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  • The Nazi and the Psychiatrist

  • Hermann Göring, Dr. Douglas M. Kelley, and a Fatal Meeting of Minds at the End of WWII
  • Written by: Jack El-Hai
  • Narrated by: Arthur Morey
  • Length: 8 hrs and 52 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (54 ratings)

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The Nazi and the Psychiatrist

Written by: Jack El-Hai
Narrated by: Arthur Morey
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Publisher's Summary

In 1945, after his capture at the end of the Second World War, Hermann Göring arrived at an American-run detention center in war-torn Luxembourg, accompanied by 16 suitcases and a red hatbox. The suitcases contained all manner of paraphernalia: medals, gems, two cigar cutters, silk underwear, a hot water bottle, and the equivalent of $100,000,000 in cash. Hidden in a coffee can, a set of brass vials housed glass capsules containing a clear liquid and a white precipitate: potassium cyanide. Joining Göring in the detention center were the elite of the captured Nazi regime - Grand Admiral Dönitz, armed forces commander Wilhelm Keitel and his deputy Alfred Jodl, the mentally unstable Robert Ley, the suicidal Hans Frank, the pornographic propagandist Julius Streicher - 52 senior Nazis in all, of whom the dominant figure was Göring.

To ensure that the villainous captives were fit for trial at Nuremberg, the US Army sent an ambitious army psychiatrist, Captain Douglas M. Kelley, to supervise their mental well-being during their detention. Kelley realized he was being offered the professional opportunity of a lifetime: to discover a distinguishing trait among these arch-criminals that would mark them as psychologically different from the rest of humanity. So began a remarkable relationship between Kelley and his captors, told here for the first time with unique access to Kelley’s long-hidden papers and medical records.

Kelley’s was a hazardous quest, dangerous because against all his expectations he began to appreciate and understand some of the Nazi captives, none more so than the former Reichsmarshall, Hermann Göring. Evil had its charms.

©2013 Jack El-Hai (P)2013 Blackstone Audio

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Extremely interesting, Nuremberg insights

While the story here highlighted the psychiatrist, there was loads of detail about the Nuremberg trials, so much do that I don’t feel I need to read another book about the trials. It is rather forward thinking that a psychiatrist was housed with the Nazis standing trial. No spoiler alerts here on what was learned about these vile humans…. you’ll have to listen for yourself. Well narrated.

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Very interesting

Very revealing book that kept me engaged through out it from beginning to the end

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Interesting story of how a psychiatrist affected

Beginning a little tedious, but well read. Enjoyed the book which provided a small amount of insight onto the war criminal mind, but it showed the damage that delving into such minds can cause. Felt sorry for Kelly's family.

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Very interesting

A great story put together in a very comprehensive, critical and analytical way.

Fascinating to hear, not only, about the personalities of the Nazi officers interviewed by Kelley for the Nuremberg trial, but also the life and aftermath of his life.

The narrator's performance is equally outstanding, holding my attention throughout the book.

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A different angle on the Nazi mindset.

A rare glimpse into the minds of some of the most notorious Nazis and the troubled Dr. who tried to crack the code of their psyche.

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  • VL
  • 2021-09-21

Interesting bit of histoy

After listening to the first chapter we thought this was in the horror genre. It is not. The book provides interesting insights into Nazi thinking, the history of psychology and the life and career of a psychologist post WWII.

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