In the Garden of Beasts

Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin

By: Erik Larson

Narrated by: Stephen Hoye

Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

Erik Larson has been widely acclaimed as a master of narrative non-fiction, and in his new book, the best-selling author of Devil in the White City turns his hand to a remarkable story set during Hitler’s rise to power.

The time is 1933, the place, Berlin, when William E. Dodd becomes America’s first ambassador to Hitler’s Germany in a year that proved to be a turning point in history.

A mild-mannered professor from Chicago, Dodd brings along his wife, son, and flamboyant daughter, Martha. At first, Martha is entranced by the parties and pomp, and the handsome young men of the Third Reich with their infectious enthusiasm for restoring Germany to a position of world prominence. Enamored of the “New Germany”, she has one affair after another, including with the suprisingly honorable first chief of the Gestapo, Rudolf Diels. But as evidence of Jewish persecution mounts, confirmed by chilling first-person testimony, her father telegraphs his concerns to a largely indifferent State Department back home. Dodd watches with alarm as Jews are attacked, the press is censored, and drafts of frightening new laws begin to circulate.

As that first year unfolds and the shadows deepen, the Dodds experience days full of excitement, intrigue, romance - and ultimately, horror, when a climactic spasm of violence and murder reveals Hitler’s true character and ruthless ambition.

Suffused with the tense atmosphere of the period, and with unforgettable portraits of the bizarre Göring and the expectedly charming - yet wholly sinister - Goebbels, In the Garden of Beasts lends a stunning, eyewitness perspective on events as they unfold in real time, revealing an era of surprising nuance and complexity. The result is a dazzling, addictively listenable work that speaks volumes about why the world did not recognize the grave threat posed by Hitler until Berlin, and Europe, were awash in blood and terror.

©2011 Stephen Hoye (P)2011 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"In this mesmerizing portrait of the Nazi capital, Larson plumbs a far more diabolical urban cauldron than in his bestselling The Devil in the White City... a vivid, atmospheric panorama of the Third Reich and its leaders, including murderous Nazi factional infighting, through the accretion of small crimes and petty thuggery." ( Publishers Weekly)

"By far his best and most enthralling work of novelistic history….Powerful, poignant…a transportingly true story." ( The New York Times)

"[L]ike slipping slowly into a nightmare, with logic perverted and morality upended….It all makes for a powerful, unsettling immediacy." (Bruce Handy, Vanity Fair)

Superb Reasearch

Then presented in what appeared to be fictional form. Larson is a master of non fiction "Storytelling".

a small piece of the WWII puzzle

This narrative history shed light on the rise of Nazi influence in Germany during the 1930s. It offers a glimpse into the ascension of Hitler and his henchmen. The hero, ill-qualified but chosen for the position of Ambassador to Germany after three more qualified candidates declined, struggles to understand what steps he can take to warn the world (or even his own American State Department) of the nature of Hitler’s ambitions and the rapid rearmament of the German military.
William E. Dodd’s daughter, the free-spirited Martha, becomes a focus of the book as she is exciting to her father’s dullness, and because of her attraction, first to Nazi ideology and then to Communism.
A worthy read and one very suitable to listening, as well.

Frighteningly Real

Would you consider the audio edition of In the Garden of Beasts to be better than the print version?

I had already read the book before I listened to the audio version. I found the audio version much more frightening. It places you in the scenes from that time and place. Sometimes it was too realistic.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, I couldn't stop listening to this book.

Any additional comments?

The events that were taking place in 1930's Germany are so frighteningly like what is happening today. The stark realities portrayed in this book make me frightened for our world toady.

Poor reader

This is fascinating material but this reader just create a compelling voice. I gave up on listening and read the book instead, which is quite good.

Intriguing story

I enjoyed this book and couldn't wait to get back to it. I love historical fiction, and the writing was wonderful. My only complaint was that the reader, while excellent at pronouncing German names, had a self-conscious cadence to his voice, as if he enjoyed listening to the sound of his own voice. I found this annoying. That said, he did bring the story to life.

Almost unbelievable

Who was your favorite character and why?

Martha seems to be the main character.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It is hard to understand why the Department of State refused to believe Ambassador Dodd's evaluation of what was going on in Germany in 1933. Had they done so, World War II might have been avoided.

Exactly that: love, terror, family~Berlin/Hitler

If you could sum up In the Garden of Beasts in three words, what would they be?

Compelling
Insightful
Historically important

What did you like best about this story?

The book provides what was going on in Hitler's world prior to what the rest of the world was aware of or willing to address. Very compelling.

Which scene was your favorite?

There are no favorite scenes. This was a brutal time in history. The book provides insights that other sources don't.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Hitler: Who Knew What!

Any additional comments?

The point of view is one which we haven't had before. It's that of the ambassador to Berlin during the 30s. We see what was going on in Germany at the time and the diplomatic reactions. Intertwined with the historical aspects is the ambassador's family.

Very well done!

I have read The Devil in the White City and thought that I would like to read another of his. This one was very well written and interesting. The reader was good. There were times I wished I had the text in front of me b/c I got names mixed up. But that really didn't affect the enjoyment.

erik larson takes you there!

Well told story about a frightening time to be in Germany. It brought the time and the people to life.

My first listen!

Would you listen to In the Garden of Beasts again? Why?

No. There are too many other books I want to listen to or read.

What did you like best about this story?

About a period in history that interests me.