A Village in the Third Reich: How Ordinary Lives Were Transformed by the Rise of Fascism
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- Create Date：2023-04-02 17:21:29
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Julia Boyd
- ISBN：B0B3Y8TDM4
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Rhio
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I have always been interested to read books about the experiences of those who were trapped in Hitler's wrath。 I have read books told by mothers and families and how they managed to survive the horrible and unspeakable atrocities of the Nazi regime。 This book is a departure from others。 It focuses on the experience of a village that despite being far from the center of the storm was unable to escape Nazism。 It shares the collective account of a community that was inevitably plunged into Hitler's I have always been interested to read books about the experiences of those who were trapped in Hitler's wrath。 I have read books told by mothers and families and how they managed to survive the horrible and unspeakable atrocities of the Nazi regime。 This book is a departure from others。 It focuses on the experience of a village that despite being far from the center of the storm was unable to escape Nazism。 It shares the collective account of a community that was inevitably plunged into Hitler's propaganda。 The raw and human nature is vividly told in the many faces of Oberstdorfers， both from the oppressed and the liberators。 What makes this book extra good is the easy to read style of the author！ 。。。more
Janilyn Kocher
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An in depth look at Oberstdorf， the southern most village in Germany， and how it was impacted by the political changes during the 1930s。So often major events are analyzed in sweeping gestures， but rarely are individual approaches investigated， which is the case with this book。The village inhabitants’ various reactions and participation is addressed。I found it to be not only Informative but also quite educational。 Thanks to Edelweiss and Pegasus books for the digital copy。
Phil M
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I would go so far and declare it a must read， especially if you are interested in history。 A detailed account of different peoples' personal fates。 A fascinating new look on the most horrific time in German history， that I highly recommend！ I would go so far and declare it a must read， especially if you are interested in history。 A detailed account of different peoples' personal fates。 A fascinating new look on the most horrific time in German history， that I highly recommend！ 。。。more
Karen
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An interesting examination of Nazism through a detailed examination of one Bavarian village - Obersdorf。
Kevin Prenger
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For those interested in the effects of historical events on the lives of ordinary people， 'A Village in the Third Reich' is an essential book。 In it， Oberstdorf acts as a microcosm within the Third Reich in which by no means everything went as you would expect based on what you saw at the surface。 Julia Boyd shows that even in this village in Nazi Germany， the lines between right and wrong were blurred and that it is untenable to view Germans only as a nation of perpetrators。 For those interested in the effects of historical events on the lives of ordinary people， 'A Village in the Third Reich' is an essential book。 In it， Oberstdorf acts as a microcosm within the Third Reich in which by no means everything went as you would expect based on what you saw at the surface。 Julia Boyd shows that even in this village in Nazi Germany， the lines between right and wrong were blurred and that it is untenable to view Germans only as a nation of perpetrators。 。。。more
S M FULLYLOVE
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Superb。 Tells the story of Germany after WW1 through the lens of one village and its inhabitants。 Fascinating， nuanced and illuminating。
Coomba
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An insightful and important account of one of the largest and most infamous tragedies of modern history， told through the stories of real people and shining a light on what life was like for the average person living in Germany during the Second World War。 This book raises important questions surrounding morality， complicity and survival in the face of omnipresent danger and gives a voice to the lesser acknowledged victims of the Nazi regime。 It also begs the question: Would people today conform An insightful and important account of one of the largest and most infamous tragedies of modern history， told through the stories of real people and shining a light on what life was like for the average person living in Germany during the Second World War。 This book raises important questions surrounding morality， complicity and survival in the face of omnipresent danger and gives a voice to the lesser acknowledged victims of the Nazi regime。 It also begs the question: Would people today conform to Nazi ideals under such circumstances as the subjects of this book were exposed to？ For some I feel the answer is a resounding yes。 Such as Ben ‘Barbarossa’ Phillips， James ‘the big Jud’ Kidd and of course Olli ‘Adolf’ Attwood。 Fascists the lot of em。 。。。more
