Germany, characterized and convicted by her own people, in an anthology of all types of writing (poems, essays, speeches, songs, documents, short stories, excerpts from plays and novels) which illustrates social and political life in Germany from 1870 to the present. Introductory notes about the contributors, and an interlocking continuity give the factual background behind the material. The period first covered, The Iron Cross, spans the reign of the Kaiser, the infallible and inviolable despot, to and through the World War, the antimilitarism at the front, the unrest at home. Part II -- The Reluctant Republic, covers the chancellorship of Ebert, the terrorism and revolutionary rifts, inflation and chaos of the post war years...to Stresemann, the illusion of recovery, and after his death, depression and fear leading to Hitler and National Socialism. The Crooked Cross, final section, covers the Hitlerian years, the building of the war machine, the banning of books, the suppression of enlightenment, concentration camp and barbarism and the war -- and the present shadow of defeat. Famous names among the contributors include the Manns, Teller, eig, Feuehtwanger, Thyssen, Eva Lips, Anna Sighers, Leo Laniz, etc. Valuable coverage -- for reference too. A fresh slant on a vital subject.