Munich by Robert Harris
I admit I’m a longtime fan of Robert Harris’ novels. Why is that?
He carves his characters out of stone, whether he’s writing of ancient
Rome or Germany in the Second World War.
He constructs plots that keep you turning pages and along the way he weaves
a vibrant tapestry of mystery and intrigue.
In Munich, Robert
Harris takes us back to 1938. Neville Chamberlain’s flying to Munich, along
with the leaders of France and Italy, to meet with der Führer of Germany and
seal the fate of Czechoslovakia.
We know what happened, don’t we? So how can this be a thriller, a fast read, a
book that keeps you on the edge? Harris
grabs you with sub-plots, the personalities of the leaders, and throws you into
the middle of a fray. Suddenly, your
faith in what you thought you knew is shaken.
You’re no longer certain of what happened or even what’s about to
happen.
Let me set the stage for you:
In 1938, the slaughter called the War to End All Wars was
barely twenty years ago. The allies lost
almost five million men. Britain alone lost three quarters of a million. France lost well over a million. The Central Powers lost over three million,
with Germany’s losses almost two million.
The smell of blood was still fresh, families still had photos of their
lost loved ones on their mantels. The
people of Britain, France and others wanted nothing to do with another roar of
cannon and chilling letters of bereavement. The horror of tears and loss still
hung like a black curtain.
Although its loss was also great, Germany’s outlook was far
different. Germany had been brought to its knees, humbled, kicked and punished. But, it wasn’t war debts and indemnities that
pushed the Germans to the status of beggar nation. Unemployment raged. Social spending increased again and
again. Politicians lost control of the
budget. Inflation lent its torch to the
economic bond fire. You had to take your money in a wheelbarrow to buy a loaf
of bread. Still, reparation payments
called for in the peace treaty that ended the war could have been paid, but for
protective tariffs levied by the great powers on German goods.
In 1933 a man arose out of Germany’s defeat who could turn
the country around. The time was ripe
and Adolph Hitler was ready. His unlikely rise is a fascinating story in itself
and also one of the most tragic in the history of the world.
By 1938, Hitler’s star had climbed to the German heavens. He
was Chancellor. With little to no
bloodshed he had taken back the Rhineland from France in 1936 and annexed
Austria in March 1938. Added to that,
both Britain and France had agreed to Germany’s rearmament in 1935.
France had a larger Army, but did nothing. Britain also did nothing. The peoples of both countries would do
anything to avoid another war. In
Britain, Chamberlain was a hero. Yes, he
gave concessions to Germany, but he kept Britain at peace.
To the German public, Hitler was reuniting Germany and making
it powerful again. But, now his sights
were on the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia, which included a large
German-speaking population. Hitler
wanted that piece of real estate, too.
Britain and France agreed to that, with the details to be worked out and
signed in Munich. After all, Hitler had
promised that the Sudetenland was the last piece of the puzzle. There would be no war.
L to R, Chamberlain, Daladier, Hitler, Mussolini, Ciano |
So, while the former allies wanted peace at any price,
Germany wanted to resume it’s rightful place as a nation of prominence. The Czechs were an impedance to all parties
involved and their part in the peaceful breaking up of their country was
nothing but an afterthought.
Robert Harris’s novel, Munich, goes into the back corridors
to bring the scenes to life, examining not only the major players, but their
subordinates whose friendships on both sides went all the way back to university
days at Oxford. Harris’ plot takes us back
not only to what did happen, but what didn’t and steers us into the heart of a
web that lasted well into the Second World War.
Plots. Intrigues. Love affairs.
Indelible characters. All of them with
the special Robert Harris touch that keeps you on edge, flipping pages, knowing
the macro, but feeling every bit of the micro.
Historic fiction is Harris’ milieu and one of the best writers to ever
bring history to life and all the while bringing the reader the good and bad,
as we know it…and even the parts we never knew.
Want history as it should be written, as well as a thrilling
plot with indelible characters and a driving purpose? Munich is the book.
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