link that further enhances the story's impact. As readers absorb Lee's family dreams and disparate myths, they will be prompted to consider broader questions about public and private personas, the promise and lure of new beginnings, and opportunities tinged by past experience.

Lee takes the time to produce bright, flowing descriptions that attract readers to this world and its evolutionary process. From emotional black holes of disconnection and their involvement in the popular TV show The Adams Family to how the show reflected some of the family's dysfunctional operations, the swings between private anguish and public representation are especially well done.

Of particular fascination to psychology readers who are interested in both family dynamics and media representations are the astute comments and connections Lee makes in this area. While the result will attract libraries strong in psychological profiles of family dysfunction, it also is very highly recommended for media studies students and libraries interested in the psychological entanglements between creative representation and dysfunction. It took a traumatic break to shake the roots of this family tree.

"Family Matters" will ideally earn debate and discussion in book clubs and psychology groups devoted to family issues and popular culture movie and film analysis alike.

Remarkable Women series
TwoDot/Globe Pequot
http://globepequot.com
c/o Rowman & Littlefield
www.rowman.com

Two new editions of titles in the "Remarkable Women" series are top picks for libraries looking for biographical profiles of women who made their marks in different states.

https://www.amazon.com/Remarkable-Utah-Women-Fascinating-Females/dp/1493066846

The second edition of Christy Karras's Remarkable Utah Women (9781493066841, $19.95) selects seventeen strong women who made a name for themselves in a state oddly known for its religious rigidity and women's rights alike. The women featured here have achieved many things, from Emmeline B. Wells, who was president of both the Mormon Relief Society and the Women's Suffrage Association, and Reva Beck Bosone, the state's first female judge. New biographies have been added for this edition to profile activists and historians.

https://www.amazon.com/Remarkable-Arizona-Women-Fascinating-Females/dp/1493066862

The third updated edition of Wynne Brown's Remarkable Arizona Women (9781493066865, $19.95) selects seventeen women of quite remarkable, diverse backgrounds, from poets and historians to lady bandits, educators, and activists. Each of these women broke free from social and political restrictions to change others' lives and make a mark on their state.

Each book provides riveting insights that readers will find perfect for studying the states in general and women's lasting impact in particular, and deserves a place in any women's history collection that's strong in biographical inspection.

In the Heart of It All
Richard F. Celeste
The Kent State University Press
1118 Library, P.O. Box 5190, Kent OH 44242
http://www.kentstateuniversitypress.com
9781606354452, $29.95, HC, 350pp

https://www.amazon.com/Heart-All-Unvarnished-Account-Service/dp/1606354450

Synopsis: With the publication of "In the Heart of It All: An Unvarnished Account of My Life in Public Service", former Ohio governor Richard F. Celeste recounts his childhood in Lakewood, Ohio, where his politically ambitious father eventually served as mayor. Awarded a scholarship to attend Yale University, Celeste studied history and later became a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford; while living overseas, he met and quickly married his first wife, Dagmar Braun. Upon returning from Oxford, Celeste expected to begin a teaching career but was recruited to serve as a liaison for Peace Corps volunteers in Latin America, and the young couple relocated to Washington, DC, where they became friendly with Chet and Steb Bowles. When President Kennedy appointed Chet Bowles US ambassador to India, he invited Dick to work as his personal assistant. There, under Bowles's tutelage, Dick began to consider a political career of his own.

Celeste returned to Ohio and successfully ran for the Ohio House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1970. After serving two terms, he was elected lieutenant governor in 1974 but lost the 1978 governor's race by a slim margin. Celeste worked in DC as director of the Peace Corps while plotting his next move, and in 1982, his gubernatorial campaign resulted in a landslide victory. He served two terms as Ohio's governor, tackling an epic savings and loan crisis along with mental health reform and job creation.

Celeste describes candidly why he considered and dismissed a presidential campaign in 1988. He went on to serve as ambassador to India under President Clinton, traveling there with his second wife, Jacqueline Lundquist, and bringing his career full circle. Shortly after that position ended, Celeste became president of Colorado College, serving from 2002 to 2011.

In each position, Celeste has used his grandmothers' wisdom to guide his decision making, putting the needs of his various constituents - Ohio citizens, Peace Corps volunteers, diplomatic colleagues, and college students - above his ego and popularity ratings, and, as he poignantly reflects, sometimes even before his family. In the Heart of It All offers a remarkably frank and expansive account of Celeste's personal and professional life, including his disappointing defeats and thrilling victories.

