Austria Books

Another great book with up to date and pertinent travel information that I just recently used

This was one of the worst travel guides I have ever purchases. I though so much of this book I placed it where it belongs, in the trash can. If you want a real travel guide purchase DK eyewitness travel guides.

Should have spent more time reading the book before the trip. Some helpful preparation tips. Had some great info and descriptions. The book is separated into geographic regions. If you are headed to a small town (as we were) it is more difficult to figure out which part of the book to refer to. Great for bigger cities and tourist destinations.

My daughter will be in Gratz,Austria for 6 weeks this summer at the AIMS School for opera. Since I will be visiting I decided to buy your guide to Austria. It has everything you could want to know and more. We lived in Europe for 3 years and it is exciting to go back.The "getting around" section is great as is the information on Music (Mozart etc). I was really excited about the summer music festival in Salzburg. I bought your book on Panama when I visited and it certainly made for a much easier and more interesting trip with your guide. The AIMS school is something your future readers may be interested in-it is a summer program for singers on the road to a career and they have programs on weekends throughout summer. Thank you.

This was an interesting and easy book to read. But the thing I liked best was the description of the strength of the victim, her personal ethics, and her refusal to share any details that she didn't want to share. The young woman is a good role model for other young survivors.

I found this book compulsive reading. It presented a well written picture of a really complex crime, one which I think we have not heard the last of by a long way. The authors have pieced together a portrait of Natascha's dysfunctional family, reconstructing their links with Priklopil: They all drank in the same bar and the police never even knew! And their portrait of the failed police investigation to find her was both detailed and compelling. These guys packed a lot of detail in, if only other instant crime writing was as good. There were interviews with every one involved, including Natascha, her father, teachers, her doctors - and, oh yes, one of the cops who led the hunt for her who also found her mother flakey! A thoroughly good read I would heartily recommend.

I just finished this book. It is an amazing story containing photos of her tiny underground cell plus people and places of importance. It's the true story of a 10 year old girl who was kidnapped and escaped after 8 1/2 years. It makes my head reel just trying to imagine what that was like. She, however reveals little about her daily life. She says even less of her captor ( I remember she said he read to her). We are left with speculation. If she revealed more about her experiences this easily could have been a 5 star book.

There are a few tidbits in this book that offer more information than can be found in news articles, but mostly the book is speculative, exploitative, and short on real insight. The authors quote "experts" who never met the principles but only reviewed media reports, use psychobabble about long-debunked theories of psychopathology and human development, interview people peripheral to the events with lots of speculation and few verifiable facts, distort what facts they do gather to spin conspiracy theories, take a few generalizations in a psychic's otherwise totally erroneous prediction and seem to offer them as proof of something, imply the victims are at least partly to blame for the crimes, and generally practice really poor true-crime writing. Add to these many problems writing as awkward as "Long before Wolfgang the master pupated from Wolfgang the servant" and you have a really distasteful book. Don't waste your money or time.

It is too bad that Arthur Schnitzler doesn't have the same reputation in America and Britain that he enjoys in Germany and Austria. There, he is considered one of the great authors of the 20th century, and "The Road to the Open" is his great novel.

It depicts many aspects of life in fin-de-siecle Vienna. The world described by historians Carl Schorske, Allan Janik, and William M. Johnston is brought to life in this novel. Anti-Semitism, nationality conflict, the politics of friendship, gender and sexual relations, and music and art are major themes. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the late Habsburg empire, whether the interest be politics, society, or culture.

Two aspects of Viennese society are particularly showcased in "The Road to the Open":
1) the world of music and musical patronage
2) the Jewish bourgeoisie

The professional ambitions of an aspiring composer provide the framework for the novel, which is suffused with references to the music of the era. The backdrop for the novel is the lives and struggles of Vienna's Jewish bourgeoisie. They encounter with increasing antisemitism. (This is the era of Karl Lueger.) And they clash with each other over Zionism, assimilationism, and socialism. (This is the era of Theodor Herzl.) Considering how central the Jewish bourgeoisie was to urban life in Central Europe from 1867 to 1918, it is surprising that "The Road to the Open" is practically the only prominent novel that places that group in its focus, making the novel all the more important.