Kate
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Very readable history of a village in Germany from 1930s onwards。
Glenise Lee
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Non-fiction， told in an accessible manner。 Heart-breaking。
Diana Cheal
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I loved this！ Such a great social history of one small village and how Nazism got its tentacles in there。
BeesReads
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Very good book。 Non-fiction。 Based on documents， diaries etc from villagers and others living in the Bavarian village of Oberstdorf covering the period from around 1920s to post WW2 and how the villagers were affected。
Michael Hill
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I'm not normal into WWII history books， but this was a twisting insight into the ordinary people in one village in Germany。 It was fascinating。 I'm not normal into WWII history books， but this was a twisting insight into the ordinary people in one village in Germany。 It was fascinating。 。。。more
David Cutler
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It has to be five stars for the story though I was less impressed by the quality of the writing than some readers。 But what an inspired to look at the Nazi period through the prism of a rather ordinary village/ small town of 4000 people in the Third Reich。 There are some surprises like the mainly decent Nazi Mayor who saves lives and protects may people at risk from the regime including Jews。 In fact there weren't many Jews living in Oberstdorf but justice is done to their lives here as well as It has to be five stars for the story though I was less impressed by the quality of the writing than some readers。 But what an inspired to look at the Nazi period through the prism of a rather ordinary village/ small town of 4000 people in the Third Reich。 There are some surprises like the mainly decent Nazi Mayor who saves lives and protects may people at risk from the regime including Jews。 In fact there weren't many Jews living in Oberstdorf but justice is done to their lives here as well as an almost unbearable chapter In Memoriam on the murder of people with disabilities。 A particularly strong aspect of the book is to both look at the post First World War conditions for Nazism as well as coping in the immediate aftermath of the collapse of the regime and occupation by Moroccan soldiers。 。。。more
Maine Colonial
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I recently read Julia Boyd’s previous book， Travelers in the Third Reich。 It is a thoroughly researched history， showing us what non-Germans from all walks of life and across the political spectrum thought of Germany during the Nazi era。 It’s a fascinating demonstration of how difficult it is to fully comprehend history while it’s in the making。In this new book， Boyd narrows her focus to Oberstdorf， the southernmost village in Germany， set in the Bavarian Alps。 Though it was a small village， it I recently read Julia Boyd’s previous book， Travelers in the Third Reich。 It is a thoroughly researched history， showing us what non-Germans from all walks of life and across the political spectrum thought of Germany during the Nazi era。 It’s a fascinating demonstration of how difficult it is to fully comprehend history while it’s in the making。In this new book， Boyd narrows her focus to Oberstdorf， the southernmost village in Germany， set in the Bavarian Alps。 Though it was a small village， it wasn’t unsophisticated， since it regularly hosted visitors from all over Germany and the world， both winter and summer。 National Socialism was popular in the village in its earliest years， promising a recovery from the shame and destruction of World War I， a strong economy， and an end to the threat of Bolshevik communism。 The antisemitism of the Nazis wasn’t as popular in the village， since it had many Jewish tourists， some who had been coming for years， as well as a few locals who were well known and active participants in village life。Boyd follows the lives of many villagers to construct her history。 Using official records （including the voluminous postwar denazification testimonies required of most citizens）， recollections， and diaries， she paints a picture of a village adapting to the challenges of living under an all-consuming regime。 Most villagers were strongly Catholic and were dismayed that the Nazis purposely scheduled activities to conflict with Mass and other Catholic observances。 Many villagers felt far removed from the war and some service-eligible men figured out ways to avoid service and stay at home doing the hard work necessary to survive and support families in the mountains。 Despite having to bend to accommodate officialdom， some of the local Nazi leaders weren’t unreasonable when left to their own devices。 Giving the Hitler greeting wasn’t rigorously enforced， and the village even managed to keep a couple of its small handful of Jewish residents from being deported。 Still， there were true Nazi believers， even to the end， and there was animosity and even battles between the Nazi faithful and its opponents。Though Boyd doesn’t dwell on this point， I think there may be something different about people who live in a small village with challenging weather。 It’s necessary in places like that for people to cooperate， whether they like each other or not。 I suspect it’s more difficult there to depersonalize people in the way the Nazi ideology demanded。 。。。more