Critique: Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "In the Heart of It All: An Unvarnished Account of My Life in Public Service" will have a very special appeal to readers with an interest in political biographies and memoirs. While also available for personal reading lists in a digital book format (Kindle, $22.49), "In the Heart of It All: An Unvarnished Account of My Life in Public Service" will prove a welcome and highly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, college, and university library American Biography & Memoir collections.

Editorial Note: Richard F. Celeste (https://ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Richard_F._Celeste) was the governor of Ohio from 1983 to 1991. He has held a variety of positions in government and public service, most recently serving as president of Colorado College. He is currently a trustee of the Gates Family Foundation and Global Communities. The father of seven children, Celeste resides in Colorado with his wife, Jacqueline, and is involved with numerous charities.

At First Light
Walt Larimore
Knox Press
https://permutedpress.com/knox-press
Recorded Books
8400 Corporate Drive, Landover, MD 20785
https://rbmediaglobal.com/audio-brands
9781642939590, $35.00, HC, 480pp

https://www.amazon.com/At-First-Light-Bravery-Amazing/dp/1642939595

Synopsis: Growing up in the 1930s in Memphis, Tennessee, Phil Larimore was the ultimate Boy Scout -- able to read maps, put a compass to good use, and traverse wild swamps and desolate canyons. His other great skill was riding horses.

Phil does poorly in school, however, leading his parents send to him to a military academy. After Pearl Harbor, Phil realizes he is destined for war. Three weeks before his eighteenth birthday, he becomes the youngest candidate to ever graduate from Officer Candidate School (OCS) at Fort Benning, Georgia.

Landing on the Anzio beachhead in February 1944, Phil is put in charge of an Ammunition Pioneer Platoon in the 3rd Infantry Division. Their job: deliver ammunition to the frontline foxholes - a dangerous assignment involving regular forays into No Man's Land.

As Phil fights his way up the Italian boot, into Southern France and across the Rhine River into Germany, he is caught up in some of the most intense combat ever. But it's what happens in the final stages of the war and his homecoming that makes Phil's story incredibly special and heartwarming.

Critique: An impressive and memorable story of genuine courage, daring, and heroism, "At First Light: A True World War II Story of a Hero, His Bravery, and an Amazing Horse" is especially and unreservedly recommended for community and academic library World War II History & Memoir collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "At First Light" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99) and as a complete and unabridged audio book (Recorded Books, 9798212050531, $41.95, CD).

Number One Is Walking
Steve Martin, author
Harry Bliss, illustrator
Celadon Books
120 Broadway, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10271
https://celadonbooks.com
9781250815293, $30.00, HC, 256pp

https://www.amazon.com/Number-One-Walking-Movies-Diversions/dp/1250815290

Synopsis: Steve Martin has never written about his career in the movies before. With the publication of "Number One Is Walking: My Life in the Movies and Other Diversions", he shares anecdotes from the sets of his beloved films (Father of the Bride, Roxanne, The Jerk, Three Amigos, and many more) bringing his readers directly into his world.

He also shares charming tales of antics, moments of inspiration, and exploits with the likes of Paul McCartney, Diane Keaton, Robin Williams, and Chevy Chase. Martin details his forty years in the movie biz, as well as his stand-up comedy, banjo playing, writing, and cartooning, all with his unparalleled wit.

With gorgeously illustrated cartoons and single-panel "diversions" combining the talents of entertainer Steve Martin and artist/illustrator Harry Bliss, "Number One Is Walking" is a compendium of the everyday moments that make up a movie star's life, capturing Steve Martin's singular humor and acclaimed career in film.

Critique: An absolute 'must' for the legions of Steve Martin fans, "Number One Is Walking: My Life in the Movies and Other Diversions" will also introduce readers to the whimsical cartooning style of Harry Bliss as he gives a visual emphasis to Martin's wit, wisdom and life story. Simply stated, "Number One Is Walking: My Life in the Movies and Other Diversions" is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal reading lists and community/academic library American Biography/Memoir/Humor collections.

Editorial Note #1: Steve Martin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Martin) is one of the most well-known talents in entertainment. His work has earned him an Academy Award , five Grammy awards, an Emmy, the Mark Twain Award, and the Kennedy Center Honors. As an author, Martin's work includes the novel An Object of Beauty, the play Picasso at the Lapin Agile, a collection of comic pieces, Pure Drivel, a bestselling novella, Shopgirl, and his memoir Born Standing Up. Martin's films include The Jerk, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Roxanne, Parenthood, L.A. Story, Father of the Bride, and Bowfinger.

