The Young Hitler I Knew by August Kubizek Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Young Hitler I Knew
Book Review: Buy it
Summary: 5 Stars
I didn't think I would learn much of anything about Adolf Hitler through August's book, but I was greatly mistaken. While some try to discredit August, stating he was biased, put words in Hitler's mouth and so on, I found this book to ring true when compared against the accounts of others who were close to Hitler in later years. Quite a lot of the puzzle comes together via this book, and I believe you wind up getting to understand more about what made up the heart, mind, and attitudes of Adolf Hitler.
You'll read things that contradict what has been stated by others. Is August being truthful? I find his accounts more believeable and/or at least begin to doubt what others have stated. Here is one example amongst many: The doctor who attended to Hitler's mother was Jewish, but was well respected by everyone in Linz, including Hitler. His anti-Semitic feelings did not, as some claim, begin with his hatred for the doctor who alledgely failed to tend to his mother correctly.
Book Review: Portrait of a unique friend
Summary: 5 Stars
I would recommend this book to anyone who has studied the life of Adolf Hitler. It brings him to life as a real person better than any other biography of him I've read -- even though Kubizek's book covers only the years of their friendship as teenagers, and their meetings in the late 1930s when the talented musician August Kubizek was a minor provincial official, and Adolf Hitler -- once a frustrated architect and practically penniless -- was leading the Third Reich down a path of conquest that ended in massive defeat and his own suicide.
Despite the introduction by Hitler biographer Ian Kershaw, who does his best to poison the well and cast doubts on many things in the narrative, Kubizek's book rings true, all the way through. Kubizek freely admits a number of times that he cannot remember certain details about their lives together, and confesses his own ignorance about things political -- which fascinated his friend Hitler from a young age.
One gets the distinct impression that Adolf Hitler would have been a very difficult friend indeed, with his self-centered worldview, his demands on one's time, and his interminable monologues. But having said that, it is obvious from Kubizek's words that he loved Hitler as a friend, and truly valued that friendship.
Kubizek tells in detail about aspects of Hitler's life often glossed over by other biographers. He describes Hitler's deep and abiding love for his mother, his occasional, totally unselfish acts such as cleverly persuading Kubizek's father to allow his son to attend college to pursue the musical career he longed for -- even his extreme fondness for sweets such as Viennese pastry.
The book also gives, indirectly, a telling portrait of its author: A quiet, amiable young man, supremely talented in music, content to be his friend's audience of one on so many occasions simply because Hitler WAS his friend and needed someone to listen.
It's doubtful if a book quite like this one exists about any other historic leader. It's a splendid read.
Book Review: A 'must' for any who would delve into the roots of his personality.
Summary: 5 Stars
August Kubizek's THE YOUNG HITLER I KNEW is an extraordinary memoir by a man who actually met Hitler in 1904 while they were both competing for a space at the opera. Their mutual passion for music created a friendship, and a roommate situation - and lends a personal and unique eye to explaining Hitler's character at the time. Most biographies begin with Hitler's rise to power: THE YOUNG HITLER I KNEW is a 'must' for any who would delve into the roots of his personality.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Book Review: A Book Like No Other!
Summary: 5 Stars
To have two teenagers getting so excited about going to the opera that they'll wait in long lines, stand for the performance, and still go after a fatiguing day, may be hard for modern readers to imagine. This book takes you back to that time, to a childhood in Europe before TV and radio.
This book is absolutely fascinating. It's in the "read and re-read and re-read" category, and still controversial even today!
At the end of WWII in 1945, Kubizek must have been one of the very few people still alive who had known both the teenage Adolf Hitler AND Hitler's mother before she died. Kubizek writes about the funeral setting and arrangements, Hitler's reaction.
Though controversial, the dialog and reactions for the most part will "ring true" for students of Hitler and the NSDAP from other first-hand source material.
Kubizek tells of almost unbelievable living conditions in a packed, shared room with Hitler and a piano! He writes that he and Adolf once attempted to write an opera together, and that Hitler did play the piano (badly) and had had music lessons. He writes of time before Hitler became a vegetarian. He writes of several very early, pre-WWI, incidents involving Jews.
Kubizek credits Hitler, directly, for encouraging him to pursue his musical career.
After Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany, Kubizek's accounts of further meetings with him, years after being teenage roomates, makes absolutely gripping reading. One amusing sidelight is the clever way Kubizek managed to turn away pressure from various NSDAP officials during the Third Reich period.
Kubizek's is an eyewitness account like no other known. Once you start reading this book, you want more, more, more! (It's really a loss that many more English-speaking historians, researchers, and camera men didn't get to Kubizek before his death!)
To Kubizek's credit, the reader has to consider that, when he wrote these reminiscences, after WWII, he had nothing to gain whatsoever in giving a sympathetic portrayal of Hitler, yet he does anyway.
Book Review: interesting
Summary: 3 Stars
This book is interesting as a general look into the mind of Hitler as a young man. It is not a source of detail. It gives a bit about Hitler's early anti-Semitism, but as virtually all books which address anti-Semitism are utter nonsense, this is not much better- here just the impression of one young man's feelings by another, more honest than usual, but hardly a real exploration of Hitler's mind in this area.
Hitler as moralist, young, unformed--that is what we see.