Fred Hart
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Loved it！
Nyama Sethi-Walsh
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Fantastic history book about the rise of Nazism written from a lens of one alpine village in the southernmost part of Germany。 Would highly recommend。
Tom
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This is a book that in some ways is difficult and painful to read， and despite that， is impossible to put down。 Having spent some time in a small Bavarian village， I've wondered how places largely out of the mainstream were affected by the rise of Nazism and the war that followed。 Boyd， with the assistance of Oberstdorf （the village of the title） native Angelika Patel， and an impressive amount of research and digging in the archives， takes us along the streets and into the homes of ordinary vill This is a book that in some ways is difficult and painful to read， and despite that， is impossible to put down。 Having spent some time in a small Bavarian village， I've wondered how places largely out of the mainstream were affected by the rise of Nazism and the war that followed。 Boyd， with the assistance of Oberstdorf （the village of the title） native Angelika Patel， and an impressive amount of research and digging in the archives， takes us along the streets and into the homes of ordinary village people during the most traumatic time of the 20th century。 Boyd， by the way， is way too clever to shine a bright light on the parallels to the rise of fascism in Germany that we see in some western countries today。 She doesn't need to， because those parallels are there for all to read and see。 A brilliant work， and for once， the blurbs on the jacket -- "absorbing，" "gripping，" "exceptional" -- ring true。 。。。more
Phillip Kerrigan
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If you are interested in this period of history and wonder how a decent population was coerced into supporting a madman and his henchmen， this fascinating book gives very interesting insights and explanations。 A society recovering from WW1 staggers through the 1920s and blunders into the 1930s and ends up with a maniacal regime。 This book tells of the impact on a small town in Bavaria in beautiful mountain country and how its people reacted to events and why。 It also explains better than I have If you are interested in this period of history and wonder how a decent population was coerced into supporting a madman and his henchmen， this fascinating book gives very interesting insights and explanations。 A society recovering from WW1 staggers through the 1920s and blunders into the 1930s and ends up with a maniacal regime。 This book tells of the impact on a small town in Bavaria in beautiful mountain country and how its people reacted to events and why。 It also explains better than I have read elsewhere why denazification of West German society after the war failed。Of course official lies and propaganda were the lubricant for the Nazi machine。 It won't surprise that Hitler was telling the same lies to his people as Vladimir Putin is today。 Just change the name of the enemy！It's often said that if we don't learn from history we will repeat it。 Read Germany 1933 and Russia 2023 。。。more
Graham Mott
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Engaging， interesting and meticulously researched。 It goes a long way to explain the Nazi’s attractions in the early days and how people， in most cases， had entered a Faustian pact， realising too late what they had bought into。 I think it addresses most peoples’ complicity as well。 Yes there were a few “good Nazis” who did protect people to some degree （although one is suspicious of post war washing of reputations） but for the most part people in this beautiful but remote mountain valley seem to Engaging， interesting and meticulously researched。 It goes a long way to explain the Nazi’s attractions in the early days and how people， in most cases， had entered a Faustian pact， realising too late what they had bought into。 I think it addresses most peoples’ complicity as well。 Yes there were a few “good Nazis” who did protect people to some degree （although one is suspicious of post war washing of reputations） but for the most part people in this beautiful but remote mountain valley seem to have kept their heads down and hoped for the best。 The fate of Jews in the area is well covered and in most cases they seem to have survived， often with help although the fate of those the Nazis considered unfit and were murdered is particularly shocking as it reached into the whole population not just what could be “others”。 。 It’s also obvious， especially towards the end of the book around the arrival of the Allies， that events have not been forgotten and enmities live on。 。。。more
Will
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A very interesting book which explores the lives of ordinary citizens in a small German village in the 30 years after the end of the First World War。 The intricacies and conflicts of the Nazi takeover of the village are especially fascinating and， in part， I think the book would have been more interesting had the focus been more restricted to the period 1933-39。 I would still， however， highly recommend to anyone with an interest in this period of history。
