The Warburgs

The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family

By: Ron Chernow

Narrated by: Jonathan Reese

Bankers, philanthropists, scholars, socialites, artists, and politicians, the Warburgs stood at the pinnacle of German (and, later, of German-American) Jewry. They forged economic dynasties, built mansions and estates, assembled libraries, endowed charities, and advised a German kaiser and two American presidents. But their very success made the Warburgs lightning rods for anti-Semitism, and their sense of patriotism became increasingly dangerous in a Germany that had declared Jews the enemy.

Ron Chernow's hugely fascinating history is a group portrait of a clan whose members were renowned for their brilliance, culture, and personal energy yet tragically vulnerable to the dark and irrational currents of the twentieth century.

Critic reviews

"Splendid.... Chernow does a wonderful job fleshing out the lives of the major characters in this family drama."

-- Wall Street Journal

"[Ron Chernow] has surpassed himself in this absorbing chronicle."

-- The New Yorker

"This is grand-scale scholarship .... It is all here, along with so much of the painful, tumultuous history of our time, all in one splendid book."

-- David McCullough, author of Truman

Fascinating story

Fascinating walk thru 19-20th century as an unusual family dealt with the Holocaust and life after.
Reader could use some help pronouncing German and Israeli names but was otherwise A+.

Awesome!

A gripping and spectacular story of a great families supreme and continuous effort to remain viable!

Awful audio production

Pronunciation! The narrator of this story sounds like a 1940s radio announcer. He’s robotic.

When he pronounces Chaim he says “ki im”.

The dogged determination of the entire family over so many decades.

What I enjoyed most were the intricate details which is so characteristic of Chernov’s books. This is the sixth book by him that I’ve read. My only issue is that I “expected” that the Warburgs would be more involved in American banking, either in conflict or in concert with the other notables of the time. But fascinating nonetheless.

A sense of déjà-vu

Another not so interesting saga of the trials and tribulations of a billionaire Jewish family.