The only reason why I am giving the novel 4 stars instead of 5 is the translation. The Northwestern University Press edition (copyright 1991) is merely a reprint of the 1922 translation. Though many readers like Horace Samuel's translation from 1922, I find that parts of it are too rough. In some instances, his literal renderings would make no sense to someone unfamiliar with the German original. Maybe, someday, there will be a fresh, more modern translation.

A named academic is quoted on the back of this paperback as saying this translation is 'without doubt the best English version'; he has evidently not seen the 1922 version (the ONLY previous translation) which has aged so well that it's unlikely now to be surpassed - though I only sought it out after being repelled by this appalling translation - clumsy, leaden, inept - which almost put me off Schnitzler for life. (He is a creepy guy, though.)

Ah, Schnitzler. That magnificent chronicler of old Imperial Vienna - the Vienna of sweet young things (usually working- or middle-class), slightly neurotic but charming young men (usually upper-class), and their fleeting love-affairs, terminated so easily once ennui starts to exceed pleasure, the Vienna of walks in the Prater and talks in the cafes (ever so full of interesting artistic types), the Vienna where the nostalgic strains of Johann Strauss provide a suitably bittersweet accompaniment to the beginning (or the ending) of the abovementioned love-affairs ...

All of which occur in The Road into the Open; nevertheless, the Vienna depicted here does not only consist of only the sweetened tableaux so frequently dismissively (and unfairly) attributed to Schnitzler. The easy charm of the Vienna here is extant, but by no means idealised - it masks the artistic impotence that seems to afflict nearly all of its inhabitants, haunted as they are by the sense of being epigonal; grandiose artistic projects are continually being talked about, but never executed, whether because of an aversion to actually setting them down on paper, or simply because of what is commonly called a "lack of inspiration". More sinisterly, it also masks the habitual anti-Semitism of what one of the characters wittily calls those of "indigenous physiognomy"; though written in 1908, there are passages that almost foreshadow the rise of Nazism. Schnitzler subtly intertwines the study of the individual with ruthlessly objective social commentary and evocation of the atmosphere (both artistic and political) of fin de siecle Vienna, to produce a fascinating book highly recommended not only for those with an interest in the period, but also for anyone who fancies a thought-provoking book

Anybody interested in Viennese culture before World War I and between the wars ought to read this book. It portrays the atmosphere of a city that was one of the most influential centers of European culture, where contributions by the Jewish community were epoch-making and masterful. A must for anybody wanting to understand the marvel that was Europe.

In his introduction, Gordon Brook-Shepherd boasts that an Austrian critic once claimed that Brook-Shepherd "knew more about Austria and the Austrians than any living Englishman." After reading "Uncrowned Emperor," I find that claim to be *very* dubious. This book is absolutely riddled with factual errors, both concerning Austria and other European countries.

Among the most glaring . . .
p. 24: Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated on June 28, 1914, not June 26, 1914. Although the difference is slight, this date is known to almost every schoolboy in Austria.
p. 31: Empress Zita's brother Sixtus fought for the Belgians in World War I, not the French. This is significant because of Sixtus's efforts to mediate a peace settlement with Austria.
p. 33: During the course of fighting in World War I, German troops had no "final retreat--back to the homeland." They withdrew in an orderly fashion after the armistice was signed. On November 11, 1918, German troops, though weakened, were still on French soil.
p. 80: During the Weimar Republic, there was no such thing as a "Democratic Conservative Party." The Democratic Party was not conservative, and the conservative party (DNVP) was not democratic.

Brook-Shepherd also has problems with first names.
-- Thomas (or Tomas) Masaryk, not Jan Masaryk, was the founder and first president of Czechoslovakia. This error is notable both because it is repeated several times and because Thomas (or Tomas) Masaryk was largely responsible for the dissolution of the Habsburg Empire. Jan Masaryk was Czechoslovak foreign minister after 1945.
-- The regent of the Kingdom of Hungary was Miklos Horthy, not Niklos Horthy.
-- The former chancellor of Germany is Helmut Kohl, not Helmuth Kohl.

