Book Review: Dead Funny, Humor in Hitler’s Germany

Dead Funny: Humor in Hitler’s Germany by Rudolph Herzog
ISBN: 978-1935554301
Publisher: Melville House
Retail: $26.00

In Nazi Germany, telling jokes about Hitler could get you killed.

Is it permissible to laugh at Hitler? This is a question that is often debated in Germany today, where, in light of the dimension of the horrors committed in the name of its citizens, many people have difficulty taking a satiric look at the Third Reich. And whenever some do, accusations arise that they are downplaying or trivializing the Holocaust. But there is a long history of jokes about the Nazis.

In this groundbreaking volume, Rudolph Herzog shows that the image of the “ridiculous Führer” was by no means a post-war invention: In the early years of Nazi rule many Germans poked fun at Hitler and other high officials. It’s a fascinating and frightening history: from the suppression of the anti-Nazi cabaret scene of the 1930s, to jokes about Hitler and the Nazis told during WWII, to the collections of “whispered jokes” that were published in the immediate aftermath of the war, to the horrific accounts of Germans who were imprisoned and executed for telling jokes about Hitler and other Nazis.

Significantly, the jokes collected here also show that not all Germans were hypnotized by Nazi propaganda—or unaware of Hitler’s concentration camps, which were also the subject of jokes during the war. In collecting these quips, Herzog pushes back against the argument, advanced in aftermath of World War II, that people were unaware of Hitler’s demonic maneuvering. The truth, Herzog writes, is more troubling: Germans knew much about the actions of their government, joked about it occasionally . . . and failed to act.

When reading the Sunday paper in the United States (and other countries where it is permissible) we can often see political comics- poking jabs about those in power. It wasn’t quite the same in Hitler’s Germany but there were jokes, political and meant to ‘jab’, aplenty. It helped people to deal with the state of affairs. There were plenty of individuals who were bothered by the direction that Hitler and others in power were taking the country in. But as Herzog points out, the jokes and comics were only a way to ease the tension for the people, not the country. Herzog shows that many knew what was going on and were bothered by it, but not to the point of action.

The book is a good read that will make one think. It is sometimes difficult to understand the jokes passed during these times if one is not familiar with the German/Jewish cultures before and during the WWII era. For those who are interested in history, this book is a good glimpse into the mindset of those during this time.

I did think that this book was going to share more of the specific comics/jokes that were written/voiced during Hitler’s Germany and it does, dispersed throughout, share some specific ones. However, it is more of a history of the time and the people’s attitudes, with some examples of ‘humor’ that circulated. Interestingly, the jokes did not often center around the Nazi brutality but instead was more popularly politically themed. Goring was made fun of for the excessive number of medals on his suit- and his enjoyment of food.

Herzog does recount some of the deaths that were the result of the public jokes against Hitler and those in power but I gathered that the deaths (many from being in concentration camps) were ordered later in Hitler’s reign. After the Reich was losing the war and was becoming much less popular.

Some examples of the ‘jokes’:

A 'law’ that was rumored to be passed by the Nazis is as follows:
1. Anyone who does something or fails to do something will be punished.
2. Punishment will be handed down according to popular opinion.
3. Popular opinion is defined by the Nazi district leader [Gauleiter].

Another example:
A high-ranking Nazi official visiting Switzerland asks what a certain public building is for. “That’s our Navy Ministry,” his Swiss host explains. The Nazi laughs and says: “Why does Switzerland need a ministry of the navy? You’ve only got two or three ships.” The Swiss answers, “Why not? Germany has a ministry of justice.”

But as Herzog goes on to say after telling of over 250 well-known authors who were stripped of their citizenship, prominent culture figures and the friends of these individuals generally ‘adapted to the times’.

“Jokes…like this didn’t aim any serious criticism at the paramilitary nature of Nazi organizations. At most, such witticisms targeted the disruptions to normal life party duties entailed…” (in reference to jokes about party name acronyms)

If you are interested in history, WWII history, perhaps sociology, and/or a look into the mindset of some people during the WWII era, this book may be worth a read. It does contain profanity and some explicit language.

