“Pessimism is the only wisdom…” #20BOS26 Book 35

Books continue to lead to other books (my recent Kafka reading being a good example), but I’m also continually being influenced by online mentions and commenters here on the Ramblings. A case in point is a comment left by Grant at 1streadings Blog on my review of Herve le Tellier’s “The Name on the Wall“; he mentioned another good book which dealt with the issues of guilt and complicity with the Nazis, and I just had to send off for a copy. It’s “You Are the Fuhrer’s Unrequited Love” by Jean-Noel Orengo, translated from the French by David Watson, and it turned out to be compelling and utterly engrossing. Originally published in 2024, “Unrequited…” is billed as fiction, although it does read a little like narrative non-fiction (at least in places). The story it tells is of Albert Speer, Hitler’s pet architect and protege; responsible for many of the Reich’s huge building plans and for creating the setting for the Nuremberg Rallies, he was part of the dictator’s inner circle. Yet…