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Title: Thunder at Twilight: Vienna 1913/1914 by Frederic Morton ISBN: 0-306-81021-2 Publisher: DaCapo Press Pub. Date: 24 April, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $18.50 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.67 (9 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A wonderful book
Comment: A college professor recommended this to me so I read it in about a day. It is very interesting how Morton weaves history into some sort of a novel that's very easy to read. Inspired by the death of his uncle in World War I, Morton writes about the history and the climax leading up to the very moment when the Crown Prince Francis Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were assassinated by a Serbian terrorist youth.
Morton explains the nasty relationship with the Hapsburg Empire (that includes Austria) and the lower Slavic nations and the growing animosity between them. This is a great book for history buffs. My only complaints are that there aren't any citations in the book and that the friendship between Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud don't seem to have anything to do with the story itself.
Rating: 4
Summary: This book is great, glad I got it; however...
Comment: Something is missing. The book was a fantastic read. I would have given it 5 stars and a "Bravo!" - but some things are not mentioned that are needed. I read, elsewhere, about the "blank check" from the Germans that encouraged the Austrians to start a war with the Serbs. This would lead to something bigger for the Germans, against the French. Also, my previous readings indicated that Tisza and the Hungarians were not interested in war and urged the Austrians to offer, at least, an ultimatum. The Austrians, then came up with the "ultimatum/non-ultimatum". The author gives the appearance that Germany was passive in the whole situation and did not want to get involved. No mention is made of the "blank check". The only mention Tisza gets is that Franz Ferdinand did not like him and that the Hungarians abused the Serbs within their land. Nothing was mentioned, in particular, of the Tri-Monarchy that Franz Ferdinand had thought-up. I feel that the author left out some important things.
Other than these points, I thought the book was a really good read to learn about some really sinister people running around Vienna before the outbreak of war. Great information was presented on Princip and, of course, the relationship between Franz Ferdinand and Franz Joesph.
I will read further for information about the above things not mentioned in this book. 4 3/4 stars.
Rating: 5
Summary: A cosmopolitan city.
Comment: A wonderful book written about the cosmopolitan city of Vienna before the outbreak of WWI. Morton's style of writing makes this an enjoyable read this is not dry history. In 1913 Vienna was host to men who would make an indelible impression on the 20th century. Just to name a few, Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin, Hitler, Tito, Freud, and the Hapsburg Royal family all within one square mile of each other. Morton gives a good portrayal of the lives of these men during their formative time spent in Vienna. He also gives a good account of the tension between Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand who wanted to reform the Austro-Hungarian Empire to include the room for nationalist aspirations of the Slavs, and Emperor Franz Joseph who wanted to maintain the status quo. I t makes one wonder how European history might have been different if Franz Ferdinand had not been assassinated and was given the chance to reform the Empire.
As a retired Army officer and political philosopher,I recommend this book to all who are interested in history of WWI or to those who want to learn more about the "gilded age" of Europe.
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Title: A Nervous Splendor: Vienna, 1888-1889 by Frederic Morton ISBN: 014005667X Publisher: Viking Press Pub. Date: October, 1980 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: World of Yesterday by Stefan Zweig ISBN: 0803252242 Publisher: Univ of Nebraska Pr Pub. Date: June, 1964 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Fin-De-Siecle Vienna : Politics and Culture by Carl E. Schorske ISBN: 0394744780 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 12 December, 1980 List Price(USD): $22.00 |
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Title: The Austrian Mind: An Intellectual and Social History 1848-1938 by William M. Johnston ISBN: 0520049551 Publisher: University of California Press Pub. Date: June, 1983 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: The Habsburg Monarchy, 1809-1918: A History of the Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary by Alan John Percivale Taylor ISBN: 0226791459 Publisher: University of Chicago Press Pub. Date: December, 1983 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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