★★★★★ 5
Terrific!
While less well known than his later biographies of George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, this book stands equal to them. Rather than a biography of a single man this is the biography of a most extraordinary family and their impact on banking and the history of the twentieth century. This is a terrific book and one that I recommend without reservation. Chernow tells a very complex story in the tradition of a great novelist, without sacrificing any of the historical details that define the picture of a family whose story mirrors the triumphs and tragedies of the 20th century.
The book traces the history of the Warburg family from the 16th century to the 1990's, with the emphasis on the 20th century. The story is told through the biographies of many of its members, focusing on the brothers Aby, Max, Paul, Felix and Fritz, their sons and nephews. Individual chapters cover individuals, interwoven and progressing through the 20th century. There is the scholarly eldest brother, Aby, who exchanged his birthright for the promise of being provided all the books he desired (and created one of the world's greatest private libraries), the next eldest brother Max who autocratically ran the familie's Hamburg bank, the next brother Paul who made his mark in the US (providing the banking expertise behind his idea for the US Federal Reserve System), Felix who also made his mark in the US (both as a banker, but even more so as a philanthropist) and on to the youngest Fritz who served in both the Prussian and American Armies, and eventually fought to revive the Warburg position as preeminent Hamburg bankers. The book follows these brothers and their nephew Sigmund who made his mark in the US, in Great Britain (becoming Sir Sigmund) and in Europe after WWII. The book also discusses the sons of these brothers, their wives and other relatives. Fortunately, there are several pages of genealogy charts which help in keeping all the relationships between family member straight and many photographs that help flesh out the many stories that are discussed.
Were the book just about the history of the family members it would have been very good, but it is about much more. The book is about the turmoil of 20th century Germany, about how this family suffered and recovered. It is about family members who were loyal to their adopted homes in the US and Great Britain, but still, before the 1930's, had strong emotional ties to Germany. It tries to explain how some in the family still had warm feeling for Germany, in spite of what happened to them in the 1930's. It is about how Fritz left his comfortable life in the US to return to Germany to reestablish their stolen Hamburg bank, but also to serve as a bridge between Germany and the rest of the post-WWII world. It is about strong men with sons who often failed to live up to their high expectations. It is about loyalty, deceit, struggle, success and failure. It is a cautionary tail about the evolution of 20th century politics and war, as well as about banking. In short this is a terrific book.
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Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2012
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