Munich by
Robert Harris
The peace
talks and treaty that led into WW11 are the setting for this book. Hugh Legat
(private secretary to Chambelin) and Paul Hartman (a German diplomat and translator
are the tellers of this tale. They were friends at oxford and re-meet 6 years
later under the shadow of possible war, at the Munich 1938 peace talks.
As events un-fold
over 4 days we get to know characters their lives, their loves, beliefs and history
of those negotiations. Using newly released information we learn what the population
did not know in 1938 about the chekoslvakia situation, and its main
protagonists Chambelin, Hitler and their advisors.
Sounds a bit
heavy going?
No!
It’s fast paced,
you want to keep reading as with Robert Harris’ concise yet powerful language
he conveys moods and actions with a clarity that involves you in the story and
keeps you enthralled.
Some of Robert
Harris other books deal with just as fascinating topics, the election of a
modern day pope, Stalin, Marcus Cicero and Pompeii.
Rating 10/10
I loved his "Conclave" book about selecting a pope in our modern world.
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