Book Description
'Remarkable....[a] vivid (and beautifully translated) account.'-Jerusalem Post Fest describes in riveting detail the final weeks of the war, from the desperate battles that raged night and day inthe ruins of Berlin, fought by boys and old men, to the growing paranoia that marked Hitler's mental state, to his suicide and the efforts of his loyal aides to destroy his body before the advancing Russian armies reached Berlin. Inside Hitler's Bunker combines meticulous research with spellbinding storytelling and sheds light on events that, for those who survived them, were nothing less than the end of the world.
Customer Reviews:
the dark, nihilistic end of the Thousand Year Reich .......2007-02-27
Fest's haunting description of the last days of the Third Reich is a magnificent accomplishment. Despite its brevity, Fest manages to weave larger historical issues into a narrative full of surreal, compelling details about the Nazis' end. There are the evocative stories of Berlin in turmoil: SS patrols summarily hanging whoever they felt was a shirker, citizens struggling to survive in the shelled-out ruin of a city, the Soviet encirclement growing ever closer. Meanwhile, inside the Hitler's bunker, the story of delusion and denial grew ever more fantastical -- Hitler commanding generals to counterattack the Russians with army units existing in his imagination, and growing more and more furious with their "betrayals" as the Russian advance still came on.
The story arrives ultimately at the Russian approach to the bunker and the suicides of Hitler, Eva Braun, and the inner circle. Their grimly nihilistic end, burned in a trashheap, paralleled their desire for the same fate for Germany. Hitler wanted Germany to go down with him. That so many in Berlin actually did follow him in suicide, or fighting the Russians to the end against suicidal odds, seems now almost too bewildering to believe. Fest's book is bleak, but in a straightforward journalistic style argues why the end in the bunker was the culmination of Hitler's theatrical, nihilistic vision.
Not a Worthwhile Text.......2007-01-12
I wish that I had read the negative reviews of this book and avoided it. This is a very poorly done account of Hitler's final days in the bunker. The book is poorly written, lacks linear progression, and provides an erratic treatment of the subject. The text itself is cobbled together in piecemeal fashion from other books on the subject - there seems little original here. Quotes about Hitler are often made without attribution leaving the reader to wonder whose opinion was being posited. Fest writes pages and pages of filler material consisting of his own amateur psychoanalysis of Hitler which adds nothing to the record and further sidetracks this work.
If you wish to read an engaging and informative account of Hitler's final days, skip Fest's book and read instead the book written by Hitler's secretary Traudle Junge's or Ian Sayer and Douglas Botting's book The Women Who Knew Hitler which chronicles Hitler's last days extremely well.
Brief look at Hitler's last days.......2006-08-31
While not as thorough as Anton Joachimstahler's or James P. O'Donnell's works on Hitler's last days, Fest provides a good introduction to the last month of Hitler and Nazi Germany's lives. The book somewhat bounces around between Hitler, the Soviet onslaught, and conditions in Berlin, but Fest does a pretty good job of balancing these and writing a readable book. Again, not the most detailed of accounts, but a good intro.
Interesting (Brief) Look at Hitler's Last Days.......2006-08-05
Basic facts and figures about the Third Reich are good data, but nothing can really help you understand the Hitler/Nazi phenomenon so well as reading his own words, and the words of the people who made his regime possible - in the volatile environment of Hitler's bunker in April, 1945.
Though the book is short, there is a lot to digest in it. I personally didn't feel that it was overly dry, or boring (at all!), particularly in comparison to your average history, but I was a little disappointed in the lack of bibliographical notes.
All in all, it's a good place to start, a good book to point you in the direction of the right questions to ask, to lead you to more in-depth information.
Brief, Dry and Disappointing.......2006-06-11
Mr. Fest is a competent writer, but his account here is dry, brief and for those with prior knowledge of the facts, this book is very disappointing.
For a period with such plots and subplots this book is surprisingly colorless.
