Hermann Göring is remembered today as one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi regime, but long before he became a political leader, he was a decorated fighter ace of World War I. His wartime record and aristocratic background set him apart from many of the men who would later surround Adolf Hitler. Göring … Read more
When Adolf Hitler was celebrated by Germans in the summer of 1940, he was seen as an infallible genius who worked day and night for his people. The reality was very different. Hitler was a man who avoided sustained intellectual effort, could not read documents longer than 20 pages, and preferred to retreat like an … Read more
A house sits deep in the woods of northern Rhode Island, at the end of a dirt road that locals will describe but never walk you down. The version most people know comes from a polished film. The real story, pieced together through diaries, archives, and interviews with those who lived it, is far darker … Read more
Perhegrillissä hänen enonsa kysyi, milloin hän vihdoin asettuisi aloilleen. Chloe pärskähti ja sanoi kovaäänisesti: ”Hänetkö, ole hyvä. ” Nauru loppui, kun minä sanoin: ”Olet oikeassa. ” Ojensin tädin lautaseni ja lähdin sanomatta sanaakaan. Hiilen tuoksu ja paistuvien pihvien käry olivat olleet kesän tuoksu kolmen vuoden ajan. Se oli myös perheen tuoksu. Chloen perheen. Fergusonien. Tunsin … Read more
Norm Macdonald spent his final months sitting alone in front of a webcam in his living room, recording jokes he knew might never be performed in front of a live audience. He had been diagnosed with acute leukemia in 2013—a treatable but incurable condition—and had told almost no one. For nine years, he kept the … Read more
The children of the Nazi elite were raised in a world of privilege, propaganda, and adoration. Their fathers were the architects of the Third Reich, and their families were held up as models of the Aryan ideal. But the collapse of the Reich in 1945 shattered their lives, leaving them to face the legacy of … Read more
Tytärni kihlajaisissa veljeni kumartui lähelleni ja kuiskasi: “Sinun täytyy nähdä vieraslista. ” Nauroin sen pois, ajattelin että hän oli juonut liikaa samppanjaa. Hän ei vastannut hymyyn. Hän vain ojensi minulle puhelimensa, jonka näyttö vielä loisti, ja käveli pois sanomatta sanaakaan. Seisoin siinä keskellä maaseutukerhon juhlasalia, pidellen sitä puhelinta, ja koko kehoni meni kylmäksi. Nimeni on … Read more
On June 1, 1946, one of the most powerful men in modern Romanian history stood before a firing squad at Jilava Prison, near Bucharest. Marshal Ion Antonescu had ruled Romania as “the Leader,” commanded its armed forces, and taken the country into World War II alongside Nazi Germany. Less than two years after being removed … Read more
The story of Dunkirk is often remembered as a story of defiance and heroism. While the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of troops was a monumental feat, the reality around the city was far darker. The beaches were scenes of chaos, but the fighting inland was brutal, and for many British soldiers, the war ended … Read more
Un jeudi soir de juillet, ma sœur m’a ajoutée par erreur dans la discussion de famille. La première phrase que j’ai lue était ma mère qui me traitait d’enfant à qui on aurait dû renoncer. La conversation durait depuis sept ans sous le nom « Famille ». Six cent douze messages, et je n’étais dans … Read more