The editors should have caught all of these errors.

Another problem with this biography is that the writing is extremely uncritical. It is clear that Brook-Shepherd is much too close to his subject to be objective, and at times he veers into overt monarchism. Additionally, his constant asides and parenthetical comments are a distraction. This reviewer wishes for a more scholarly rigorous and objective study of Otto von Habsburg.

This is a fine biography of a man who, but for a World War, might have been an Emperor and King. Otto von Hapsburg, born in 1912,was the son of the last Emperor of Austria-Hungary. His parents were overthrown in late 1918 and young Otto, whose own memories of his childhood are astonishingly vivid, began a life of exile.

Otto had every right to be bitter over the hand fate dealt him, but we see very little of such an emotion in his life. Instead, we see a man whose dedication to Austria and Hungary (and later to all of Europe) never wavered. He stood by his homelands and was their most fervent advocate even in the dark days of World War II and the Cold War. He was ambitious yet honorable, as we see repeatedly when he refused to have anything to do with Hitler, for example.

Otto's most important contributions came towards the end of his life, when he became one of the first members of the European Parliament. For twenty years he was a steadfast advocate of greater European unity, but within a setting in which tradition, custom, and above all established religion were not ignored. He was also a devoted family man, marrying rather late in life and fathering a large brood of children.

So although Otto von Hapsburg did not achieve the status he was born to, he nevertheless made a positive contribution to the world, something his ancestors, many of whom held more power but had far less stature, would certainly be proud of.

I found this book dry; yet overly sympathetic to its subject, without a historian's objectivity. Oddly, despite the author's admiration for Otto the statesman, we never learn much about Otto, the inner man. A balanced biography should have both sides of the story. I, too, noticed many of the errors cited by the other reviewer...While I could appreciate some of the information (particularly about Emperor Karl's attempt to regain the Hungarian throne), I didn't really enjoy the book, and it didn't make my keeper shelf.

Brook-Shepherd's latest Habsburg effort is all him, colorful phrases and all. A large portion of the book actually summarizes much of the happenings in his previous works, THE LAST EMPRESS and THE LAST HABSBURG, though he manages (no doubt somewhat through new interviews with Otto as well as material he may have held back) enough new anecdotes to keep that material fresh for returning readers. He does tend as in his other works to interpret the words and behaviors of Habsburg "enemies" in an extremely unflattering light, whether these were overt and obvious or not. The relatively smaller amount of space devoted to them here ends up sharpening the somewhat villainous characterizations. This once again betrays bias on behalf of the Habsburg family, that B-S himself finally admits to here, at least. I am speaking mainly of Admiral Horthy and Kurt Schuschnigg, who at crucial junctures in post WW I Hungarian and Austrian history, did not step aside in the face of de facto restoration attempts by Otto's father and himself, respectively. Objective histories of these interwar countries, as well as Kurt Schuschnigg's THE BRUTAL TAKEOVER and Horthy's MEMOIRS ("ERINNERUNGEN") would give the reader, at a minimum, a more balanced picture of the difficulties and (sometimes conflicting) motivations faced by these men.

The last part of the book deals with Otto's Pan-Europeanism as well as the ups and downs of his family life and his children's personal and political fortunes. Combined with his efforts earlier, it makes an interesting and convincing case that Otto genuinely is and always was concerned with Europe's well-being in general, and that of his father's former subjects in particular, with recovering the Habsburg crowns a secondary concern.

Brook-Shepherd continues the annoying habit of holding back more info on interesting tidbits that need expounding upon. Two examples from this book are Horthy's insistence on seeing Otto while on his deathbed after WW II, and a visit from Austro-Fascist strongman Prince Starhemberg while in exile to discuss restoration possibilities. One if not both of these incidents were tantalizingly mentioned in footnote in THE LAST EMPRESS, but just as briefly mentioned here. My suspicion continues that these are deliberately not more fully discussed because the details would conflict with other, more speculative parts of the text.

