Book review: An American Decade by Richard Aronowitz

Alex Skelton
Jul 20, 2017 · 1 min read

Set in the 1930s, An American Decade follows the life of Chistophe , a German immigrant to New York. Widowed at 30, Christophe leaves Germany to try to make his fortune as a singer in New York.

When he arrives in the US, Christophe starts his life as a lodger with two childhood friends, also musicians and it is through the husband that he discovers the activities of the Nazi party in the US. He is actively anti-Nazi and argues his case, even getting involved in protests against the Nazi party in New York. Christophe is a very complicated character who although initially easy to like hides a secret past and unwillingness to accept and put right the errors of his past until his wife forces him to ‘do the right thing’.

Aronowitz weaves the story of Christophe and his family with the sentiments of the time beautifully and has the confidence to allow the novel to end without the outcome that the reader is hoping for.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical novels, especially relating to the rise of the Nazi party in Germany and America.

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