Overall, what do you think of Cradles of the Reich? (no spoilers in this thread, please)

Overall, what do you think of Cradles of the Reich? (no spoilers in this thread, please)

This is an entrancing story of 3 women, strangers to each other at the beginning of the narrative, caught up in an astoundingly ugly program instituted by Nazi Germany. Different situations bring the women together at a maternity home used as a “Aryan Race” breeding incubator, just one of a number of homes used by the Nazis for this purpose. Though this is a work of fiction, the horrific program actually existed, and the characters’ plights are believable and intriguing. The story moves along at a clip and kept me captivated. This novel is for anyone who likes thrillers, and especially for those interested in learning about a little know aspect of Nazi Germany.

I thought it was excellent. It's apparent that the author did extensive research to bring a little known part of the Nazi plans to light. I read a lot of WWII books and this subject was totally new to me. By using three women who had totally different beliefs, the reader got a good look at the differing beliefs among the women in Germany at this time.

Before reading Jennifer Coburn's new book Cradles of the Reich, I already was familiar with Nazi Germany's Lebensborn Society, breeding factories for the regime's horrific attempts to repopulate itself after trying to annihilate everyone who was not a "pure" German. Coburn realistically paints that era, the horrors that anyone who did not fit the Aryan standards, and the consequences of such instruments as this breeding program through this novel by focusing on three woman. Hilde, is a young woman who embraces and seeks to participate in the program. Irma, a middle-aged nurse, joins the staff after mistaking her fiancé's action to protect a Jewish woman as a romantic betrayal. And Gundi, who has been deemed to meet all the criteria of a perfect German, is a student who is pregnant with her Jewish lover's child. None of the choices these woman face are easy, but the connections they make and the relationships of trust that they must develop, demonstrate their courage and determine their ultimate fates. Coburn does an excellent job of developing these characters, although at times some of the other characters, such as Sister Dorothea, seem to appear without warning out of the background imbued with surprising, almost miraculous, powers. Overall, Cradles of the Reich is a book that educates as well as entertains.

I am so glad I had the opportunity to read this book. It was well written and the story was strong and intense. I like to read books I learn from and have read many from the WWII era. This came as a total surprise. I had no idea this program existed and was fascinated and disturbed by its existence. Definitely a worth while read.

I really enjoyed this book! I have read many books of this time period and Nazi Germany, but never heard of Lebensborn. Each character was so different and had differing attitudes towards the Nazis. Books like this always have myself asking the question "would I be brave enough to do what they did?".

The historical aspects of the novel were fascinating and awful. I enjoyed reading about the Lebensborn program and its various aspects, and I would like a nonfiction treatment of the whole program. I was disappointed with what seemed, to me, to be the characters’ predictability, and the end of the book seemed rushed and unfinished. That said, I would recommend it to anyone interested in the Nazis and for the book’s compelling issues. I’m very glad the book was written and that I read it.

I had never heard of the Lebensborn program, and I have read many historical fiction novels about the concentration camps in Poland and their atrocities as well real Nazi criminals in charge of the the elimination of the Jewish problem. I was surprised and interested to learn about this program. I actually found the author's notes at the end of the story more interesting than the characters she created who could have been participants in the program. Coburn tells a compelling story. There were a few loose threads at the end of this story. I gave it a 4 rating to indicate that i liked it, but I had reservations with that rating. I do not care for alternating chapters from the perspective of each character. I would have liked more thoughts of the consequences of each of the character's actions. However, I did appreciate the new information that I learned.

I love historical fiction and in particular World War II fiction. I'm always on the lookout for stories which approach this time period from a new angle and this novel definitely did that! Several years ago, I came across a non-fiction book about eugenics and it sent me down the proverbial 'rabbit hole' so I had a bit of knowledge about the Lebensborn Society which was one of the reasons I was thrilled to have received a copy of this book. I found the story compelling and I admit that I spent much of the book on the edge of my seat. The sense of menace and danger were ever-present. I found the characters fascinating and I found myself flying through the pages , holding my breath and hoping things would turn out okay for these women.