Editorial Note #2: Harry Bliss (https://store.harrybliss.com) is a cartoonist and cover artist for the New Yorker magazine. His syndicated single-panel comic 'Bliss' appears in newspapers internationally. He has written and illustrated over 20 books for children and is the founder of the Cornish CCS Fellowship for Graphic Novelists in Cornish, New Hampshire.

The Scandalous Hamiltons
Bill Shaffer
Citadel Press
c/o Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street, Floor 21, New York, NY 10018-2522
www.kensingtonbooks.com
9780806542256, $26.00, HC, 320pp

https://www.amazon.com/Scandalous-Hamiltons-Disgraced-Descendant-Journalism/dp/080654225X

Synopsis: With the publication of "The Scandalous Hamiltons: A Gilded Age Grifter, a Founding Fathers Disgraced Descendant, and a Trial at the Dawn of Tabloid Journalism", author Bill Shaffer presents a historical story of true crime that almost too tawdry to be true -- a con woman prostitute who met the descendant of a Founding Father in a brothel, duped him into marriage using an infant purchased from a baby farm, then went to prison for stabbing the couple's baby nurse -- all while in a common-law marriage with another man.

The scandal surrounding Evangeline and Robert Ray Hamilton, though little known today, was one of the sensations of the Gilded Age, a sordid, gripping tale involving bigamy, bribery, sex, and violence.

When the salacious Hamilton story emerged in during Eva's trial for the August 1889 stabbing, it commanded unprecedented national and international newspaper coverage thanks to the telegraph and the recently founded Associated Press. For the New York dailies, eager to capture readers through provocative headlines, Ray and Eva were a godsend.

As lurid details emerged, the public's fascination grew -- how did a man of Hamilton's stature become entangled with such an adventuress? Nellie Bly, the world-famous investigative reporter, finagled an exclusive interview with Eva after her conviction. Hamilton's death under mysterious circumstances, a year after the stabbing, added to the intrigue.

Through personal correspondence, court records, and sensational newspaper accounts, "The Scandalous Hamiltons" explores not only the full, riveting saga of ill-fated Ray and Eva, but the rise of tabloid journalism and celebrity in a story that is both a fascinating slice of pop culture history and a timeless tale of ambition, greed, and obsession.

Critique: An exceptionally well written and riveting read -- and with an extraordinary appeal to dedicated fans of historical true crime stories, "The Scandalous Hamiltons: A Gilded Age Grifter, a Founding Fathers Disgraced Descendant, and a Trial at the Dawn of Tabloid Journalism" is a highly recommended addition to personal, community, and academic library 19th Century American History & Biography and American 'Yellow Journalism' history collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of all true crime fans that "The Scandalous Hamiltons" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $1.99).

Editorial Note: Bill Shaffer (https://www.billshafferbooks.com) is the author of Emotion In Motion: 55 Baranger Displays (Vitra Design Museum 2021). He has been published on www.designobserver.com and the online site of Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, where he was a Smithsonian Fellow. Shaffer also holds an M.A., History of Design and Curatorial Studies from Parsons, The New School.

Save the Last Bullet: Memoir of a Boy Soldier in Hitler's Army
Wilhelm Langbein, author
Heidi Langbein-Allen, author
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (US distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781399072397, $32.95, HC, 224pp

https://www.amazon.com/Save-Last-Bullet-Soldier-Hitlers/dp/1399072390

Synopsis: Willi Langbein was just thirteen when the Nazis took him away from his parents under the pretense of protecting him. Their real reason was to turn him into cannon-fodder for use against Hitler's enemies. Deployed to the collapsing Eastern Front in the last days of the war, Willi, now aged fourteen, and his schoolmates were ordered to stave off the relentless Russian advance. None were expected to return alive from the final battles of the Third Reich.

Yet, against all odds, Willi did survive but his ordeal was far from over. He returns home to find everything he knows destroyed. Numb and confused, he is mandated to serve one year of forced farm labor. After his release, he gradually realizes that all he was taught to believe in was a lie and he sinks into depression. Eventually, thanks to his friendship with a kind British soldier, he begins to heal. It begins to dawn on him that he can play a part to ensure that the evil he witnessed is never repeated. Ultimately, he succeeds by earning the Medal of European Merit in 1979 for his contribution to the advancement of European democracy.

Willi's graphic and moving story, told from a Nazi child soldier's perspective, is an inspiring memoir of lost innocence and despair, but also of determination and hope restored.

