Customer Reviews

Magda Goebbels

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

And producing 6 beautiful children! This is indeed one of the strangest biographies you'll ever read, not to mention fascinating thruout! Magda was educated at a Catholic school, had charm, beauty, and polish in abundance, and was the stepdaughter to a Jewish father..Friedlander was her maiden name.She fell for a leading German Zionest in early 1920's, then married a leading German industrialist, and divorced him to marry one of the three most infamous Nazis (along with Hitler and Himmler). Traveling in the highest of social circles, she became the ideal German mother, producing a child about every year with Goebbels, who was known for his incredible infidelities, not to mention anti-semitism, and general nastiness. Even so, obviously he had charm and personality. Anyway, just look at the family photo Mr. and Mrs. Goebbels, and you may agree a more beautiful set of children, including 5 girls, is a true rarity. Also, do not miss the photo of the 1943 audience of Goebbel's "Total War" speech. The entire audience, including Magda and her 2 daughters, is completely bewildered, possibly scared, during this "Total War" speech. This book is about perfect in showing how a German woman could sell her soul to the devil, her hubbie and Hitler. WE all know the horrifying ending, but this is still a truly fascinating, unique, if sometimes repellent read throughout!

Very few people, even WWII expert, know a lot about this woman, Magda Goebbels. I was astounded to learn about her background, her relationship with Arloseroff during her youth, her flirtation with conversion to Judaism and her relationship/admiration with Hitler. The book seems to be thouroughly researched although I guess that there are quite a few "artistic" addition to make the book more readable. It flows very smoothly and you often have the feeling that you are reading a novel. A lot about Magda's life cannot be explained rationally although the author tries to make some sense of her actions. The fact that she murdered six of her seven children because "life is not worht living without the Fuehrer" cannot be explained by any rational person.
I found this book fascinationg and frightening. It did give me an insight however into the mindset of the people who followed Hitler: empty, unfullfilled lives without any values, morals or goals, drifters who were looking for a "guru" to fill their empty shells.

As an historian, alarms went off when I noticed the novelization filler-in style of the book - at (Klabunde's)the author's own admission in the forward, 'Every now and again I have transposed the action into dramatic scenes, in order to visualise and heighten certain impressions." If an author admittedly novelizes something like, 'Magda enjoyed the fragrance of the perfume shop,' that's not very scholarly, but it doesn't really have too much of an impact on Magda as an historical figure. So, I was willing to give the author some leeway - even down to her historically incorrect assumption that the women in the Nazi leadership's lives had much, if any influence on their public lives... until I got to page 63. Klabunde clearly states that Joseph Goebbels' left leg had certain deformities due to childhood illness, and how he walked with a limp and so forth. It was Goebbels' RIGHT leg which was affected - common historical knowledge. The repetition of "left" leaves no doubt that this wasn't just a printer's error. If the author got such a fundamental and simple fact incorrect about the major player in Magda's life, I am no longer hazily skeptical about the other "facts" in the book - I can't believe a word in it without cross-referencing other sources. Only for those so interested in Magda Goebbels that they would take the time and effort to do so. The one star is for the photo section.

This book was a bit hard to put down. Magda was as cold and empty as they get. She felt entitled to a certain type of lifestyle even though she didn't come from an educated or wealthy family. She constantly leached off other's power and wealth and was so desperate to obtain it she ended up entering into a relationship with a sociopath, who was the epitome of cruel and manipulating. Giving up her world as she knew it for Gobbels was quickly repaid by him entertaining an endless stream of young women, finally falling in love with one of them and wanting to divorce Magda. In order to not lose her social and financial status Magda ran to her close understanding friend Adolf Hitler and at his insistence Gobbels remained unhappily with Magda. Only in the very end did they re-establish their twisted relationship, held together by their pending doom and death.
Magda willingly betrayed her family and friends without batting an eye, so much so that after murdering her 6 children she sat down to a few games of solitaire. Why someone in their entourage didn't take the children to safety will forever go unexplained but for weeks friends and even Hitler himself tried to talk her out of her plan, even offering several ways of safe passage for all of them. She still declined stating "SHE" was loyal to Hitler and Germany. I had hoped to find some sort of understanding of this woman, some redeeming quality that I'm told ever person has, alas I found nothing that would explain her selfishness, cruelty, manipulation and complete disregard for human life. I understand now I found nothing because nothing existed in this woman.

as of 2011,there are TWO books dedicated to the life of magda goebbels(the wife of the third reich propaganda minister). the 1st is the hans-otto meissner book published in 1980(see my review!) and this one by anja klabunde in 2001.
both books mirror eachother as far as the information that these books contain with
one main difference,in klabunde's book,the author reveals magda's prior UNKNOWN relationship with zionist leader,chaim arlosoroff. this relationship must have been
so secret,magda goebbels never even shared it with her close friend,ello quandt(at
least ello never mentioned it to anyone IF she knew). also different is klabunde's
final summation of magda's personality in the epilogue. i tend to agree with the
author. i have always felt magda was"searching for something" and thought she
found it with joseph goebbels but,really all magda found was the pied piper of lies
and in the end it was death that set her free from it all.....an interesting read.
this book does have a photo section in the middle. some of the photos are rare and
i have not seen them before.

Excellent information not only about Magda but the state of the German people and the events leading up to the Third Reich.

I just finished this novel, and cannot stop thinking about this enigmatic woman. She is a total mystery to me....how could a woman who once loved a Zionist leader turn against the Jews like she did? Did she have no heart? I am more puzzled and fascinated by her then ever before; definately a keeper!

Like cotton candy, this historical FICTION account of M.Goebbels is sugar full of air. It cannot be compared to scholarly biographical works of other Nazi notables by authors such as Roger Manvell and Heinrich Fraenkel, Alan Bullock, or John Toland - to name a few of the most important. Pure speculation strung together with what little information is available on M. Goebbels may be enjoyable to read, but that does not make it a recommended book for serious WWII scholars. The definative book on Magda Goebbels is yet to be written.