For an excellent book on a decisive turning point in Third Reich history, I most warmly recommended `Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege: 1942-1943'
By Antony Beevor.
Book Description
This book of eight essays focuses upon Choctaw history prior to 1830, when the tribe forfeited territorial claims and was removed from native lands in Mississippi. The editors have included essays emphasizing Choctaw anthropology, Choctaw beliefs, and the Choctaw experience with the U.S. government prior to the tribe's removal to Oklahoma.
Attention is focused upon the ways in which the Choctaw ideology was affected by European groups, frontiersmen, and state and federal officials. It is a collection of essays that shows the relationship among the various forces that combined to erode the culture, economy, and political structure of the Choctaw.
Book Description
In a synthesis of historical and literary, archaeological and paleontological detective work, Charles Pellegrino transfixes us with his exploration of the origins of Atlantis.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Customer Reviews:
Very important subject, but sketchy writing.......2001-11-16
YES: this book is about the real Atlantis. It really did exist, but not in the literal way that Plato described it, and certainly not in the way that New Age speculation "theorists" want it to.
I really wanted to give this book a perfect five-star rating, as the subject matter is immensely important, and the author's enthusiasm makes this book a truly exciting experience. The long story made short is that "Atlantis" was in reality a small island in the east Mediterranean way back around 1600 BC. Thera was a part of the Minoan Empire, and, being a group of islands between Egypt and Greece, had not only the world's first navy, but aquaducts (long before the famous Roman water systems) and a surprisingly highly-evolved culture. Then one day, the volcano at the center of Thera exploded with as least six times the power of Krakatoa (the 1883 eruption that was heard over 2000 miles away), and within seconds 2/3 of the island was in the stratosphere.
This was all before even the Greeks became the dominant force in the region, and so the sudden disappearance of the Minoans (who dominated trade between Europe and Africa) not surprisingly became various stories passed down through the generations, which is where Plato heard it. Plato's description of an entire continent all the way out in the Atlantic that sunk into the sea turned out to be an embellishment on what was, by then, just a myth. He was essentially trying to make a point about how quickly even the most powerful civilization can crumble, and what he said was passed down through the ages, in one form or another, to us. This is how and why these Art Bell "experts" have hijacked this subject and nailed it onto their "theories" of other subjects that have been blown completely out of proportion, such as the Bermuda Triangle, life on Mars, Bigfoot, etc. Case in point: just because Atlantis was advanced by ancient standards, NO: THEY DID NOT HAVE AIRPLANES OR LASERS. Sorry to burst anyone's bubble, but REAL history isn't "Spear of Destiny" garbage: it's how real people really lived, not whatever garbage you want it to be.
Of course, this book was an emotional one to read: an ancient culture creating such high technology (a millenium ahead of its time), only to be totally annihilated in just seconds. If the downfall of Rome and the unsuing loss of knowledge and the onset of the Dark Ages is considered to be historically tragic, this story is then the most epic catastrophe EVER. The author points out that if they were doing what took another 1000 years for the Romans to figure out (such as running water through pipes), who knows what these people might have managed to do? Maybe we would have been on the moon 2000 years ago. We'll never know.
The downfall of this book that I hinted at earlier is that 90% of everything important is said immediately: none of what I've said here is a "big mystery" that gets unravelled through the course of the book. It's like getting hit from all sides with amazing (and very enthusiastic) information about who the Therans might have been, how the world was at the time, and the excitement that Atlantis did exist after all. As great as all of that is, the book suddenly takes a left turn into endless archaeological stories and theories that simply don't have much of anything to do with the subject. At first, it's the author trying to put Theran history into perspective (he says that people have a hard time comprehending what happened over 2000 years ago, and he's right), but he just starts beating this idea to death. He'll occasionally get back to Thera and the ongoing excavations, and then he'll launch back into a whole list of other things that become more and more distracting. By the last 100 pages of the book, it becomes a chore to get through to the end, in the increasingly dismal hope that he'll say more than just one or two things about Thera itself.
