The Weimar Republic and the rise of Nazi Germany is the background to this brilliant, dense and amazingly informative novel about the friendship of Winifred Wagner and Hitler. It entails a deep analysis of Wagner's operas, the foundation and maintenance of the Bayreuth festival, together with flights of fantasy which, in the context of thorough and competent historical research of the real facts and people involved, are completely believable. A haunting but rewarding experience.
(Kathie Somerwil Ayrton - bwl 55 Winter 2010 ) |
