Walter White, explosive labs, psychosis inducer, crime-multiplier, cash generator…
Whatever your take on methamphetamine, or crystal-meth (or ice for those familiar of its street name – word!) Ohler’s book gives the compelling account and fascinating insight into the drug’s murky beginnings – and the origin of the first major, legal, large-scale manufacture of said-substance by the Nazis.
No, that’s not a misprint. Hitler’s regime outlawed the previously legal narcotics such as cocaine and opiates in their many forms – which Germany had been the Nummer Ein global manufacture exporter and instead sanctioned the research and implementation of a new substance, one which could enhance the performance of soldiers and productivity of civilians alike. Pervitin was born – like the proverbial VW Beatle it was a drug ‘for the people’, to fuel the market, to fuel the war and possibly to keep the public from second guessing the regime – though this last point still polarises historians.
Regardless, Blitzed reads extremely well and covers many bases including the invasion of Poland by Germany as a staging ground for the new drug, the unlikely pairing and fairly one-sided bond of Thedor Morell a low-level physician to the Fuhrer and the conflicted opinions of Pervitin-addled medical professionals unsure of the longterm effects of the use/abuse of the substance by the army and in a wider sense, the German public.
I challenge anyone who finishes this surreal tale to watch historical footage of the Fuhrer’s rallies in the same light, without wondering if the megalomaniac was intoxicated with a mix of chemical confidence, his own words or a combination of the two.
Blitzed has wide appeal and will cater to history buffs, conspiracy lovers, Breaking Bad fans, hedonists to name a few. There are not an exhaustive volume of texts that can so skilfully weave fact as stranger and more compelling to digest than works of fiction.
Time to feed your inner speed-junkie and prepare yourself for a highly entertaining literary injection.
If you’re ready for your first fix you can click on the link below to pick up a copy from Amazon:
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