Philip W. Blood, "Birds of Prey: Hitler's Luftwaffe, Ordinary Soldiers, and the Holocaust in Poland" (Ibidem Press, 2021)
Birds of Prey: Hitler's Luftwaffe, Ordinary Soldiers, and the Holocaust in Poland\xa0(Ibidem Press, 2021) is a microhistory of the Nazi occupation of Bia\u0142owie\u017aa Forest, Poland\u2019s national park. The narrative stretches from G\xf6ring\u2019s palatial lifestyle to the common soldier on the ground killing Jews, partisans, and civilians. Based entirely on previously unpublished sources, the book is the synthesis of six areas of research: Hitler\u2019s\xa0Luftwaffe, the hunt and environmental history, military geography, Colonialism and Nazi\xa0Lebensraum, the Holocaust, and the war in the East. By weaving together a narrative about Hermann G\xf6ring, his inner circle, and ordinary soldiers, the book reveals the Nazi ambition to draw together East Prussia, the Bialystok region, and Ukraine into a common eastern frontier of the Greater German state, revealing how the\xa0Luftwaffe, the German hunt, and the state forestry were institutional perpetrators of\xa0Lebensraum\xa0and genocide. Up until now the\xa0Luftwaffe\xa0had not been identified in specific acts of genocide or placed at large scale killings of Jews, civilians, and partisans. This gap in the historical record had been facilitated by the destruction of the\xa0Luftwaffe\u2019s\xa0records in 1945. Through a forensic and painstaking process of piecing together scraps of evidence over two decades, and utilizing Geographical Information System software, Philip W. Blood managed to decipher previously obscure reports and expose patterns of Nazi atrocities.\nAJ Woodhams\xa0hosts the "War Books" podcast. You can subscribe on Apple\xa0here\xa0and on Spofity\xa0here. War Books in on\xa0YouTube\xa0and on\xa0Facebook.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices\nSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/genocide-studies