These considerations aside, though--overall, UE is very enjoyable. For the Austrian history buff who craves information about the fallen dynasty after their thrones were lost, Brook-Shepherd remains the only game in town. Fortunately, he doesn't abuse the monopoly. As usual, he delivers a book that due to its style is a very breezy, informative, and sometimes emotional read.

For those who are not familiar with this Napoleonic series by Hourtoulle, it should be noted that although the different books are titled by the name of the battle (Wagram, Borodino, Jena, Austerlitz, etc.), these books primarily focus on the individual units which were present and engaged at the battle. There is decent information regarding the battle itself with some detail and there are plenty of maps and pictures of the battle........As I mentioned though, these books mainly focus on the individual forces that were present. The listed troop formations are broken-down from Corps, to Division, Brigade and finally Regiment. SOME info regarding the history and participation of each regiment is provided as well as SOME of the officers within the regiment and SHORT descriptions as to their fate. Although the info about each regiment is limited, I still found it interesting and helpful. As it was originally translated from French to English, there are some mistakes within the content and usage of words; but nothing too frequent.....It should also be noted that the unit descriptions are far more detailed regarding the French Forces than the Austrian.......There are TONS of uniform plates which are all in color. This book provides a very good look at the uniforms worn by the different units present at the battle. All in all, it is a VERY, VERY COLORFUL work and I found it pleasing to read. It is not a complicated book at all and much of the info within is fairly basic. This book should be used primarily as a REFERENCE SOURCE for uniforms and orders of battle.

I've seen better editing jobs on high school yearbooks. You can't beat these books for the depictions of the uniforms, but there is a typographical error on nearly every page. Additionally, someone didn't do a very good job on the translation either. For example, page 19, "The Middle and Young Guards, illustrated themselves at Essling." I suppose it's worth the price for the illustrations, but a poor read. Sloppy and unprofessional and a poor companion to Jena, Auerstadt and Borodino. I suppose you need to know how to spell in order to use spell check.

This is a beautifully-illustrated coffee-table book about the Wagram campaign. It has virtually no value, however, as a text.

First, the English translation is miserably bad. I was astonished to find that a book would actually be published without even a rudimentary editing job. Simple words are riddled with typos on every page, and some sentences are virtually incomprehensible - even on the back cover!

Second, Hourtoulle's text is standard-issue hero-worship of Napoleon, to the point of silliness. Perhaps it sounded pretty in the original French, but with this translation, what we get is something that a proud ten-year-old might have written, if Napoleon had happened to be his father.

For a lavish display of gorgeous pictures, it can't be beat.

The sheer amount of info about uniforms make it's purchase for any napoleonic wargamer (worth it's salt) IMPRESCINDIBLE...

The other reviewers must work for OSPREY MILITARY BOOKS (only joking!)

HIGLY RECOMMENDED FOR AGE OF EAGLES FANS.

This is an extraordinary book by an extraordinary author. Dr. Campanacci brings to the readers the vast experience in musculoskeletal oncology of the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute in Bologna. As such, he has had at his disposal the patient records, radiographs and pathologic material dating back to 1905. The wealth of clinical material that has been accumulated at the Rizzoli Institute, with exquisite documentation and maintenance is a unique resource and testimonial to not only the author but his predecessors. This book brings to the reader an almost unparalleled experience from one of the leading centers of musculoskeletal oncology in the world.From the Foreword of William F. Enneking:This second english edition is an entirely new book. It has been thoroughly rewritten, from the first to the last word. About 30% of the pictures are new. The new book incorporates the accumulated personal experience of the Author, covering over 20.000 inpatients and many more outpatients, the perusal of the literature of the last 10 years, the recent developments in imaging (particularly MRI), microscopic diagnosis (especially immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy) and the ultimate progress in surgical and non-surgical treatment modalities.Mario Campanacci (1932-1999) was an orthopaedic surgeon and a pathologist with 40 years of experience (started in 1958 in the Laboratory of Pathology and Tumor Center of the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute) focused on musculoskeletal oncology. He was Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Pathology, University of Bologna, Director of the 1st Orthopaedic Clinic and of the Tumor Centre, Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute, Bologna and Director of the Graduate School of Orthopaedics, University of Bologna.