This book isn't written as much badly as just way off target. The author's enthusiasm will make you picture him as a kid playing in a sandbox for the very first time (which is probably how he'd actually describe himself), but unfortunately, he runs out of steam when he runs out of things to really say. On the other hand, this subject is fascinating and important, and I would, of course, still highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to find a huge missing piece of history, or to anyone trying to scrape that layer of filth known as "New Age speculation" off of some really solid history: the real thing is far more interesting than the National Enquirer version.
Simply the Best.......2001-03-26
This is simply the best book I have read about archaeology since Gods, Graves, and Scholars. And it is the first book about the scientists who search for the past (actually written by one of them) that teaches us how to actually think in terms of deep time. Read this book and you will emerge from the "Mediterranean Genesis" chapter never viewing your own town, or anyplace on Earth, quite the same, ever again. The story of Atlantis itself, following the Frost/Marinatos hypothesis about the Minoan catastrophe of 1628 B.C. (a date finally fixed in stone by the Pellegrino synthesis), fitering down through history as the "kernel of truth" behind Plato's cautionary tale, is really the first book ever to approach this unsinkable subject from a purely archaeological and geological perspective, with no particular ax to grind. One learns why not even a small island, much less a continent, could have plunged through the ocean floor without leaving a significant and very easily seen geologic trace. Either Plato's Atlantis was based on an (only marginally) embellished and poorly understood account of history's largest known volcanic explosion (Thera/Santorini), or, according to Pellegrino, Atlantis did not exist at all. And to top all: the whole archaeological adventure is wrapped in some of the most elegant prose I have ever read.
Most informative.......1999-06-26
This book makes me want to catch a plane to Thera and help with the excavation. Lots of history and PLENTY of concrete evidence to turn the hardened cynic into a believer. It's a complete journey through time back to the dinosaurs and more. Like the author stated, the brain is a 3-pound time machine. This book is only 1 pound.
Well researched, masterfully presented and fascinating!.......1999-04-05
I'm a history buff with a better than average knowledge of the Eastern Mediterranean, but I was astounded by Pellegrino's extraordinary ability to integrate and analyze data from seemingly disparate sources and disciplines. His argument for Thera as Atlantis is totally convincing and captivating - you won't want to put it down. He skillfully recreates the advanced civilization that flourished there and truly moves the reader - this book will haunt you long after you finish it. I loaned my copy to a friend who was going there on vacation - all I got back was a postcard of the excavations! If anyone hears of a pending reprint please let me know.
Facinating and convincing!.......1998-12-10
I have always had a general interest in Atlantis and lost civilizations, but I never expected to be so facinated with the topic. Thanks to Pellegrino, I came away with a much richer understanding of historical events in the Mediterranean than I had ever hoped. His theories on Atlantis are totally believable, overlaying some interesting new twists for historians to consider.
Book Description
It is one of humankind's most enduring myths. And now it is a fantasy no longer...
In the year 347 B.C., Plato wrote of a miraculous island with hot and cold flowing waters, terraced multi-storied buildings, and "the fairest of all plains." For thousands, of years, the legend of the mysterious vanished "continent" of Atlantis has captivated writers, poets, artists, philosophers, and dreamers. But now Atlantis has been found -- and the truth about its vibrant life and horrific destruction is even more remarkable than the myth.
Based on artifacts and evidence uncovered in an ancient buried Minoan city, noted scientist and New York Times-bestselling author bestselling author Charles Pellegrino reanimates an astounding lost civilization and re-creates with explosive power the apocalyptic cataclysm that destroyed their remarkable island metropolis. A brilliant synthesis of historical, literary, archaeological, and geological detective work, here is both the story of the astounding discovery that transformed tale into fact -- and a breathtakinq vision of Atlantis reborn.
Customer Reviews:
Thought provoking.......2006-11-07
Atlantis as both a concept and an historical reality appeal to the romantic and the practical in all of us.
