What do you think?
Rate this book
Lanny Budd #3
Dragon's Teeth
Pulitzer Prize Winner: An American in Germany fights against the rising tide of Nazi terror in this monumental saga of twentieth-century world history.
In the wake of the 1929 stock market crash, Lanny Budd’s financial acumen and his marriage into great wealth enable him to continue the lifestyle he has always enjoyed. But the devastation the collapse has wrought on ordinary citizens has only strengthened Lanny’s socialist ideals—much to the chagrin of his heiress wife, Irma, a confirmed capitalist.
In Germany to visit relatives, Lanny encounters a disturbing atmosphere of hatred and jingoism. His concern over the growing popularity of the Nazi Party escalates when he meets Adolf Hitler, the group’s fanatical leader, and the members of his inner circle. But Lanny’s gravest fear is the threat a national socialist government poses to the German Jewish family of Hansi, the musician husband of Lanny’s sister, Bess—a threat that will impel the international art dealer to risk his wealth, his future, even his life in a courageous attempt to rescue his loved ones from a terrible fate.
Winner of the 1943 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Dragon’s Teeth brilliantly captures the nightmarish march toward the Second World War. An astonishing mix of history, adventure, and romance, the Lanny Budd Novels are a testament to the breathtaking scope of Upton Sinclair’s vision and his singular talents as a storyteller.
In the wake of the 1929 stock market crash, Lanny Budd’s financial acumen and his marriage into great wealth enable him to continue the lifestyle he has always enjoyed. But the devastation the collapse has wrought on ordinary citizens has only strengthened Lanny’s socialist ideals—much to the chagrin of his heiress wife, Irma, a confirmed capitalist.
In Germany to visit relatives, Lanny encounters a disturbing atmosphere of hatred and jingoism. His concern over the growing popularity of the Nazi Party escalates when he meets Adolf Hitler, the group’s fanatical leader, and the members of his inner circle. But Lanny’s gravest fear is the threat a national socialist government poses to the German Jewish family of Hansi, the musician husband of Lanny’s sister, Bess—a threat that will impel the international art dealer to risk his wealth, his future, even his life in a courageous attempt to rescue his loved ones from a terrible fate.
Winner of the 1943 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Dragon’s Teeth brilliantly captures the nightmarish march toward the Second World War. An astonishing mix of history, adventure, and romance, the Lanny Budd Novels are a testament to the breathtaking scope of Upton Sinclair’s vision and his singular talents as a storyteller.
837 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1942
1076 people are currently reading
3669 people want to read
About the author
Upton Sinclair
702 books1,177 followersUpton Beall Sinclair, Jr. was an American author who wrote close to one hundred books in many genres. He achieved popularity in the first half of the twentieth century, acquiring particular fame for his classic muckraking novel, The Jungle (1906). To gather information for the novel, Sinclair spent seven weeks undercover working in the meat packing plants of Chicago. These direct experiences exposed the horrific conditions in the U.S. meat packing industry, causing a public uproar that contributed in part to the passage a few months later of the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act. The Jungle has remained continuously in print since its initial publication. In 1919, he published The Brass Check, a muckraking exposé of American journalism that publicized the issue of yellow journalism and the limitations of the “free press” in the United States. Four years after the initial publication of The Brass Check, the first code of ethics for journalists was created. Time magazine called him "a man with every gift except humor and silence." In 1943, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
Sinclair also ran unsuccessfully for Congress as a Socialist, and was the Democratic Party nominee for Governor of California in 1934, though his highly progressive campaign was defeated.
Sinclair also ran unsuccessfully for Congress as a Socialist, and was the Democratic Party nominee for Governor of California in 1934, though his highly progressive campaign was defeated.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 131 reviews
September 21, 2021
This book is the third in a series of ten about Lanny Budd's life from 1913 to 1949. This book covers the period of 1928-1934: the rise of Nazi Germany and how it profoundly affects Lanny and his family.
I had a hard time initially connecting with this story because it starts out describing the playboy life of Lanny Budd and his ditsy and incredibly wealthy Irma Barnes and their families. Admittedly I did not read the first two volumes of World's End series (World's End where Lanny lives through WWI as a 13-17 year old and meets his best friends Rick Pomeroy-Nielson and Kurt Meissner at school in Dresden) or Between Two Worlds (where Lanny marries Irma and has family links to the wealthy Jewish family, the Robins), and perhaps I would have been less bored had I been up to speed on this backstory. In any case, Upton Sinclair does a decent job with catching up readers who, like myself, are just jumping in at the deep end. The pace of the story accelerates rather quickly when Hitler takes over the reins of government in Germany and things start to fall apart, and it becomes a real page-turner. It turns out that Lanny, despite his wealth and advantages, is a Socialist (Pink) at heart and is horrified by the violence and anti-Semitic rhetoric of the Nazis. His wife is more complacent (and apparently their differences will eventually lead to their divorce in the next book Wide is the Gate - this is hardly a spoiler because all through the book, Sinclair shows us the widening gap between old money conservatism and the egalitarian courage of Lanny).
