Hitler Redux

Seventy-five years after his death in the ruins of Berlin, Adolf Hitler remains an enigma, in large part because we still rely largely uncritically on sources produced by Hitler and his entourage. Mikael Nilsson's magnificently researched and brilliantly argued Hitler Redux: The Incredible History of Hitler's So-Called Table Talks brings us much closer to understanding Hitler. By dissecting how Hitler's 'Table Talks' were compromised and revealing 'The Testament of Adolf Hitler' to be a cover forgery, Nilsson manages to unmask Hitler. - Thomas Weber, University of Aberdeen, UK Nilsson's book provides historical research at its best. Grounded in exhaustive study of primary sources he paints a gripping picture of how historiography for far too longfollowed misleading narrartives. His fascinating findings provide lessons for historians and the wider public how to apply critical rationality and shrewd analysis of documents. It's a feast of enlightenment. - Magnus Brechtken, University of Munich, Germany In a series of hard-hitting and well-researched articles, Mikael Nilsson has shown that Hitler's fabled 'Table-talk' and 'Political Testament' cannot be used as direct evidence of what he actually said. His work is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the challenges which his biographers face. - Brendan Simms, University of Cambridge, UK Mikael Nilsson provides an unsparing but long-overdue critique of one of the touchstone sources of Hitler scholarship. Future biographers will be well-served to read Nilsson's meticulously researched analysis before turning to Hitler's table talk conversations and monologues. Hitler Redux is fascinating, sobering, enlightening. - Timothy W. Ryback, Director of the Institute for Historical Justice and Reconciliation in Paris, France