I received this book from Melville House Publishers via NetGalley.

Book Review: The Gospel According to Twilight

***Warning: This post discusses adult topics and material. It is not suitable for all ages. Although I was careful with my wording, my blog is labeled “G” rated, therefore I wouldn’t suggest this post for anyone younger than teens. Just to be on the safe side.****

 

The Gospel According to Twilight: Women, S*x and God by Elaine A. Heath
ISBN: 978-0664236786
Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press (September 12, 2011)
Retail: $15.00

Elaine A. Heath is the McCreless Associate Professor of Evangelism at Perkins School of Theology, and is an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Chruch. She is the initiator of New Day and the Epworth Project, a growing network of missional, new monastic faith communities in the United Methodist tradition. Among her research interests are the new monasticism, the emerging church, spirituality and evangelism, and gender and evangelism.

I recently read all of the Twilight series just so I would know what was being talked about in this book, The Gospel According to Twilight by Elaine A. Heath. It is a good thing I did read them all. Or I would be totally shocked by reading this book. Before reading, I should have researched the author.

The book starts with a generalized recap of Twilight books. Heath was interested because her daughters read the books- stayed up long hours and were consumed by them. Her daughters, I might add, seem like happy young women. One is an engineer and one a musician. Not depressed, not given to suicidal thoughts, both living productive lives, etc. Just my observations there.

After that Heath starts in on the books. First is the “Good Family” (in reference to the Cullens) and how they are different than Bella’s family (which I would assume is the “not so good family”). They are vegetarian vampires (haha, they drink animal blood- how’s that for oxymoron) who are comprised of Carlisle and Esme- the ‘parents’-, Edward, Emmett and Rosalie, Alice and Jasper. Edward is the only one without a mate, or significant other until Bella arrives on the scene. He is captivated by her, taken by her overwhelming scent and he simply likes (or craves) her.

I was somewhat confused a few times with the comparisons/contrasts Heath made between the Gospel and Twilight. When talking about the “Good Family” (the Cullens) Heath breaks down all their good traits and then definitely points to their very unChristian like traits (not the part about being vampires)- their extreme materialism. They build their money –using Alice’s ability to see the stock market ahead of time- so that they can buy shiny and fast cars, new wardrobes (I guess they never wear anything twice!). They do nothing to help others, the less fortunate, with all their acquired wealth and ‘stuff’. Although Carlisle is quite the self-sacrificing doctor. He works in the hospitals and helps humans live. He trained himself to no longer crave blood from humans and the scent doesn’t affect him any longer.

In reference to Bella’s family being the opposite of the Cullens- her parents divorced shortly after being married, her father never remarried (can’t even cook), and her mother is stuck in a teenage mentality married to a guy that is possibly not very responsible. Heath says that those references portray all divorcees in a poor light and makes it seem that marriage is the only way to happiness. All the characters in the books actually have a significant other- except Leah (who is a female werewolf who has been transformed by more than just shape by becoming the only female in the pack) who is extremely bitter and unhappy because she can’t be with the one she wants.

Heath tries to describe how Edward is like Adam, Bella is like Eve. Later, Bella is comparable to Christ (what?!). There is a very real current throughout the Twilight books about abstaining from premarital s*x (which is good) but Heath finds so much more that is wrong with the books, that that hardly matters and she doesn’t feel they are in line with the Gospel at all. (um, me either, btw)

The first portion of this book does show how the Twilight is and isn’t in line with Gospel teaching, sporadically. But about 25% of the way through, Heath goes off more on independence of women and that they do not need men (or to be married) to be happy. No where in the Gospel does it say that the way to happiness is through marriage. No, no it does not. And as she points out, Jesus was single. So was Paul. Paul even recommended remaining single but he also said (and I didn’t read this in Heath’s book) that if one could not control themselves, it is better to marry. Nothing wrong with being married.