Dr. Pellegrino's beautiful writing raises once again the idea that the volcano "Thera" on the island of Santorini wiped out the Minoan civilization and sent Minoans (our name - not theirs) as refugees to countries around the Mediterranean rim. Those who arrived in Caanan were called "Philistines" and may be ancestral to today's Palestinian people.
At the same time, according to this book, the Egyptian pharoah refused to release Moses (there's an Egyptian name, eg Tut-mose and so on) and his people from their "servitude" in Egypt. Darkness by day, rivers of blood and the famous escape scene (which may represent the Theran tsunami) result in a second group of fleeing refugees arriving in Caanan claiming they were promised or given the land.
Four thousand years later, whether one believes in Plato's Atlantis or not, the story of the Volcano of Thera is a fascinating one. Get yourself a copy of the King James' Bible as Dr. Pellegrino presents Biblical citations often in his work and it is very helpful to be able to read along and mark all the juicy bits for later.
Fire and brimstone, the voice of angels, the clap of the celestial trumpets, lighted pillars of flame, the gnashing of teeth and wailing of the wounded - all make sense when viewed through a volcanic perspective. Reading about Krakatoa, Vesuvius and Thera all in a group both in Dr. Pellegrino's work and that of Simon Winchester gives a very interesting view into the role of volcanos and other geological processes on human history.
Certainly in our own age, we have seen the awesome power of tsunami waves, as the December 26, 2004 wave took away a quarter of a million people. Waves produced by Thera were nearly 30 stories high and washed inland for miles and miles - producing a channeled scablands in Turkey almost as far as Mount Ararat.
Dr. Pellegrino never pointed this out, but if "Noah's flood" were a river flood - the ark would have been washed out to sea. It rained for 40 days and 40 nights and the ark ended up on a mountain, raising the interesting possiblity that this event, too is associated with volcanic darkness and accompanying tsunamis.
Get this book. Even if you believe Plato's Atlantis was anywhere or nowhere at all - you'll learn a lot and be dragged along by the beautiful and evocative writing every inch of the way. I'll never think of Vesuvius the same way again - and I'm a trained Geologist.
I only wish I'd read Dr. Pellegrino's books when I was teaching. I think my students would have been much more excited by volcanos - because I sure would have been!
Beauty, Grace and Destruction.......2006-06-22
First and foremost: Yes, it did exist.
The significance of an ancient Atlantis existing in our past and flourishing to a point that the Minoan civilization is a millennium ahead of it's time is unprecedented. With emphasis on the exaggerations and mythological components added to Plato's story, it becomes necessary to provide factual information to contradict the erroneous speculations. And essentially, that is how this book comes into play.
In all reality, Atlantis was a rather small volcanic isle within the Mediterranean Sea, Northwest of the larger Island Crete where the Minoan empire had also settled. Due to several fortunate details, including being surrounded by ocean, hot springs, a volcano and so forth they advanced beyond belief and beyond the very grasp of the most enthusiastic human imagination. All the characteristics that would aid the Minoans in mastering the ocean with its own Navy, utilizing aqueducts with warm and cool flowing water, showers and flush toilets, also lead to the most tragic demise known to both the ancient and modern worlds. And at this point, the author expresses the reader's wonder about such people, capable of such things, wonder about the possibilities of landing on the moon before even the birth of Christ, or colonies near Alpha Centauri which would seem possible if only nature had spared us that one disaster. Perhaps the Minoans could have accomplished these tasks that now only appear to exist at the nucleus of science fiction. That is, had they lived to truly influence the "modern" world in that sense.
