He Was My Chief by Christa Schroeder

He Was My Chief by Christa Schroeder is the memoir of one of Adolf Hitler’s secretaries. It was hard to think of what rating to give this book. Her style of writing is very good, flows nicely. It was interesting to read about Hitler and how he was in private. But, she was a Nazi, showing xenophobia, racism, besides being self-centred. She knew what was done to other European countries even if she was not aware of the genocide happening in the death camps, which she might have suspected at least. At the same time this is an important historical account and her unapologetic style is crucial in understanding why she acted the way she did, so, with that in mind, I gave the book 5 stars.

This is not about the war or Nazi ideology. It’s about her life and her interactions with others, mainly with Hitler, as she travelled with him for long periods and stayed with him in the bunker. I was surprised to hear how nicely Hitler was treating his staff, especially the ladies, with respect and care. She talked about Hitler’s romantic relations and why he became a vegetarian after the suicide of his great love. He didn’t drink nor smoked and his idea of deterring people from smoking might have been novel at that time, but today many countries adopted a similar method.

I was fascinated to read about life in the bunker and all the quiescentness Hitler had. He seemed a bit unstable (maybe more than a bit). For example, when she disagreed with him publicly he ignored her for a few months. There are many more examples of puzzling stories like this in the book. The passage in which she talks about Britain and her hopes of uniting against Ukraine for its fertile lands sounded much like Putin and tankies propaganda. So, it’s short and reads fast, so I highly recommend it.

He Was My Chief by Christa Schroeder

Details about the picture: –
My rating: 5/5 Stars
Would I recommend it: yes
Published by: Frontline Books
Year it was published: 2022 (first published in 2012)
Format: Hardcover
Genre(s): Memoir
Pages: 240

About the author: Christa Schroeder was Hitler’s personal secretary for twelve years in total. She worked as his secretary until his suicide in April 1945, living at the Wolfsschanze near Rastenburg. Her memoir Er War Mein Chef was first published in 1985, a year after her death in Munich, aged 76.
Roger Moorhouse is an historian of the Third Reich. He is the author of the acclaimed Hitler’s Third Reich in 100 Objects and The Devil’s Alliance, and has been published in more than 20 languages. He is also a tour guide and visiting professor at Warsaw’s College of Europe.
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