I had heard of this program but knew none of the facts. The main characters of the story provided faces to tell the story and reveal what happened at these breeding houses. I liked the book and didn't want to put it down. I already have friends who want to read it also.

A solid 4 star read! This was a terrifying program and a difficult subject to read about. It is also one we must never forget about it.

I love a good historical fiction and this was no exception. With all of the WWII books out the last few years, I thought I knew most subject matter. However, this was a program I was unfamiliar with and found it so repulsive. The story was believable and well told. Another reason Hitler was such a madman!

I'm probably in the minority here but while I though the premise was very interesting and it did make me look into the historical piece of this story; I felt that it was too much on the surface and the author could have gone much deeper with the characters. I didn't find myself interested in any of them. Gundi, who I thought would be the main character, (or was it supposed to be Hilde??) just seemed to glide in and out of the picture. We don't really get to hear her thoughts only sparingly.

I had never heard of the Lebensborn program before. Jennifer Coburn covers a lot of territory by writing about the stories of three different protagonists. I thought this book was well researched and presented an important piece of history in a quite readable and compelling way. I really enjoyed this book.

I found it fascinating; especially because I never heard of Lebensborn Society before. I enjoyed the three different perspectives of the main characters. I was a little disappointed in the ending. I do like books that leave you wondering about the character's fate(s), but this one really left me with no idea of their futures. I would've liked a little more information. As other reviewers stated...the ending felt rushed.
Maybe she's setting us up for a sequel???
Solid 4 stars!

I really enjoyed this book. The telling of the Lebensborn Society through 3 different women's eyes was very telling. I really like when a book about a male dominated theme is told from a woman's perspective. I would love a sequel.

I was already familiar with the Lebensborn Society and was pleased to see a novel dealing with the issues that arose from it. However, there was little character development and the writing was somewhat superficial. It just didn't meet my expectations.

I am glad I read Cradles of the Reich as it opened a door to a part of World War II/Nazi literature I was not familiar with…
The major and minor characters and forward moving plot kept my interest until the excellent ending….
However, I am not a big fan of the every other chapter or so format employed by the author Jennifer Cobden….I much prefer a straight forward narrative….to me, that took away from the simply pleasurable task of getting lost in a book…

I too was familiar with this practice, but only superficially. I “appreciated” (relatively speaking) the book because it put faces and voices to this horrific event, making it more likely to be read and palatable to the general public.
Again, so many people have been intrigued and glued to the television portrayal of the book “Handmaid’s Tale” that to remind people that this did, and can actually happen is a gruesome but necessary awakening.

I enjoyed this book because I have an avid interest in WWII and Hitler's Reich. For several years I have read fiction and nonfiction delving into the facets of Nazism but had never learned about the Lebensborn Society. The exposure of this practice was long overdue. Although the story was fiction, Coburn brought out the historical extent the Reich engaged in to advance the goal of creating a master Aryan race through the pregnancies of unmarried girls. Then later after not meeting their quotas, stealing babies from Poland and Norway. This practice has had a long term impact on thousands of people. I loved how the author presented opposing views of the three women living at the Lebensborn facility. The story was fast paced with a nail-biting conclusion.

Since I am drawn to historical fiction of WWII, I was curious about the Lebensborn Society. This concept was yet another horrific creation of the Reich to manipulate and deceive even "good" German citizens. Coburn presented a concise and insightful description of the program using three very different characters. The relentless pursuit of the pure Aryan crushed the individual spirit, made a mockery of motherhood and betrayed those caught up in the drama, either willingly or by force. A good read with an exciting conclusion.