Dr. Pellegrino introduces fact and differentiates it from the fiction surrounding Atlantis. His conclusions are also quite logical, for example Plato's embellishment of the story described to Solon in Egypt, by placing Atlantis in the far, vast and unknown Atlantic Ocean as an Africa-sized continent nearly 9000 years old. The errors that could contribute to ridiculous numbers such as 9000 years and possibilities as to several facts and myths regarding Atlantis are presented as well, including the likely mistake between Linear A and B zero, and the idea of Noah living to see the age of 950 as a thought of the time. The author provides reasoning that may have affected the nature of the story, such as why the island sank, its hanging gardens and technological achievements, while weaving in the archaeological finds that back his ideas. What is by far the greatest aspect of the book aside from the author's understanding of how dramatic such a story was, is his comments about the true beauty of the island and its people, the art frescoes within every home, the rich vegetation and the fleet of ships docked in a natural port. The contrast of what was to what exists now is just so...
This is not to mention Thera's (Atlantis') influence on not only the downfall of the Minoan civilization but its impact on biblical stories, surrounding areas like Egypt and Turkey, and the wonder behind such power the earth can release within a fraction of a second. Pellegrino's ability to tie science in with history to interpret a story as grand as that of the Minoans is extraordinary. The details of the excavation and research are also enthralling.
However, there are a few flaws in the book that do harm it's otherwise enthusiastic and informative content. For one, at least three sentences were repeated. At one point in the book, the author explains how humans experience difficulty in understanding events more than 2000 years old. This is a valid point. However in an attempt to place the history of our world into perspective, the author took it too far. One seems lost in chronological time, and Thera is then a distant subject mentioned only a few times while this is taking place. The chapter did contain very interesting information, including one of my favorite factoids about bacteria and Uranium - 235; however it didn't pertain as much to Thera and threw the reader off task. A slight alteration to the ending would also have made a difference.
Yet the author is eloquent and interesting. He'll engulf you in a world you'll never want to leave. The beauty that is the fresco of Madonna Lilies is to Thera what the Grand Staircase was to Titanic. The greatest civilization was devoured by the hand that fed them, yet it isn't as dismal as one tends to think. The one event that wiped out the Minoans is the one event that will ensure the Minoans will last forever.
You'll have much to ponder about!
Enchanting Atlantis.......2005-07-21
"Unearthing Atlantis: An Archaelogical Odyssey to the Fabled Lost Civilization" by Charles Pellegrino is an enchanting, well researched, well rounded book about the Greek island of Santorini and the volcanic explosion which probably destroyed Minoan civilization. This is one of the best books I have read in a long time; it was very difficult for me to put down, as Pellegrino expertly combines history, archaelogy, art, literature and science to write a comprehensive story of the lost civilization of Santorini/ Atlantis. As a matter of fact, I found myself studying , not just reading, this book, and am currently rereading it a second time. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Greek history, Atlantis, or a good mystery.
Very important subject, but sketchy writing.......2001-11-17
YES: this book is about the real Atlantis. It really did exist, but not in the literal way that Plato described it, and certainly not in the way that New Age speculation "theorists" want it to.
I really wanted to give this book a perfect five-star rating, as the subject matter is immensely important, and the author's enthusiasm makes this book a truly exciting experience. The long story made short is that "Atlantis" was in reality a small island in the east Mediterranean way back around 1600 BC. Thera was a part of the Minoan Empire, and, being a group of islands between Egypt and Greece, had not only the world's first navy, but aquaducts (long before the famous Roman water systems) and a surprisingly highly-evolved culture. Then one day, the volcano at the center of Thera exploded with as least six times the power of Krakatoa (the 1883 eruption that was heard over 2000 miles away), and within seconds 2/3 of the island was in the stratosphere.
This was all before even the Greeks became the dominant force in the region, and so the sudden disappearance of the Minoans (who dominated trade between Europe and Africa) not surprisingly became various stories passed down through the generations, which is where Plato heard it. Plato's description of an entire continent all the way out in the Atlantic that sunk into the sea turned out to be an embellishment on what was, by then, just a myth. He was essentially trying to make a point about how quickly even the most powerful civilization can crumble, and what he said was passed down through the ages, in one form or another, to us. This is how and why these Art Bell "experts" have hijacked this subject and nailed it onto their "theories" of other subjects that have been blown completely out of proportion, such as the Bermuda Triangle, life on Mars, Bigfoot, etc. Case in point: just because Atlantis was advanced by ancient standards, NO: THEY DID NOT HAVE AIRPLANES OR LASERS. Sorry to burst anyone's bubble, but REAL history isn't "Spear of Destiny" garbage: it's how real people really lived, not whatever garbage you want it to be.