Critique: Given the current rise in anti-democratic influences in Europe (and America), "Save the Last Bullet: Memoir of a Boy Soldier in Hitler's Army" is a timely and timeless expose of what happens (especially to children) when democracy gives way to authoritarianism. A riveting personal memoir of Willhelm Langbein's daughter, Heidi Langbein-Allen drawing upon her father's records and accounts, "Save the Last Bullet: Memoir of a Boy Soldier in Hitler's Army" is a highly recommended and valued addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library World War II History/Biography/Memoir collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Save the Last Bullet: Memoir of a Boy Soldier in Hitler's Army" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $11.49).

Editorial Note #1: Having lost two school years as a child soldier in Hitler's Army, Wilhelm Langbein graduated from high school in 1951, aged 21. In 1959, he married his Spanish pen pal, Teresa Vives. They had two daughters, Heidi and Graziella. After gaining a degree in law and philology from the University of Cologne, he joined the German Department of Defense in 1962. In 1979, he was awarded the medal of European Merit for his contribution to the advancement of democracy in Europe. He spent his final assignment as head of the Legal Division of the NATO EFA Development, Production and Logistic Management Agency before retiring in 1992. He passed away in 2018.

Editorial Note #2: Heidi Langbein-Allen was raised in Germany, France and Spain and lives in the USA with her husband, a retired US Navy veteran. She wrote her Father's memoirs from his taped recollections and records of interviews. An excerpt aired in the top-rated World War Two podcast fightingthroughpodcast.co.uk in May 2021 and a chapter appeared in the San Diego Writer's Association 2021 Anthology A Year In Ink.

The Reign Of Emperor Antoninus Pius
John S. McHugh
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (US distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526773982, $36.95. HC, 256pp

https://www.amazon.com/Fortress-Kingdom-Aethelflaed-Edward-899-927/dp/1399010611

Synopsis: The reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius is widely seen as the apogee of the Roman Empire yet, due to gaps in the historical sources, his reign has been overlooked by modern historians. He is considered one of the five good emperors of the Antonine dynasty under whom the pax Romana enabled the empire to prosper, trade to flourish and culture to thrive. His reign is considered a Golden Age but this was partly an image created by imperial propaganda. There were serious conflicts in North Africa and Dacia, as well as a major revolt in Britain. On his death the empire stood on the cusp of the catastrophic invasions and rebellions that marked the reign of his successor Marcus Aurelius.

Antoninus Pius became emperor through the hand of fate, being adopted by Hadrian only after the death of his intended heir, Lucius Aelius Caesar. His rule was a balancing act between securing his own safety, securing the succession of his adopted heir, and denying opportunities for conspiracy and rebellion. 'Equanimity' was the last password he issued to his guards as he lay on his death bed. In the face of the threats and challenges he remained calm and composed, providing twenty-three years of stability; a calm before the storms that gathered both within and beyond Rome's borders.

Critique: A fascinating, informative, and detailed biography that is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $18.99), "The Reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius, AD 138 - 161" by John S. McHugh is an extraordinary and welcome contribution to the growing library of Ancient Roman Histories & Biographies. Informatively enhanced with the inclusion of a section of b/w plates, maps, a timeline, an Appendix (Thye Ancient Sources Historical and Biographical Works), twenty-eight pages of Notes, a nine page Bibliography, and a five page Index, "The Reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius, AD 138 - 161" must be considered a core addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library second century A.D. Roman Empire History & Biography collections.

Editorial Note: John S. McHugh has a BA and MA in Ancient History. He is currently an Assistant Headmaster at a secondary school in Bolton. He is the co-author of a text book on Boltons connections with the slave trade and is currently assisting Bolton Museum with a project to record the oral history of the local populace with the aim of promoting understanding between people of different generations or ethnic and social backgrounds.

Robert the Bruce: Scotland's True Braveheart
Phil Carradice
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (US distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781399002608, $34.95, HC, 200pp

https://www.amazon.com/Robert-Bruce-Scotlands-True-Braveheart/dp/1399002600

Synopsis: With the publication of "Robert the Bruce: Scotland's True Braveheart", historian Phil Carradice provides readers with a detailed account of the life and times of the Scottish hero and monarch. This impressive biography covers his life from childhood to death, as well as the political, social and military life of Scotland before, during and after the time of Robert the Bruce.

"Robert the Bruce: Scotland's True Braveheart" also looks at the relationship between The Bruce and people like Edward I and Edward II of England, William Wallace and the other contenders for the Scottish crown. The main thrust of this biography is a chronological account of how The Bruce clawed his way to power, his struggles and battles and his eventual victory which gave Scotland independence and freedom from an acquisitive and warlike neighbor. It looks in detail at the murder of John Comyn, of which The Bruce stood accused, and the political ramifications of the killing.

