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Mein Kampf

Author: Adolf Hitler
Publisher: Jaico Publishing House
Category: Book

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Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars

17 reviews
Sales Rank: 500

Media: Paperback
Edition: 37th Jaico Impression 2007
Pages: 615
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.3 x 1

ISBN: 817224164X
Dewey Decimal Number: 943
EAN: 9788172241643
ASIN: 817224164X

Publication Date: November 21, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: BRAND NEW and IN STOCK - dispatched within 48 hours from the UK

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-10 of 17

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Fascinating Beyond Words August 22, 2007
29 out of 39 found this review helpful

History is enraging in the way it always tends to pander to current prejudice and contemporary political need. We are all so wise and good at this point in history and can pretend that we are far too well-educated and morally pure, that nothing so bad is going to be done in our name, on our watch. We are so frantic in our wish to be distanced from the sustained and systematic evils of history, that we condemn the guilty as geniuses, or more remarkably, fools. Those who cling to their denial would prefer that books like this should be banned, as they bear witness to not only Hitler's evil but the pan-European common-denominator, he aspired to tap into.

It is morally convenient to believe that Hitler invented the evil aims laid out in this book. Hitler did not invent racism or anti-Semitism, he merely exploited what was already there and was actually voted into power by those who shared those views - many still do.

Published in 1925 & 1926, the two parts of the book gave fair warning of his aims and his fanatical hatreds. Across the world, many read his words and had their own feelings and hatreds confirmed. These people ranged across every class in most societies, and definitely from top to the bottom of the British social strata. It must be noted that even having been aware of Hitler's promises and even in the knowledge of seeing him carry them out, the country was willing to look the other way. It was just total chance that Churchill became leader and not Halifax - our moral superiority is based on mere luck not natural goodness. Our jingoistic pride, a deluded vanity.

Hitler's ranting coalescence of the hatreds and prejudices still bears witness to the heart of darkness of humanity, which shows no sign of going away.

Let this book be read and stand as a warning of what still continues to inspire many people, beneath the veneer of our "civilization".

Once you have read Hitler's poisonous rantings, you are forever aware that the same raving appeal to the common denominator, can still be heard or read, in the words of those who likewise wish to make us the sponsors of the contemporary fantatic's road to historical immortality.

Knowing who said it all before, might guard us against such folly.

4 out of 5 stars

A hard but interesting read. July 18, 2007
20 out of 28 found this review helpful

Mein Kampf is difficult to read,but at the same time very interesting.I found when reading it that page after page would deal with - as you might imagine - very mundane political issues from early German history,then all of a sudden Herr Hitler would begin to speak of the present.One thing that struck me was the fact that Hitler was clearly a man of colossal inteligance,not the 'raging beast' we see so often in WW2 footage on the tv.

In this book Herr Hitler goes from talking about how he used to wake up at 05:30 every morning at his army barracks in Munich just to watch - and take great delight in watching - the mice in his room playing in the dim light,to talking about the Holy Roman Empire,to talking about the Jewish threat to Germany all withing a couple of paragraphs of each other.

He also says things you wouldn't expect him to - such as how much he admires the English,and that he considers England as one of the only European countries Germany can be allied to. . . .They never taught me that in school history class,but that's the point isn't it - if you want to know more about that man,and that time in history then you have to find out for yourself,first hand - and discard what my old bearded,anorak wearing marxist of a history teacher ever told you.Enjoy.

1 out of 5 stars

wrong... January 22, 2007
22 out of 93 found this review helpful

wrong, possums : it's Mein KampF.
This said, the book is boring, ve-ry bo-ring. It's quite difficult to believe that this nonsense is forbidden in most EU-countries. It should be compulsory reading for youngsters ! That way they can see with their own eyes what foolishness mr. H. has written. The book AND its contents have only some "curiosity" value. It should rate 0.25 stars.
By all means BUY it, it should make an interesting conversation piece...

