Martin Davidson (1)

This is a disturbing book about a man who discovers that his German grandfather wasn't just a Nazi before and during the Second World War--he was a member of the S.A. and the S.S.
There isn't a lot of family history for him to fall back on, but he does his research and ties together the limited documentary evidence that shows what his his grandfather did, or likely did, given the people and organisations that he associated with and his rise to the position he held within the Party.

I encourage you to read this book if you are interested in history, especially the genesis of World War II. Many people do not know how World War II was spawned as a result of the devastating effects of the terms of the Versailles Treaty. Fewer still are likely aware of how so many in Germany viewed that Treaty as a humiliation and how it gave Adolph Hitler and the Nazis a perfect "excuse" to use to justify his rise to power. His rhetoric and the beliefs of many in Germany was that it was show more not overwhelming military force and strategy of the Allies along with military weakness of Germany that resulted in Germany losing WW I - it was caused by others, in large part claiming it was the Jews.

I've done a lot of reading about World War II and how events led up to it. But many of the books I've read deal more with events of the War and strategies, military campaigns, etc., but none of them gave a really good understanding of how why the main character in this nonfiction work became a full-fledged member of the Nazi Party, the SA, SS, and the SD.

Part investigation and much the recap of events, the author puts a very strong effort into explaining how his grandfather's activities affected hos family. A very good book overall. show less

A very interesting account of the author's grandfather who was an early member and foot soldiers of the SS and the overall Nazi apparatus. It is very hard to imagine that these events happened in the 20th century, the same century in which man went to the moon and the internet was born.

A very interesting account of the author's grandfather who was an early member and foot soldiers of the SS and the overall Nazi apparatus. It is very hard to imagine that these events happened in the 20th century, the same century in which man went to the moon and the internet was born.