Friday 25 November 2011

Books I love - 'On Hitler's Mountain'

Irmgard Hunt was born in Nazi German in 1934, in Berchtesgaden a village next to Hitler's headquarters.  As a toddler she was photographed sat upon Hitler's knee. At that time both she and her parent's were fervent supporters of Hitler and the Nazi regime.

With the advent of war and as she grew older, Irmgard came to question this belief.

This is a lovely book.  It is wonderful to read of life in a mountain village as it changes due to war and the deprivations of defeat.  It is interesting to read of the insights of life in Germany at that time, as seen through the eyes of a growing child and young woman.

As someone born in England in the late 1960s, Nazi Germany and Hitler to me are, obviously, hate figures. To people in my country and my generation it is not always easy to understand how Hitler and the Nazis could rise to power and how the ordinary people in Germany and Austria could be accepting of it all at that time.

Therefore I found this such an insight into that time.  Not all Germans were supporters of Hitler and some that were soon changed their minds.

I do recommend this book.

On Hitler's Mountain by Irmgard Hunt. Published in 2005 by Atlantic Books, London.  My copy was borrowed from the library. 

1 comment:

Amy, the Greedy Crocodile said...

Looks fascinating!!! I'm so interested in the story from the other side.... and history is always written by the winners of course.