4 out of 5 stars

Let history never see a book like this again. January 3, 2007
6 out of 27 found this review helpful

This book is not the one most people will not admit to reading let alone owning.It Is an interesting insight into one of the most evil minds recorded in history. His views are extreme yet his political understanding of the social impact of the difficulties with cultural intergration are astute. When this book was first published the establishment of the day did not pay attention and the rest as they say is history. This book in an essential read for those in the arena of social politics history and humanity.

5 out of 5 stars

A book of surprises and incomparably outlandish suggestions March 22, 2006
144 out of 168 found this review helpful

`My Struggle’ is a book that few people will want to read. This is because it was written by one of the most reviled men in history and because of the way it was written. The impression of Hitler from films and World War II books is simply a negative one: An evil war mongerer responsible for the deaths of millions. Reading his own book is intriguing and this is part of its relatively small appeal. In a similar way that classic books (e.g. Anna Karenina/Dead Souls) begin, after the first few pages you realise you are reading something created by an exceptional mind. However this book is not a beautiful story. This is not like a magazine article tackling a hard subject with little time which gives the astute reader the impression that he or she knows more about the subject than the writer. The first book `A Reckoning’ is partially a story of Hitler’s life, World War One and much of his theories and philosophy. You enter into a strange world of paragraph long sentences, repetition, constantly twisting and turning. Hitler has a go at politicians, policies, parasites e.t.c. and in a classic way is blind to the concept that his ideas might be as blinkered as those he attacks. He believes anything miserable, weak or cowardly must be eradicated, having no compassion or pity for anything that does not conform to his ideals. Hatred is a large part of this book. This book has more hatred in it than a quarter of a mile long oil tanker has oil. There is hatred for Jews, hatred against anyone who is not ulta-nationalistic or anyone not German. The author gives the impression that if the whole world were wiped out except for Germany this in itself would not be a bad thing. The reader might see from Hitler’s poverty, his misery, the huge bitterness and then a World War that this has formed something rather grotesque. It is intriguing however and there are some gems. His thoughts on history, propaganda, ideas about the state and nature are interesting but it’s not long before we are back to hatred of Marxism or an attack against incompetent politicians or greedy businesses or shopkeepers. Hitler’s solution is to have them shot. Very clear is the determination to use force rather than another means. I didn’t understand much of Mein Kampf, there is no attempt to explain anything clearly and you have to read and re-read sentences to get any impression of what exactly he is trying to say. Like a man prodding an angry dog on the other side of a fence, Mein Kampf draws you into some idea and then changes and swirls mid sentence and then modifies to another idea, all to irritate you and wear you out. I almost think Hitler sets out to confuse, as if to say I don’t really know the answer to all this and so I’ll muddy the waters as much as possible. Much of it is incomprehensible. This is not a book that sets out principles and builds them into a unifying theory. Hitler jumps from one idea to the next, there is little continuity and function is always narrowly beaten into second place by style. Mein Kampf does have a certain elegance and style that draws the reader in. Consistent with this book there are also tedious parts and sustained outbursts. The first book is hard going and the second `The National Socialist Movement’ you think will be even harder and true to form it’s not as theoretical or complicated as the first. The second book is less of a story than the first volume and I found it tedious. It shows you the near anarchy of groups struggling for power and describes marches and sinister fights in the beer halls. Here Hitler sets out his ideas for his party. Hitler’s National Socialism is an extremist workers party, a dictatorship with some distorted policies. This was a revolutionary party or perhaps terrorism on a large scale. This is a cold book, sarcastic, verbose, right on some things, wrong on others with a hefty dose of vileness. This book is an unimaginable creation and callous in the extreme. Symptomatic of the world we live in Mein Kamp offers a rare insight into the mind of a talented man who turns to bad things. This multi-sided book gives us a glimpse of why some things are but also leads you into the cul-de-sac of incorrect suppositions, his machinations going on and on exasperatingly. Hitler is religious, nationalistic, the fatherland is far more important than anyone else on Earth, but also strangely moralistic, family orientated, even faintly comical, dragged down into fine details, you won’t forget the huge impression of reading this book.

For:
Intriguing
Some truth in there

Against:
Vile racism, nationalism and extremism
Very poorly written
Too long for the number of ideas, leading to much repetition
Ideas that are wrong