On September 8; 1941; eleven weeks after Hitler's brutal surprise attack on the Soviet Union; Leningrad was surrounded. The German siege was not lifted for two and a half years; by which time some three quarters of a million Leningraders had died of starvation. Stripping away decades of Soviet propaganda; and drawing on newly available diaries and government records; Anna Reid chronicles the Nazis' deliberate decision to starve Leningrad into surrender; the incompetence and cruelty of the Soviet war leadership; the horrors experienced by soldiers on the front lines; and; above all; the ordeal of life in the blockaded city.Leningrad tackles a raft of unanswered questions: Was the size of the death toll as much the fault of Stalin as of Hitler? Why didn't the Germans capture the city? Why didn't it collapse into anarchy? What decided who lived and who died? Impressive in its originality and literary style; Leningrad gives voice to the dead and throws new light on one of the twentieth century's greatest calamities.
#14558 in Books David Von Drehle 2004-08-16Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.05 x .99 x 6.02l; .88 #File Name: 080214151X352 pagesTriangle The Fire That Changed America
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. This book is beautifully researched. It provides vivid detail to round out ...By MeganIn 1911 a shirt-waist factory catches on fire; leading to an unprecedented change in work safety standards.This book is beautifully researched. It provides vivid detail to round out the characters so that the reader truly understands the time period that this story is taking place in. I was particularly interested in the insights provided about the local government; Tammany Hall. I know others didn't understand why there was so much about Tammany Hall in the book; but I found that understanding the local politics really helped me to understand the different forces at play in NYC during the time.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Not what I had expected; but still a fine bookBy Ellkay KayThe book was not really what I had expected. I had looked for a more personal account of the people who died and those who survived. My husband's grandmother was an Eastern European immigrant to New York shortly after the time period of the Triangle Fire. She came alone to this country; lived with relatives already here; and worked in one of the garment factories. With the great exception that she escaped the Fire; her early life in this country was the life that had been lived by the Triangle victims; and I think I had expected to learn more about this life. Mr. von Drehle makes clear that the book I had expected is just not possible because of the great scarcity of source material. He does what he can in general terms: he tells where the majority of these women came from and the circumstances most of them escaped. He details the incredibly long hours they worked; the incredibly small wages they received; and the fact that many still managed to help support families in this country or The Old Country. He explains that; because of the horrific over-crowding of the tenements in which they lived; their lives away from work were spent on the streets. Here they found community with people of their own background; language; and age; intellectual stimulation in the many near-by free courses offered by NYU and various associations; and exposure to the social and political thought of the day. But these generalities are pretty much as far as he is able to go. The real subject matter of this book is political change; in particular; the liberalization of New York. In this context; the Triangle Fire was no more than a tremendous spur to this change. His enduring characters are less the women of Triangle and more the reporters; business people; public officials; and primarily the politicians who; willingly or not; took part in this change. He chronicles the fall of Tammany Hall and the rise of the Democrats. Once I got past the realization that the book was other than what I had expected; I grew to appreciate it for what it is. It is a well-documented and compelling account of a time of change and the people (certainly including the victims of the Fire) who combined to bring it about.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Very Interesting!By Cheryl J. LeslieThis is the definitive historical book that explores the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. Author von Drehle gives a human face to the tragedy by writing about the people; mostly girls and women; who died and also those who escaped.It is interesting to learn how buildings were designed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and how buildings such as the one that housed Triangle were not designed for the safety of the occupants and how lax inspections precipitated the horrific fire that occurred. I also found out where the term "sweatshop" originated. Besides this documentation; the author also includes a look at the trial where the owners of the building were charged with knowingly locking exit doors and disallowing workers to escape the blaze. It looks like a no-brainer; but there were some twists in the testimony that made the outcome of the trial a surprise.This book kept my interest and kept me turning pages until late at night. I would recommend this book to anyone who like history and in particular New York in the early 20th century.
