In this bestselling novel, National Book Award-winning author Ron Hansen evokes the startling relationship between Adolph Hitler and his much younger niece, Geli Raubal, whose mysterious death at the age of 23 has never been fully explained.
Paperback
PRODUCT INFORMATION
Summary
In this bestselling novel, National Book Award-winning author Ron Hansen evokes the startling relationship between Adolph Hitler and his much younger niece, Geli Raubal, whose mysterious death at the age of 23 has never been fully explained.
Description
"A textured picture of Hitler's histrionic personality and his insane mission for glory, presaging the genocide to come in the cold-blooded obliteration of one young woman." -- Publishers Weekly
Hitler's Niece tells the story of the intense and disturbing relationship between Adolf Hitler and the daughter of his only half-sister, Angela, a drama that evolves against the backdrop of Hitler's rise to prominence and power from particularly inauspicious beginnings. The story follows Geli from her birth in Linz, Austria, through the years in Berchtesgaden and Munich, to her tragic death in 1932 in Hitler's apartment in Munich. Through the eyes of a favorite niece who has been all but lost to history, we see the frightening rise in prestige and political power of a vain, vulgar, sinister man who thrived on cruelty and hate and would stop at nothing to keep the horror of his inner life hidden from the world.
Critic Reviews
“"Scrupulously researched. Hansen's informed interpretation of events makes convincing, if melancholy, reading."”
"...readers will hear the brand names of beers drunk, see the clothing worn, feel the air, hear the songs-and cringe at the inevitability of the horror to come.." -- Kirkus Reviews
"A textured picture of Hitler's histrionic personality and his insane mission for glory, presaging the genocide to come in the cold-blooded obliteration of one young woman." -- Publishers Weekly
[Hitler's Niece] invites us to consider Hitler in a new light . . . Hansen succeeds in conjuring Hitler as he probably was." -- New York Times Book Review
"A carefully crafted and distinctly macabre work of fiction." -- Village Voice
"Ambitious, provocative . . . the confluence of historical event and personal destiny becomes mesmerizing." -- Publishers Weekly
"An act of sustained speculation about a small, horrifying domestic drama that took place while a much larger evil was unfolding; Hansen's achievement is to vividly portray one as a symptom of the other. . . . Because of its mixture of historical detail and psychological nuance it rings true." -- The New Yorker
"Hansen has researched not only the case itself but its political and social background in meticulous detail. All this Hansen evokes as well as I've ever seen it done, with a wealth of vivid local detail that carries complete conviction." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review
Hansen has written a convincing novel that is provocative, disturbing and illuminating. -- Raleigh News & Observer
Hansen is a fearless storyteller. . . . [He] creates a savagely human portrait of Hitler. . . . [Hitler's Niece] reads, like all good books, as a vehicle for the writer's obsession'an intelligent, haunting, and oddly devotional exploration of the unimaginable'-Hitler in love." -- Booklist
"Riveting . . . Hansen's insightful, brilliantly interpretative, and frightening novel does more to illuminate the welter of evil the fueled Hitler than a dozen biographies." -- Booklist
-- The Boston Sunday Globe
About the Author
Ron Hansen is the bestselling author of the novel Atticus (a finalist for the National Book Award), Hitler's Niece, Mariette in Ecstasy, Desperadoes, and Isn't It Romantic?, as well as a collection of short stories, a collection of essays, and a book for children. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award. Ron Hansen lives in northern California, where he teaches at Santa Clara University.
Back Cover
Hitler's Niece tells the story of the intense and disturbing relationship between Adolf Hitler and the daughter of his only half-sister, Angela, a drama that evolves against the backdrop of Hitler's rise to prominence and power from particularly inauspicious beginnings. The story follows Geli from her birth in Linz, Austria, through the years in Berchtesgaden and Munich, to her tragic death in 1932 in Hitler's apartment in Munich. Through the eyes of a favorite niece who has been all but lost to history, we see the frightening rise in prestige and political power of a vain, vulgar, sinister man who thrived on cruelty and hate and would stop at nothing to keep the horror of his inner life hidden from the world.
Product Details
Returns
This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.
