Toby Eckert

Basically, this book is the equivalent of writing about the positive aspects of the Third Reich. It tries to put it in the perspective of, "Hey, things weren't that bad." But is that a moral argument when people don't have the freedom to truly make their lives better or live them to their fullest potential? It's somewhat interesting in the sense it gives you a glimpse into the ordinary lives of East Germans. But no matter how much the author tries to whitewash things, you can't avoid the conclusion that things were very bleak. Economically, East Germany was better off than the rest of the Soviet Bloc. But that's hardly saying much. It was still a dismal economic failure. Moreover, it was significantly more oppresive politically than most of its fraternal states. Yet, the author elides the horrendous repression of the Stasi, giving only perfunctory attention to the tens of thousands of lives it destroyed or corrupted.