The Last Division: A History of Berlin, 1945-1989, Library Edition

Rating:
Summary: A weak work, careless with facts, blandly written.
Review: It's been six months since I read this book and passed it on to others familiar with Berlin and its fascinating history, before and after the Cold War. All agree: this is a particularly weak work, blandly written, and, worst, careless with facts. One need only cite one blatant error, an error anyone at all acquainted with Berlin would never make: The name of the wide avenue that leads to the Brandenburg Gate, one of Europe's great boulevards, is "Strasse des 17. Juni," or "17th of June Street." This date commemorates the East German uprising of 1953, easily one of the most significant dates in Berlin's history. Ms. Tusa refers to this street as "17 July Street," and goes on to explain that on "17 July there were strikes all over the country..." With this date, and with this book, she was off by more than a month. And lest readers make the mistake of thinking this is a history of Berlin from WWII to 1989, as the subtitle states, be warned that it is really a portrayal of Berlin from WWII through the building of the Wall in 1961. The following decades are dismissed in about 40 breezy pages.