Monday, 2 September 2024

John Kampfner, In Search of Berlin: The Story of Europe's Most Important City

 A pop history, and one with a debatable title. There are a fair few better candidates for the title of 'Europe's most important city' - Rome , Istanbul, Paris, London, Moscow.  It may not even be the most important Germanic city historically; Vienna would make a fair claim there. A nice read by someone who knows the city well, and Berlin is a fascinating place with a complex culture - simultaneously militaristic and authoritarian with a liberal, creative counter-culture. There's nowhere quite like it, but honestly I've no desire to visit, there are so many dark periods in its history it's not somewhere I would think I'd be comfortable.

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