Black Edelweiss: A Memoir of Combat and Conscience by a Soldier of the Waffen-SS

Black Edelweiss: A Memoir of Combat and Conscience by a Soldier of the Waffen-SS | Johann Voss | The conscience of the SS

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Black Edelweiss: A...

	Black Edelweiss: A Memoir of Combat and Conscience by a Soldier of the Waffen-SS Johann Voss The Aberjona Press, 2002 - 224 pages average customer review:based on 58 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Ever cried for a Nazi before?

Read this book and you just might.

No doubt we had to crush the Nazis, but this book makes you face that Hitler's war machine chewed up young, idealistic Germans along with all the allied'good guys.' The price of war is very high, even this good war, and the book makes this clear with sickening detail about the loss of idealism, innocence, and lives.

This book takes you back to the early days of the Hitler regime, when Germans were still arguing with each other about the merits of the Reich (they argued? what a surprise and they sound a lot like Americans today fighting with their family members who can't face Bush's fascism.)

Highly recommended. Prepare to be amazed, touched, horrified, saddened.

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The conscience of the SS

Black Edelweiss is a moving account of one soldier's experience as a member of the Waffen-SS. Coming from a relatively pleasant and priveleged upbringing, Voss recounts his youthful idealism, and his desire to serve his country. This, along with his admiration of the many soldiers he personally knew, compelled him to join the Waffen-SS. Serving mainly in Finland and Northwestern Russia, Voss claims to have had no first-hand experience of the Holocaust or other atrocities that are commonly attributed to the SS. In hindsight, he does admit to witnessing suspicious activities, but it was only after the war when he fully realized the horrific crimes committed by men who wore the same uniform as himself. His account confirms that many SS units were strictly elite combat units, and not involved in the extermination of civilians. Like many other former SS soldiers, Voss and his comrades felt that they were fighting to defend Europe from bolshevism. Taken at face value, I can certainly sympathize with this. Voss expresses his utter shock and abhorrence at the news of the Holocaust. He views this as completely antithetical to the values and honor he and his comrades represented as members of the elite SS. I've read at least a half-dozen German WWII memoirs and I would rank 'Black Edelweiss' in the top 3 along with 'Soldat' by Siegfried Knappe, and 'The Forgotten Soldier' by Guy Sajer(even with the controversy). This is a very personal account, imbued with the author's conscience and idealistic views. Thankfully, it does not get bogged down with too many tedious military details like some war memoirs tend to do. Voss is extremely eloquent and sincere and he exudes a sense of honor and idealism that I can't help but admire.

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Youthful Idealism Betrayed

Every country and every generation there is always that group of idealist young people who go charging forward to Save the World and to promote 'Socical Justice' and in the end learn the hard way the awful abomination they have actually served while leaving a path of destruction in their wake.

The author served in the SS but could just as easily been part of any radical leftist group from the sixties forward to today.
It begins with his idealist youth going forward to serve his country and ends with him in allied captivity learning just exactly what evil he and his fellow soldiers had really been fighting for.

A most insightful memoir I recomend to all young people with visions of great causes they wish to fight for.

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excellent reading

I realy enjoyed this book - it is thought provoking and gives insight to the feelings and thoughts of people who have tradionally been regarded as the enemy. The German soldiers were also human and went throught the same emotions and fears as any of the Allied soldiers.

Black Edelweiss

This book was a real eye opener for me, especially because my father was in the WAFFEN ss . I never asked my father too many questions about his actual experiences, I felt as if the author and my father had nearly the same background and demeanor. Very insightful and I felt that I lived vicariously through the author's experiences. Kudos!!

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