I got the impression that divorce is okay (and I think that she is referring to if you aren’t happy, why stay type divorces not the serious problems, run for your life type of divorces), women should not be doted on and cared for in the lovey-dovey old fashioned way (you know, catching a woman when she faints, carrying her to the couch, opening doors for women, that’d be insinuating that a woman is weak- can’t have that- yes, that is sarcasm there). Women should not be traditional- and be okay with it.

The book does talk about some serious (very serious) problems that I can see teenagers internalizing such as starting into and staying in an abusive relationship. She compares Edward’s behavior to an abusive boyfriend/husband and Bella’s behavior to the girlfriend/wife that is afraid to leave. Also Bella is constantly trying to please Edward with no regard for her own well being.

However, the context of Edward and Bella’s relationship is different than say a relationship that is affected by alcohol or drugs. I do realize that many times Meyers in Twilight makes references to the feelings Bella and Edward (and the other vampires and werewolves) have are like an addiction. Heath sees Edward as simply over controlling and that he is verbally and physically abusive to Bella. I got that he was annoying…but not abusive.

I read the books and I read what Heath had to say and I personally think she’s digging too deep into. Of course, I suppose I could not be digging enough.

Another aspect that I had a problem with when reading the Twilight books and Heath points out is Bella’s extremely low self image. I do not see it quite the same as Heath does but I agree that it is easy for so many teens to grab hold of this story because they feel the same way. Media and culture have ingrained it in teens that they must be a certain size, height and have certain traits and material possessions to be worth much. I wish that were not the case, but it sadly is. Heath feels that the women in Twilight just make it that much more so for teens reading.

In the second half of the book, Heath really starts getting into the comparisons/contrasts of Scripture. What I really don’t understand is- Why? This is a vampire book. What place does it have in Christianity? Heath makes sure to explore the Mormon differences of theology as well since Meyers is a Mormon. I guess that Meyers used some Scripture in her book and that could be a reason that Heath decided to write the book. (I didn’t recall that while reading the series- my bad)

Heath’s book really wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. It is, in parts, a comparison/contrast of the Gospel (well, Scriptures) but a lot of it is psychological analysis. I haven’t looked yet but I am pretty sure that someone else could write a book about the series that is the opposite of Heath’s book.

If you want to know all the things that are wrong, or could even just remotely be a possibility of being wrong, with the Twilight series, this book will definitely spell it out for you. But it also takes it much farther than I think it was ever intended to go. The Twilight series is definitely not my favorite book series but I don’t think I would rank this one high up either. Without knowing overly much about Heath, she seems like a feminist that feels most women are oppressed and need to be let free- even if they seem content, they probably just don’t know they want out. She also seems to have a problem with the man being the head of the household… just sayin’.

If I would follow the advice of “whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there by any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things,” I’d do better. I’m pretty sure this book doesn’t fit those descriptions. It details way more the Twilight series did. It is like comparing a 1950s movie with a 2011 movie- leaves nothing to the imagination- and actual gives you no other option.

I received this book free from NetGalley on behalf of Westminster John Knox Press. All opinions expressed are my own.

July is NetGalley Month!

My readers know that I review books on this blog… I love books! I especially like ones that no one else has gotten to read yet Although, I like ones that millions have read as well!

July* has been declared NetGalley Month at Red House Books! How cool is that!

If you don’t know about NetGalley, check. it. out. Really…

I’ve reviewed a couple of books from them on this blog already. Grumble Hallelujah and My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife. I am reading a few more at the moment. You can see the titles on my Goodreads widget on the right.

