The Weimar Republic is a period often forgotten and often treated merely as a failed precursor that led to dictatorship. This book deals with its formative period. It’s extremely focused, dealing with only the period between the Kaiser’s abdication and the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, and the focus gives it momentum. The interpretation is balanced and not overly distorted by what the author (and reader) knows comes next.

4/5. Finished Monday 1 March, 2021.

(Originally published on Goodreads.)