Robert the Bruce was no saint. He was a ruthless, cunning warrior, a man of his times, dedicated to what he saw as his mission in life. Flawed he may have been, he was also a great King, a worthy warrior and a man who deserves to emerge from the shadow of William Wallace -- a position to which he has been relegated ever since the film Braveheart.

Critique: A fascinating, documented, and informative historical/biographical study, historian Phil Carradice's "Robert the Bruce: Scotland's True Braveheart" also features four pages of Endnotes, a two page Bibliography, and a three page Index. While available for the personal reading lists of students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject, "Robert the Bruce: Scotland's True Braveheart" is an impressively and highly recommended addition to both community and academic library Scottish History, Military & Biography collections and supplemental curriculum syllabus.

Editorial Note: Phil Carradice (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Carradice) is a well-known poet, story teller, and historian with over 60 books to his credit. He is a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio and TV, presents the BBC Wales History program The Past Master and is widely regarded as one of the finest creative writing tutors in Wales.

Baldur von Schirach: Nazi Leader and Head of the Hitler Youth
Oliver Rathkolb, author
John Heath, translator
Frontline Books
c/o Pen & Sword Books
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781399020954, $42.95, HC, 256pp

https://www.amazon.com/Baldur-von-Schirach-Leader-Hitler/dp/1399020951

Synopsis: Though three of his four grandparents were from America and the first language he learned at home was English, Baldur von Schirach became one of the Third Reich's most influential individuals. He joined the Nazi Party as early as 1925 at the age of eighteen and three years later became a member of its National Leadership. He also married Henriette, the daughter of Hitler's personal photographer, Heinrich Hoffmann.

Von Schirach continued to rise through the ranks of the Nazi Party, reaching the rank of SA-Gruppenfuhrer. It was as the leader of the Hitler Youth organization, however, for which von Schirach is best remembered, becoming Reichsfuhrer of the Hitler Youth on 16 June 1932, and the following year was given responsibility for all youth organizations in Germany. He also became a member of the Reichstag as a representative of the Party.

Despite his influential position, he was called up for military service and served in the French campaign of 1940. Following this he became Reich Governor and the Nazi's Gauleiter Reichsstatthalter in Vienna -- powerful positions he retained until the final collapse of the Third Reich in May 1945. His responsibilities as Gauleiter and Reichsstatthalter included overseeing the deportation of Vienna's Jews to ghettos and concentration camps in occupied Poland. Though a confirmed anti-Semite, later in the war he pleaded for a moderate treatment of the eastern European peoples and criticized the conditions in which Jews were being deported. This caused a breach with Hitler and the Nazi leadership, though he managed to retain his position in Vienna.

Following his capture by US troops, von Schirach was among the major war criminals put on trial at Nuremburg. Found guilty of crimes against humanity on 1 October 1946, von Schirach was sentenced to twenty years imprisonment. He served out his time in the company of Rudolf Hess and Albert Speer in Spandau prison. He admitted his crimes and his role in the deportations and in his autobiography, "I Believed in Hitler", he explained how he was drawn into the world of the Nazis. He also said that his aim was destroy any belief in the rebirth of Nazism as well as blaming himself for not having done more to prevent the concentration camps.

With the publication of "Baldur von Schirach: Nazi Leader and Head of the Hitler Youth" author Oliver Rathkobl provides detailed and balanced analysis of Baldur von Schirach that reveals the true and ambivalent nature of a complex and fascinating individual who played a key role in the events leading up to, and during, the Second World War.

Critique: A fascinating and impressively informative biography by Oliver Rathkolb, "Baldur von Schirach: Nazi Leader and Head of the Hitler Youth" is ably translated into English by John Heath. Also featuring a seven page Select Bibliography, twenty-nine pages of Notes, and a six page Index, "Baldur von Schirach: Nazi Leader and Head of the Hitler Youth" is a welcome and highly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library World War II Biography/Memoir collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Baldur von Schirach: Nazi Leader and Head of the Hitler Youth" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $18.99).

Editorial Note: Professor Oliver Rathkolb (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Rathkolb) is the head of the Institute for Contemporary History at the University of Vienna. The author of numerous publications on Austrian and international contemporary, cultural and music history, Professor Rathkolb has also been the editor of the journal Zeitgeschichte since 2002 and is chairman of the scientific advisory board of the House of Austrian History.

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Midwest Book Review