Lanny is an interesting character because of his political leanings and the core of the story revolves around his efforts to save the Robin family members stuck in the beginnings of the Nazi regime. He is a sort of Zadig character in that he manages to meet Göring, Goebbels, as well as Hitler as the story moves forward.
The other uncomfortable, but interesting aspect to the story is the fact that the Robin's family's wealth comes primarily from arms dealing to both sides of nearly any conflict. Lanny's family are also arms dealers (this probably the rapprochement of the two families in the previous book) and also making bank with selling arms to the Nazis. Lanny is torn between defending his wealth and privilege as well as social standing while having his conscience burning due to the horrifying acts of barbarity in Germany. At one point, he is imprisoned and survives the big purge of 1934 when Röhm and the SA were wiped out by the SS.
I am on the fence as to whether this book deserves 4 stars or 5 stars. I think that the premise is ok (but perhaps redundant with two gun-running families) and despite a breathtaking end, the beginning was a bit slow. Nonetheless, I would highly recommend this book as it demonstrates how a highly evolved society such as Germany (and France parenthetically) can devolve into scenes of utmost depravity almost overnight because of retrograde, racist ideals.
As for its deserving of the 1943 Pulitzer, given that this was the middle of the war, there was not a lot of other choices other than a mediocre Steinbeck and another Rawlings book, so I won't argue with this particular prize.
My votable list of Pulitzer winners which I have read (only have the 40s, 50s, and 60s to finish!):
December 20, 2021
So surprised that this book won the Pulitzer Prize. I enjoy the series, and intend to read all of the books, but this book just did little for me. Yes we got some detailed writing about Nazi torture in 1933, yes we seemed to get some inside info on many of the movements leading figures, but other than this the book was flat. First 1/3 of the book was nothing more than recapping prior 2 books and updating characters a bit. I still cannot understand why Lanny married Irma since they are so mismatched and most of the book just continued to show this. And they have a child they never see, who is left with nannies/matrons until Irma needs to see her baby again. Lanny shows no paternal instincts. Lanny goes from an intriguing character to an irritating individual who care more about his Pink (Socialist) friends than he does his wife and family. Lanny is a total zero in terms of what he does, as he has made himself into an art dealer but has no idea as to the real world despite being part of that world. I want to continue this series to see if Lanny will grow up or will he continue to be our Socialist voice fo Upton Sinclair. I will say this for Sinclair, he has made Lanny into Forrest Gump before Gump was ever created. By that I mean, he greets, meets and his life intersects every major figure and event from the time he is 19. At Versailles, meets Mussolini, meets Hitler and Goring and Goebbels, and any other leading figure in the world. Yes, Sinclair uses this device to teach us world history since all of the events depicted in his books really happened, and Budd is just there to tell us about them and have his adventures as part of this. Not only that, I now understand the wealthy elite progressives in the world. Wealthy and well placed enough to believe a lot of this ideology, and to be able to promote it. To each their own, but I get it now as to how Millionaires and Billionaires can become socialists.
The other big drawback for me is that the last 1/3 of the book is a slow slog as Lanny tries to get a friend out of prison and what he must go through to do so. Realistic? Not sure. Dramatic? Yes. 100 pages too much? Yes. Again, I am enjoying this series less and less with each slow moving book and hope that things will pick up in future volumes. A Pulitzer Prize winner? Nope!
The other big drawback for me is that the last 1/3 of the book is a slow slog as Lanny tries to get a friend out of prison and what he must go through to do so. Realistic? Not sure. Dramatic? Yes. 100 pages too much? Yes. Again, I am enjoying this series less and less with each slow moving book and hope that things will pick up in future volumes. A Pulitzer Prize winner? Nope!
October 19, 2022
I remember becoming aware of Upton Sinclair in college. I believe it was his novel The Jungle that I heard about. I had a literature class I was considering in which I would read The Jungle, but then I chose a different class. So, years later The Dragon’s Teeth becomes my first encounter with this author. The Dragon’s Teeth is the third in a series of novels that center on the character Lanny Budd. Although it was the third novel in the series, The Dragon’s Teeth won the Pulitzer, so I started there. I do think there is value in reading the series in sequence, but it doesn’t feel absolutely necessary. Sinclair provides enough background on the various characters and events so that you never feel lost.