This is the most complete and detailed text I have read about tumours of the muskuloskeletal system. The combination of microphotography and the thorough pathologic description makes this an example of an interdisciplinary approach to these clinical problems.

en cali, colombia, mi esposa presenta un tumor en la carotida derecha (cara) y que de acuerdo a las biopsias no es maligno pero no hay diagnostico de la clase y su forma de tratamiento

This book is really good. Usually, I give 5 stars to Nancy Drew books, but I thought this book could've had more mystery in it. It was *very* suspenseful, though, and it had a good plot. But, honestly, it didn't interest me very much. I got bored with it after a while, because there wasn't much mystery. But read it anyways. You might like it!

i liked this book because it was VERY suspenseful and full of surprises. usually i give 5 stars to most of the nancy drew books that i read, but this one probably just deserved 3 stars. the reason is because to me, it didn't have much mystery in it. i mean, it did have mystery, but honestly, i just don't think that it had enough. but, every person is different, so read the book if you want to and see for yourself how you like it!

Nancy is on a tour of Europe and discovers that their leader is on a secret mission to help 10 refugee children. This is more of a spy mystery but it was very good anyway.

This book was written in 1967 and extolls the virtue of the Serbian people and the murderous ways of the Austrians. In 2007, we know a little more. Their were elements in the Serbian government that plotted to kill the heir to the Austrian-Hungarian throne. The Austrians were benovolent despots, unlike the other empires or the Yugoslav kingdon. One third of the Bosnia may have wanted the Serbs as rulers, but the other 2/3s didn't particularly care for the Serbian kingdon. Feuerlicht eulogizes the Serbs at the expense of the Austrians. A more proper summary without the Serbian myth making would be adviseable with today's knowledge.

This is not a good perspective on the act that caused World War I. The author of the tihis book paints a glowing picture of Serbia. A more even analogy is necessary.

"The Desperate Act:..." by Roberta Strauss Feuerlicht, McGraw-Hill, NY 1968, LCCN 68-17505 (HC) 172 pgs. 5 1/2" x 8 1/4" 4 pg. Index, 4 pg. Biblio., 16 B/W photos & 2 maps: Balkans in 1914 & Slavic provinces of Austro-Hungarian empire.

The journalist, an author of 8 books, visited Yugoslavia several times. Her book, unlike "The Secret of Sarajevo", paints an ignoble picture of Archduke Franz Ferdinand & details the youths & student renegades who schemed, plotted & then assassinated Archduke Frans & his wife Countess Sophie June 28, 1914. The 6 conspirators, all captured, were brought to trial & sentenced. When written 2 remained alive & one (Cvetko Popovic) agreed to be interviewed. Youthfulness of the conspirators was surpizing. A long-standing hatred of Bosnians for the Austro-Hungarian empire dates to June 28, of 1389 (feast day of St. Vitus-Vivovdan) when Turks and Serbians engaged in mutual carnage. This [...] was used as excuse for Austria to declare war on Serbia & thusly led to WW-1 with England joining after Germany invaded Belgium, etc., etc.

A lot of political science permeates the book & gives better understanding of grievances & which protective allies formed. Propagandists used rumor, gossip & lies effectively as potent warring ingredients. An interesting read. The prose at times is awkward.

When I first read this book shortly after it was written in 1967 I thought that it was an inspiring and uplifting story of noble ideals versus cruel and unjust reality. I also thought that it was "history" and about the past. "Ah, but I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now" as Bob Dylan put it. Now I see why Gavrilo Princip wrote "Today everything is as it was yesterday and will be so tomorrow."

Certain passages reverberate with irony "During the crisis that followed the annexation of Bosnia and Hercegovina in 1908, Austria became more determined than ever to go to war with Serbia. To justify the planned attack, 53 Serbs in Croatia were accused of conspiring with Serbia against the monarchy. They were tried for treason at Zagreb and 31 of them were found guilty. It was the first sham political trial of the century, for the documents used by the Austrian government to prove it's case were forged. This was so obvious that Franz Josef was forced to pardon the defendants." Forged documents were also used to foment war against Serbia. Similar accusations are made today.

