Pool, James. Hitler and His Secret Partners: Contributions, Loot and Rewards, 1933-1945. New York: Pocket Books, 1997. 415 pages.

James Pool has studied Hitler for 25 years; his previous book, "Who Financed Hitler: The Secret Funding of Hitler's Rise to Power, 1919-1933," is considered something of a classic. Pool's work is refreshing because he starts with a broad socioeconomic perspective, and blends this in with sociopsychological and cultural observations. Frequently historians skip the infrastructural reasons behind Hitler's power, and opt for a specific angle instead of the broad picture. The entire phenomenon of Nazi Germany then becomes subsumed under some variation of The Madman Theory.

Many top industrialists and financiers in Germany made huge returns on their investment in Hitler's agenda. The spoils of various invasions, as well as profits from slave labor and confiscation of Jewish properties, insured their enthusiastic support. Hitler himself was far from ascetic -- he lived in extravagant luxury, subsidized by blatant corruption. Good old greed, power, and desperation explain Nazi Germany better than ersatz theories about the German character. Examples: the desire for "lebensraum" was largely due to food production problems; Hitler invaded Austria because raw materials were needed to continue rearmament; and Russia was invaded because the German military machine was running out of oil. Pool never tries to excuse Germany, but he does offer a fresh look at the evidence.
ISBN 0-671-76081-5

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