*Hey, it’s still July 30th in my part of the world so I’m not totally late

Book Review: Grumble Hallelujah

 

Grumble Hallelujah: Learning to Love Life Even When It Lets You Down
by Caryn Dahlstrand Rivadeneira
Release: 09/01/2011
ISBN: 978-1414338019
Paperback, 272 pages
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
Retail: $14.99

If you had told Caryn Dahlstrand Rivadeneira while she was crying on the kitchen floor that she could find a way to praise God in this situation, she wouldn’t have believed you. In fact, she might have thrown something at you. Looking around at a life that was disappointingly different from what she’d dreamed, she couldn’t imagine honestly singing out a hallelujah. But then it occurred to her that, well, maybe she could manage to grumble one.

Have you been there? During life’s lowest moments, it is so tempting to blame ourselves, our circumstances, or God. But what would happen if we turned to God and managed to praise him instead, in whatever way we could? Might he show up and help us find the things in our lives that he made to be loved? Grumble Hallelujah offers humor, candid stories, and solid scriptural backing that will help you see clearly just how your life is meant to be lived—and loved.

If you are looking for a real inside of the mind book that doesn’t sugar coat what an author feels (how she blames God, cries over ‘spilt-milk’, takes a rather pessimistic view a large part of the time) then this book won’t disappoint. When I requested this book, I was looking for ways to be able to see the good in the bad. I was hoping for scriptures that lead back to God in all situations. Although this book does offer that, it first lets you in on how the author was feeling at the time when she was down and out. I was quite surprised, honestly.

The book is broken into 5 parts (Grumble Hallelujah, Wriggle Hallelujah, Prefer Your Own Hallelujah, Learn a New Hallelujah, Flash Your Hallelujah) and deals with things such as letting go of life that 'was supposed to be’, letting go of fear and control, letting go of expectations, letting go of jealousy and comparisons, letting go of the never-ending quest for ‘more’, letting go of judgment, letting go of your own life, and other ‘letting-gos’. The book begins with, in my opinion, a temper tantrum of a spoiled girl. The author is throwing a fit on her kitchen floor because her life (which sounds pretty good to me!) isn’t ‘perfect’ or what she envisioned it would be by that point in her life. From there, she shares the insights that she has gained from ‘being down’.

There are quite a few good points in this book. Many times I found myself nodding in agreement (or sometimes reevaluating what I had thought a passage in the Bible to mean, based on my own understanding) but many more I found myself thinking, ‘wow, she’s spoiled’. Someone asked if I would recommend this book…and I wasn’t sure. I’m still not sure as I write this far. There are great bits of advice in the book but personally, I’m not sure I can relate to much that the author goes through. I think that if the reader can get past what I’ve had a difficult time getting past (but I must have because I read the entire book and I did get good out of it), then I think it would be a good book.

Here are only a few of the positive things that I gleaned from the book:

• “God is a seeker and a restorer. That means he can take our losses, our hurts, and our missteps and restore them to blessings. He’s good like that.”
• ”The thing about God is that he’s here with us. In every place we are, at every place we need to go.”
• ”…believing God and having faith doesn’t mean you do dumb things. It doesn’t mean you close your eyes while riding a bike. It doesn’t mean you court danger for dangers sake. It doesn’t mean you shut down your senses- common and otherwise.”
• ”I think that he keeps us in those waiting or stuck places until we learn to look for him and notice him and what he’s done for us.”
• (On critics) “There’s another part I don’t love, though: the meanness. And even on (make that, especially on!) Christian sites, people get mean. Merciless. In responses to things I’ve written, I’ve been slammed by all sorts of ugly, awful, stinking, dirty types of discourse. I’ve been told I’m a bad mom, a bad wife, a bad Christian. A bad writer, a bad speller (which is true), and a wrong thinker. I’ve been told I’m selfish and stupid…While many of us writers have tough skins…it still hurts.” (her point with this bit was in regards to her response, which was often just as mean. See Romans 12:19)
• “But God is our Almighty Father- not our Almighty Butler. And his visions for our success and his definitions of prosperity and his idea of what giving us fish (not snakes) even is are not our ideas. They are better.”
• ”We can’t be selective about which promises we believe. If we believe one, we must believe them all. If we believe he won’t send world-destroying floods, we need to believe our plans will succeed in him…If we believe God sent his Son and is preparing an everlasting Kingdom, we need to believe that when we ask, we’ll receive; that when we seek, we’ll find; and that when we knock, the door will swing open, that our God will welcome us in off the stoop.”

