Berlin 1936: Sixteen Days in August

A captivating account of the Nazi Olympics - told through the voices and stories of those who were there.

;WINNER OF THE TELEGRAPH SPORTS BOOK AWARD FOR GENERAL OUTSTANDING SPORTS WRITING ;;A captivating account of the Nazi Olympics - told through the voices and stories of those who were there.;;‘Compelling, suspenseful and beautifully done’ Anna Funder, author of STASILAND;;For sixteen days in the summer of 1936, the world’s attention turned to the German capital as it hosted the Olympic Games. ;Seen through the eyes of a cast of characters - Nazi leaders and foreign diplomats, athletes and journalists, nightclub owners and jazz musicians - Berlin 1936 plunges us into the high tension of this unfolding scene.;;Alongside the drama in the Olympic Stadium - from the triumph of Jesse Owens to the scandal when an American tourist breaks through the security and manages to kiss Hitler - Oliver Hilmes takes us behind the scenes and into the lives of ordinary Berliners- the woman with a dark secret who steps in front of a train, the transsexual waiting for the Gestapo’s knock on the door, and the Jewish boy hoping that Germany may lose in the sporting arena. ;;During the sporting events the dictatorship was partially put on hold; here then, is a last glimpse of the vibrant and diverse life in Berlin in the 1920s and 30s that the Nazis aimed to destroy.;;

LONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD 2018