Alenka of Bohemia
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Having read a lot about the horrors of WW2， on the battlefield， in occupied territories， and of course， in the concentration camps， my question has always been: who were these people following Hitler so blindly？ The SS I understood to be evil and power-hungry individuals， but how is it possible that the German nation actively elected the Nazis and lived by their hateful rhetoric？Julia Boyd tries to show how the Hitler era impacted the "ordinary" Germans living in a backwater area and manages to Having read a lot about the horrors of WW2， on the battlefield， in occupied territories， and of course， in the concentration camps， my question has always been: who were these people following Hitler so blindly？ The SS I understood to be evil and power-hungry individuals， but how is it possible that the German nation actively elected the Nazis and lived by their hateful rhetoric？Julia Boyd tries to show how the Hitler era impacted the "ordinary" Germans living in a backwater area and manages to paint a vivid portrait of the village existence from the 1933 elections to the aftermath of the war， which left them with nothing。 I am still not sold on the author´s assumption that even among the Nazis there were "decent" people （since one kind of belies the other）， but I think that the sense of community with interpersonal conflicts， differences of views， varying desires and selfish interests has been captured perfectly in this book。 。。。more
Paul Jenkins
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In A Village in the Third Reich Julia Boyd creates a fascinating account of the impact of the Third Reich on Obertsdorf， a small German village in the Bavarian Alps。 The book， on which she has collaborated with local historian Angelika Patel， is based on meticulous local archives， diaries， newspaper stories and letters and other contemporary sources。 The account it gives is all the more powerful for being told though the voices and experiences of ordinary people。While due to geography Oberstdorf In A Village in the Third Reich Julia Boyd creates a fascinating account of the impact of the Third Reich on Obertsdorf， a small German village in the Bavarian Alps。 The book， on which she has collaborated with local historian Angelika Patel， is based on meticulous local archives， diaries， newspaper stories and letters and other contemporary sources。 The account it gives is all the more powerful for being told though the voices and experiences of ordinary people。While due to geography Oberstdorf is not often at the centre of events， the village and its inhabitants are exposed to many of the major threads of Nazi history。 This includes the rise of the party and Hitler’s ascent to power， the triumphs of the early years of the War， the killing fields of the Eastern Front， the persecution of the Jews and of disabled people and the hunger of the post War period and the process of de-Nazification。A story told through the lives of ordinary people is always more complicated than a more simplistic historical narrative。 With some exceptions few of the inhabitants of Obertsdorf are wholly good or bad。 We are shown Ernst Fink， the village’s Nazi Mayor but at the same time responsible for many acts to protect local Jews and other inhabitants who fall the wrong side of the regime。 We see Eduard Bessler， the headmaster of Obertsdorf’s Secondary School， forced to follow the regime’s insistence on upholding Nazi doctrine in schools while doing his best to preserve as humanitarian an education for his pupils as possible。 We hear of Karl Richter a soldier who leads a local coup to protect Obertsdorf the village at the end of the war from Allied attack but who then becomes deeply unpopular in the village。Like others I have often wondered about where to find the bridge between the atrocious events perpetrated by the Nazi regime and the ordinary people who lived in Germany at the time and who， to greater or lesser extents became complicit in what was going on。 The book is very good at describing the spectrum of fears， beliefs， hopes and indifference which allowed the Nazis to stay in power。 The book covers some terrible events but the one which probably affected me the most was the story of a young blind boy from the village， Theodor Weissenberg who was one of the 70，000 disabled people killed by the regime between 1940 and 41。 Having a blind brother the story struck me straight to the heart。The most important thing about the terrible events of the Third Reich is that we should not forget them。 A Village in the Third Reich shows how that story can be told in new and illuminating ways which remind us as the Angelika Patel says in her dedication that peace， freedom and justice cannot be taken for granted。 。。。more
Kathryn Main
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Insightful look into life in the Third ReichThe Third Reich as told from a local experience。 Boyd uncovers a very intimate story of the experience of one village and hpw it reacted to the growth of Nazism
Perrie
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Immaculately researched and full of incredible stories I've bookmarked to use in my classroom。 Worth the time it took me to read it。 Immaculately researched and full of incredible stories I've bookmarked to use in my classroom。 Worth the time it took me to read it。 。。。more