"During the winter of 1913-1914, Austria twice tried to pick quarrels with Serbia, but Serbia refused to swallow the bait. She was so eager to avoid war that in 1909 and 1910 she offered to submit her disputes with Austria to the International Court at the Hague. Austria refused." There is a sense of deja vu with say the Rambouillet agreement.

As well as the role of the west Europeans in the Balkans the book considers Turkey's role. "After the revolution of 1908, Turkey was led by a group of Young Turks who promised reform and freedom, but who proved to be little better than the old Turks. Their rule began with the massacre of 30,000 Christians, and then they set out to restore order in Macedonia using torture, murder, pillage, and persecution."

A particularly ironic line in the book is "But the Austrians' tragedy, in matters large and small, was that they never could understand how much they were hated by the people they ruled."

This account of the assassination of Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo leaves one as fearful of big powers and their belicose claims as of fanatical conspirators and theirs'. Our grandfathers and great grandfathers paid the price of those claims - lets hope we and our children do not have to.

The author is clearly a fan of Korngold but this book does little justice to its subject. The problem is that the book is a simple linear account of the composer's life. Korngold did indeed have a truely remarkable life, a genuine child prodigy, forced out of Austria by the Nazis threat, settling in Hollywood and winning Oscars are but a few highlights. However, even the sense of wonderment that his youthful achievements must have engenedered are not communicated.

A good acid test for any biography of an artist is that it should encourage the reader to further investigate the artist's work further. The author's lack of empathy for the composer's music and the remarkable time through which he lived is such that the book fails to enthuse. A great disapointment.

Jessica's bio of EWK (as we affectionately abbreviate him) was for me a wonderful glint into a life which was heretofore hidden. Those in the know were anticipating Brendan Carroll's "definitive" biography. Jessica's book gave us an overdue insight into the life of this genius in the absence of anything else. Now, it seems that we have an embarassement of riches, with Carroll's exhaustive bio and the ongoing recording revival. All of this should not obscure Duchen's acheivement in bringing to life a man who was for most an elusive character. Duchen's prose is mellifluous, and has a touch of humour(see when she writes of Korngold's love of sweets). The timing of this book's appearance may have been a bit off, but it will still hold its place. There is some inevitable repetition between the Duchen and Carroll books, no doubt having consulted the same sources. Yet each book has an individual character. There can never be too much written about one of the most misunderstood composers of our world. Duchen deserves kudos for bringing out the first ever English language book on Korngold. Her acheivement serves as an economical and invaluable alternative to Carroll's lengthier, more in-depth, and required opus.

Erich Wolfgang Korngold is a composer who for far too long was known only to film buffs and a few aficionados here and there. His centenary in 1996 brought with it a tremendous rush of reappraisal, recordings and performances, all of which have helped to re-establish Korngold as a force to be reckoned with. I certainly found this book inspired me to explore works that I did not already know and much enriched my view of those I did know, especially the intensely powerful opera 'Die tote Stadt'. My opinion is that this writer has a tremendous empathy for Korngold, his music and the eras through which he lived - fin-de-siecle Vienna, 1940s Hollywood and the devastated, artistically rigid post-war Europe of the 1950s. Furthermore, she is able to bring him to life with a delightfully light touch, looking at not only his complicated and crucially influential relationship with his father but also his famously sharp wit and his love of good food - especially chocolate! While the book is evidently shorter and less detailed than Brendan Carroll's tour de force 'The Last Prodigy', it provides a superb introduction to this endearing composer and his warm, open-hearted music. What's more, it kept me reading, from cover to cover - on the beach!

This is a very interesting book about a very specific subject; almost no one so far had created a publication about these mighty FLAK towers, forgotten to all but those who sheltered and fought in them. The pictures are generally good and almost never seen before, and the text is informative and pleasant. This is a very useful book about a little known subject, a must for all those who studied the bombing offensive over the III Reich.

