History Book Group: The Holocaust: A New History

Decorah Public Library staff are hosting four book discussions in November. The groups are open to the public and newcomers are encouraged to attend. Anyone interested should call the library at 382-3717 to learn more or to reserve a book. Email ktorresdal@decorahlibrary.org to be added to any of the five groups’ email distribution lists. Funds for multiple copy sets were generously provided by Friends of Decorah Public Library.  

The History Book Group will meet on the 2nd floor of the library Thurs. Nov. 21 at 3:00 p.m. to discuss Laurence Rees’ “The Holocaust: A New History.” Laurence Rees has spent 25 years meeting the survivors and perpetrators of the Third Reich and the Holocaust. In “The Holocaust: A New History,” he combines this testimony with the latest academic research to investigate how history’s greatest crime was possible. Rees argues that while hatred of the Jews was at the epicenter of Nazi thinking, we cannot fully understand the Holocaust without considering Nazi plans to kill millions of non-Jews as well. He also explains that there was no single overarching blueprint for the Holocaust, but rather a series of compounding escalations. Though Hitler was most responsible for what happened, the blame is widespread, and the effects are enduring.  

For more information, contact Tricia Crary (Friday Book Group) or Kristin Torresdal (Happy Hour, History, and Speculative Fiction Book Groups) at 563-382-3717.