There is more good to be found in this book, so yes, I think I would recommend it. We may not agree with all that the author writes (or how she writes it to get her point across) but if we pay attention then we can see God at work. Someone will benefit from this book even more than I have.

I received this Advanced Galley Book from Tyndale House Publishers via Net Galley.

Book Review: My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife

My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife:
A One-Year Experiment...and Its Surprising Results
by Sara Horn
Harvest House Publishers
Pub Date: 09/01/2011
Retail: $12.99
ISBN: 9780736939416
Genre: Christian, Home & Garden, Nonfiction, Parenting & Families, Religion & Spirituality

“Author Sara Horn always admired the Proverbs 31 wife, but when she became a busy writer and mother, she deemed this model to be dated and impossible. Or is it? Join Sara as she heads into a one-year domestic experiment and offers full access to see if this biblical model can be embraced by a modern woman—even one who can’t sew.

With humility and humor, Sara sets out to pursue the Proverbs 31 characteristics through immersing herself in all things domestic, but when her family's situation changes and she must return to a full-time job, she's forced to look at the Proverbs 31 woman with a whole new viewpoint. Through it all, she and readers discover:

• what it means to be a godly woman and a wife
• how investing in family and faith refines priorities as a spouse and a parent
• how mistakes are opportunities for growth

This thought-provoking, surprising, and entertaining personal account will inspire women to try their own experiments in living out God’s purpose for their lives.”

So that is what the publishers says about this book… and I agree!! This is a great book! When I started the book (at 2am, I might add) I was pretty sure that I was not going to like it. And it wasn’t because of the cover (I have been known to dis a book because of the cover and this one is a cute cover!). I have always- as long as I have known and understood just what a Proverbs 31 woman really is like- had a feeling that a woman like that is impossible to emulate.

It starts out with Sara at church with her family and the pastor is talking on the importance of the wife in the family. He outlines the Proverbs 31 woman. Sara digs her nails into her legs with the rebellious spirit that she has towards the “Proverbs 31” woman. She gets home and thinks about sermons given about the men in the family: short list compared to the Proverbs 31 list. I can totally relate!! The book goes through the mental war she has with herself about why she such issues with and has a difficult time relating to the Proverbs 31 woman. It says she’s always ‘admired’ but I’m not so sure that’s the word I would use I love the name she chooses for ‘her’: Martha 31 (a modern Martha Stewart meets Old Testament Proverbs 31 kind of thing).

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Sara’s climb to the top- her ambitions and desires- as well as her struggle to be more like the Proverbs 31 woman. She does say a lot during the book (over and over) that she feels that her quest is more of a fail than a success but really as you read the book, you should totally be able to see the growth that Sara has during this time. A lot happens in her life and she relates it all with humor and candidness. Reading the book, she seems ‘normal’. Not like some authors of Christian help books for women/mothers who appear to be fairly perfect (not meaning to demean those authors). She also points out that in our culture women often do not want to be the help-meet to their husbands, like they are a secondary thought. Woman want to have something more- success and possibly the attention and praise when having done a ‘job’ well-done.

The modern Proverbs 31 woman is totally attainable…and personally, I don’t think one would even need to know how to sew to qualify A fear of the Lord is the most important attribute for a Proverbs 31 woman. The rest is good and all but this is the most important. And an after thought on the writing in this book. If you are looking for one that outlines what to do to be a Proverbs 31 woman, you will be disappointed with the style in this book. It is more a life-application style. Sara tells her story and intertwines the verses from Proverbs 31 into her life. Then she lets us see how she applied it in her situation.

I received an Advanced Galley Book form from Harvest House Publishers via Net Galley. I wasn’t required to write a review and definitely not a positive one but this is a great book!