This book provides a fair explanation of the background, use, and effectiveness of what came to be known as the Flak Towers used by the Germans in World War II.

The Flak Towers were massive structures up to 12 stories high built of reinforced concrete whose exterior walls and roofs were up to 10 feet thick. They were designed and built in response to the Allied bombing of Berlin in August 1940. Flak Towers were only built in or around three cities: Berlin, Hamburg, and Vienna. A total of 16 Flak Towers were built. Three sets (6 total) in Berlin, three in Vienna, and two in Hamburg.

The Flak Towers always came in pairs. Although both towers in each pair usually contained a multitude of Flak guns from 20mm to 128mm, one tower (always the taller and larger of the two) was commonly known as the gun tower on which four 128mm Flak cannons were placed on the roof. The second tower of each pair was commonly known as the radio or command tower. The primary function of the command tower was to scout oncoming Allied planes and notify the gun tower of sightlines on the planes. Alhtough not clearly explained in this book, it appears the necessity of a separate radio tower was due to the massive shock waves created by the simultaneous firing of multitudinous 128mm Flak cannon in the gun tower which either interfered with the radio waves themselves used by the radio tower to locate enemy planes or with the ability of personnel to use the radio equipment.

Each pair of towers was also self-contained, with, e.g., their own power and water supply. The towers were used for a multitude of purposes other than defense. For example, each set of towers appears to have had its own hospital. In addition, several sets of towers had specific floors set aside for the storage and preservation of art treasures from German musuems in Berlin and Vienna. Most commonly, the towers served as a refuge for civilians during Allied bombing runs. (Estimates of civilians holed up in a single one of these structures at the end of the war run from 20,000 to 40,000 and it is generally accepted that 20,000 is not an unlikely number.)

The Flak Towers were considered to be both impregnable and indestructible and by and large lived up to their reputation as none of the towers was ever toppled or even heavily damaged during the war despite being repeatedly hit by bombs and heavy artillery. After the war, for reasons that are unexplained, most were destroyed (but only after repeated and extensive demolition) in one fashion or another by the Allied powers in control of that sector of Germany in which they remained and then turned into rubble, which for each tower was a monumental task in itself.

This book is the only one of its kind that I could find in English. For that reason it deserves special merit. Unfortunately, the book suffers in several respects. First, the book was originally written in German and the translation often suffers in clarity (although whether this is due to the original text or the translation is unclear). Second, the text of the book is too choppy as subjects do not appear to be treated comprehensively or in an organized fashion. Third, the book contains a few anecdotes about the Flak Towers (e.g., (1) Hitler's famous call, "Where is Wenck?", originated from the Zoo Flak Tower in Berlin, which contained the last working radio communcations control center in the city in April 1945; (2) although it was claimed dozens of "old master" works from Vienna museums were destroyed by fire in one of the Vienna Flak Towers at the end of the war, many of these works nonetheless appeared on the art market over the years; and (3) apparently German spectators at the site of one of the many attempts to demolish one of the Flak Towers after the war proudly cheered "German made! German made!" when the tower refused to fall) but does not contain any stories per se by Flak Tower survivors (i.e., those that worked, fought, or sought refuge in them). Fourth, much of the information provided is incomplete or contradictory so that the book only provides a very basic or general review of these structures.

That being said (and the author does acknowledge that information on the Flak Towers is woefully incomplete), the book is a fascinating look at this aspect of German defenses in World War II, particularly as it relates to the last days of WWII in Berlin when the Zoo Flak Tower was such a focal point for civilians and soldiers alike but is not likely to be of much interest to anyone other than serious students of the history of German defenses during World War II. (The book includes pictures of actual scale models used in designing the Flak Towers as well as photos of the towers during construction, in use, and after the war, including demolitions.)

You will find numerous pictures of Nazi flak towers during the period mentioned in the book's title, but I felt that wartime anecdotes from TurmFlak crews, as well as more technical data, would have enhanced this work. Still, it is a good presentation of defensive works that often go overlooked in World War 2 history.