I had heard of the Lebensborn Society but just superficially. I learned more from reading this book, which prompted me to research more about it, a truly horrible Nazi program (but weren't they all?). I enjoyed the book overall, but thought it ended fairly abruptly, as other reviewers mentioned. This left a somewhat negative feel for the book when I first finished, but since reading it was also a learning experience I feel it was a worthwhile read.

My favorite type of book is a historical fiction, especially one which is based upon an actual historical event. And, my favorite historical fiction novel is one which teaches me about a part of our history that I was previously unaware of. So, reading The Cradles of the Reich, was very satisfying to me because I was not familiar with the Lebensborn project created by the Nazi’s even though I graduated from college with a bachelor’s degree in History. That circumstance can be somewhat explained because I graduated in 1956 and, at that point, I think we were too close to the events of WWII to consider them “history” and therefore things like the Lebensborn project were not included in the lesson plans of public school teachers.
I want to clarify, however, what I meant about the book being satisfying to me. It was certainly not emotionally uplifting and I did not appreciate that the breeding program made a mockery of motherhood.

I was very interested in the subject. I had heard of this program, but wanted to learn more. I had a hard time getting into this book though. I wasn't crazy about the writing.

I felt that the book left a lot of loose ends. The characters were flatly developed.

The novel was so-so. The characters were "flat" as noted above. The plot development was simplistic and all three of the main characters could be said to fit a stereotype of what we, as 20th century women, would expect them to be. The plot was fairly predictable. As an example, Hilde was on a collision course to failure. Just her circumstances in the plot doomed her from the beginning. Gundi was destined to escape and help the resistance because of her love for Leo. Irma's story was a little more interesting and somewhat tragic when she mistakes a Jewish refugee in Eduard's kitchen as his mistress and that supposition changes the course of her life. I would recommend this book just because the title is intriguing, but the book does not follow through with the murmur of mystery in the title.

I knew of the breeding facilities in Nazi Germany, but this book allowed us an insight into the day to day operation and some of the personalities that were no doubt in the home. The emphasis on discipline for the state's needs, offset by the moral decay of the activities of the officers and resident "mother's in training" was enlightening. Overall, the book has stayed with me and would make an excellent Book Club read with so many opportunities for discussion.

Overall, it was a good book on a topic I knew little about. It's amazing how far we have come as women and the choices we can now make.

This was a very good book! I learned quite a bit I didn't know about this terrible program but I thought it left some loose ends. I wondered if the author had a sequel in mind and did this deliberately.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I'm not typically much of a historical fiction reader, but this sounded interesting & I'm glad I decided to read it. Like many people in the US, I feel like we covered WWII ad nauseum in my middle school & high school history classes. That's why I was surprised to find that I had never heard of the type of maternity homes for German woman featured in the book. The interesting historical basis as well as compelling characters held my attention throughout the story.

My high school years were the mid '70s. I don't feel like we covered WWII at all. What I learned was through my father who served in the Army during WWII. He didn't like to think or talk about the experience and I didn't know enough to have relevant questions to ask him. I am glad to be able to learn more about that era via historical fiction such as this.

I enjoyed the novel overall; I love historical fiction and WWII in particular. And this book’s topic - Lebensborn - was not one that has been written about very much. So it was enlightening to learn more about these homes and the German effort to breed pure Ayrans. On a critical note, I thought much of the plot was predictable and the characters were pat, not terribly well developed. The author might have been better off concentrating more on developing one of the characters.

I thought the book was well written and very well researched. However, I thought the topic was very unsettling.

Yes VERY unsettling!

This is one of those books that will stay with me for a very long time due to the cruel and unimaginable treatment these young girls endured. Having three different character perspectives throughout the book helped understand the choices (or lack of) these women made. The events and circumstances surrounding this time in history were horrific and many were too young or unable to grasp the magnitude of what was happening. The fear of the Nazi regime was palpable and not being able to trust anyone added to their desperation. As many have mentioned, I would have liked the characters more fully developed and the ending was abrupt. Maybe there is more to come?