Damien
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An excellent book giving the stories of all sorts of Germans from a small bavarian town from the first world War up to the 1950s
RichardGreen
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A fascinating insight into how the rise of fascism affected a small， rural community in southern Germany。 The dangers of extreme politics， and the social and economic conditions which give them breathing space， are worryingly easy to see reflected， to a lesser degree， in some of our modern day politics and politicians。 What is most interesting is the way the village inhabitants react: some become fiercely pro or anti， but the majority sit somewhere in between and end up joining the Nazi party al A fascinating insight into how the rise of fascism affected a small， rural community in southern Germany。 The dangers of extreme politics， and the social and economic conditions which give them breathing space， are worryingly easy to see reflected， to a lesser degree， in some of our modern day politics and politicians。 What is most interesting is the way the village inhabitants react: some become fiercely pro or anti， but the majority sit somewhere in between and end up joining the Nazi party almost because it’s a line of least resistance which allows them to continue their lives。 Above all it’s a warning to the silent majority of the need to speak up against injustice at the earliest opportunity。 Leaving it too late can be catastrophic。 。。。more
Christine
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Engrossing book。 It gives an in depth account of how a German village succumbed to nazism。 The story is complex and yet clear how it got a grip on the people of Germany。
Gary。
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Well researched and written。
Richard Chambers
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First 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 of the year。 Fascinating， compelling account of one tiny village's journey through the rise of fascism in Germany。 By following the villagers of Oberstdorf throughout the decades， Julia Boyd hammers home a brutally effective way of detailing the horrors of Nazism and the humanity of those who suffered at its hands。 The insidious creep of totalitarianism， racism， and fanaticism is so well documented through every minute detail of life in Oberstdorf。 Highly recommend！ First 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 of the year。 Fascinating， compelling account of one tiny village's journey through the rise of fascism in Germany。 By following the villagers of Oberstdorf throughout the decades， Julia Boyd hammers home a brutally effective way of detailing the horrors of Nazism and the humanity of those who suffered at its hands。 The insidious creep of totalitarianism， racism， and fanaticism is so well documented through every minute detail of life in Oberstdorf。 Highly recommend！ 。。。more
Sue Foster
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Very interesting book as it looks at the third reich through the confines of a village。 It looks at the people who lived there and those coming into the village and how it changed their lives。
tpg0
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As an AI language model， I don't have personal opinions， but I can provide you with some information on the book you mentioned。 'A Village in the Third Reich: How Ordinary Lives Were Transformed by the Rise of Fascism' is a book written by historian and author， Julia Boyd。 It is a non-fiction book that explores the impact of National Socialism on the everyday lives of Germans in a small village in the Third Reich。 The author conducted extensive research and analyzed diaries， letters， and interviews with residents of the village to provide a detailed account of how the people were affected by the rise of fascism。 The book offers a unique perspective on the social and political changes that occurred during this period and is well-received by both readers and critics alike。
tpg1
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As an AI language model， I am not capable of reading books or forming opinions。 However， I can provide general information about the book 'A Village in the Third Reich: How Ordinary Lives Were Transformed by the Rise of Fascism' written by Mary Fulbrook。 Published in 2018， the book focuses on the experiences of the residents of a small village in Germany during the Nazi regime。 The author uses interviews， personal documents， and archives to reconstruct the everyday life of ordinary people in a society that was undergoing profound social and political changes。 The book explores how Nazism affected individuals， families， and communities， and how people adapted to the new reality。 Overall， the book offers a micro-historical approach that sheds light on the complexities and contradictions of life under fascism。 It explores themes such as propaganda， conformity， resistance， persecution， and survival， and shows how ordinary people were both victims and perpetrators of the Nazi regime。 The book has been generally well received by critics for its meticulous research and engaging writing style。
tpg2
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