Of course, this book was an emotional one to read: an ancient culture creating such high technology (a millenium ahead of its time), only to be totally annihilated in just seconds. If the downfall of Rome and the unsuing loss of knowledge and the onset of the Dark Ages is considered to be historically tragic, this story is then the most epic catastrophe EVER. The author points out that if they were doing what took another 1000 years for the Romans to figure out (such as running water through pipes), who knows what these people might have managed to do? Maybe we would have been on the moon 2000 years ago. We'll never know.
The downfall of this book that I hinted at earlier is that 90% of everything important is said immediately: none of what I've said here is a "big mystery" that gets unravelled through the course of the book. It's like getting hit from all sides with amazing (and very enthusiastic) information about who the Therans might have been, how the world was at the time, and the excitement that Atlantis did exist after all. As great as all of that is, the book suddenly takes a left turn into endless archaeological stories and theories that simply don't have much of anything to do with the subject. At first, it's the author trying to put Theran history into perspective (he says that people have a hard time comprehending what happened over 2000 years ago, and he's right), but he just starts beating this idea to death. He'll occasionally get back to Thera and the ongoing excavations, and then he'll launch back into a whole list of other things that become more and more distracting. By the last 100 pages of the book, it becomes a chore to get through to the end, in the increasingly dismal hope that he'll say more than just one or two things about Thera itself.
This book isn't written as much badly as just way off target. The author's enthusiasm will make you picture him as a kid playing in a sandbox for the very first time (which is probably how he'd actually describe himself), but unfortunately, he runs out of steam when he runs out of things to really say. On the other hand, this subject is fascinating and important, and I would, of course, still highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to find a huge missing piece of history, or to anyone trying to scrape that layer of filth known as "New Age speculation" off of some really solid history: the real thing is far more interesting than the National Enquirer version.
Wrong time, wrong place, by coauthor of Atlantis In America.......2001-08-17
This is a beatifully written book. The author has a keen sense of the majesty of time and he very effectively imparts this greater view to the reader. He deals with the background to a very significant find in ancient civilization. However, to validate placing Thera (Santorini) in the context of Atlantis, Pelligrino cites Plato but suggests the learned man didn't understand math and referred to a culture destroyed not 9,000 years before but 900. Pelligrino, in insisting on a small Mediterranean island as Atlantis also challenges Plato's knowledge of geography. In the Critias Plato describes three distinct seas -- The Mediterranean, which Plato described as "merely a harbor, having a narrow entrance", the named sea (The Atlantic), and that other that "is the real sea (the Pacific), and the surrounding land that may truly be called continent (Asia)." In fact the Mediterranean could not have supported a climate such as that found in Plato's lush Atlantis 9,000 years before his time -- ice-sheets dominated all of Europe. As to inconsistencies with the legend, Pelligrino complains, "All we have is Plato's word." Untrue. There are other sources both in ancient times and currently. The most significant are Andrew Collin's GATEWAY TO ATLANTIS, Colin Wilson's ATLANTIS BLUEPRINT, and Ivar Zapp's research into the remarkable spheres of Costa Rica, ATLANTIS IN AMERICA, Navigators of the Ancient World. All point to an actual Atlantis just where Plato said it existed. On this point Plato's words seem likely to outive Pelligrino's.
Average customer rating:
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Cold Running River
David Nathan Cassuto
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ASIN: 0472082388 |
Book Description
An intimate look at Michigan's scenic, trout-filled Pere Marquette River and the larger resource-management challenges it represents
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