By Simon Winder
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2010. 466 pgs. Nonfiction
Wayward is right. This is a meandering, rambling blend of history, trivia, and a touch of travelogue. This book is not for obtaining an overview of German history; On the other hand it's much more interesting than reading a more typical history of Germany. Perhaps a few of the section headings to illustrate this point: "Pious, Bald or Fat," "A Surprise visit from an Asteroid," "Drinking Chocolate with Ostriches," and "Girls in Turrets."
Well written, sometimes funny, and packed with the kind of material you'd expect to see in magazine articles on German history (and the attendant sidebar articles), Winder's Germania is good for a cover-to-cover read or just to dip into and see what you find.
SML
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