Upton Sinclair uses the novel to describe and comment upon the social and political events of his time. Dragon’s Teeth focuses on the aftermath of the stock market crash in the US and the rise of the Nazi’s in Germany during the early 30’s. One of novel’s strengths is that it provides an understanding of how the French, English, Americans and Germans viewed the rise of the Nazi’s, as if you were there in the early 30’s rather than knowing all we do today. It helped me to see how people living in this time might not foresee what was coming, and how difficult it can be to grasp the big picture when events are taking place all around you. Sinclair also describes the development of communism and socialism; he sees problems with capitalism that might be resolved by these other approaches and presents his views through Lanny Budd. Irma, Lanny’s wife and the source of the couple’s wealth, through inheritance, functions as the defender of capitalism and as a contrast to all of Lanny’s reasoning.
A struggle for me was that the story is told from the point of view of Lanny Budd, Irma and their families, who because of their wealth have never had to do without anything. Lanny dabbles in various political ideologies, but his life and his family’s lives are not dependent on his beliefs. Although Lanny has a good heart, I never found myself strongly attracted by his personality or principles and was even less attracted by Irma. Upton Sinclair is a good storyteller, but the novel is slow to get moving and once it does there are sections that still dragged for me. I don’t see myself reading more of the Lanny Budd novels or likely more of Upton Sinclair, although I admire what he attempted and accomplished.
Upton Sinclair uses the novel to describe and comment upon the social and political events of his time. Dragon’s Teeth focuses on the aftermath of the stock market crash in the US and the rise of the Nazi’s in Germany during the early 30’s. One of novel’s strengths is that it provides an understanding of how the French, English, Americans and Germans viewed the rise of the Nazi’s, as if you were there in the early 30’s rather than knowing all we do today. It helped me to see how people living in this time might not foresee what was coming, and how difficult it can be to grasp the big picture when events are taking place all around you. Sinclair also describes the development of communism and socialism; he sees problems with capitalism that might be resolved by these other approaches and presents his views through Lanny Budd. Irma, Lanny’s wife and the source of the couple’s wealth, through inheritance, functions as the defender of capitalism and as a contrast to all of Lanny’s reasoning.
A struggle for me was that the story is told from the point of view of Lanny Budd, Irma and their families, who because of their wealth have never had to do without anything. Lanny dabbles in various political ideologies, but his life and his family’s lives are not dependent on his beliefs. Although Lanny has a good heart, I never found myself strongly attracted by his personality or principles and was even less attracted by Irma. Upton Sinclair is a good storyteller, but the novel is slow to get moving and once it does there are sections that still dragged for me. I don’t see myself reading more of the Lanny Budd novels or likely more of Upton Sinclair, although I admire what he attempted and accomplished.
December 16, 2017
There are several reasons why I read this book: (1) it won a Pulitzer Prize; (2) it is set in a very dramatic time in world history; (3) it was written contemporaneously; (4) it was OUT OF PRINT (!!!) for YEARS; (5) I simply did not believe the negative reviews I saw on Goodreads and wanted to judge for myself. Well, I’m here to tell you that this is probably the best Nazi-era book that I have ever read. We could quibble about Sinclair’s 1930s gender perspective, but it is neither pervasive nor offensive—simply a sign of the times. What I found most powerful was the author’s ability to transport the reader to a place where no one can be trusted, every breath can be your last, and, for no good reason, you can be “disappeared” into a prison cell to await who-knows-what while listening to others who are in the process of finding out. I could feel the fear that must have pervaded Germany at this time, the insecurity from the top to the bottom of society. I would not have missed this for the world. In fact, I’ll probably read another Lanny Budd book soon. By the way, this is my first one—no problem starting here rather than reading about his youthful exploits.
October 23, 2016
This novel is the third in a series, and reading it without having read the other two first felt like being at a party where everyone has the same thing in common except you. Your neighbor’s nephew’s surprise-goodbye celebration. People are making toasts, ready to cry, and you’re not sure where the nephew is going or if you’re supposed to be happy or sad about it.
Upton Sinclair wrote 11 Lanny Budd novels during the 40s and early 50s, and they were all huge sellers at the time. Dragon’s Teeth won the Pulitzer in 1943, so I was expecting something entertaining, or at least readable, but I found it to be neither and finally abandoned the novel about 40% of the way through.
The action takes place during the depression and rise of Nazi Germany. Lanny is married to Irma Barnes, a wealthy heiress, and together they gallivant around Europe visiting with friends and family from the earlier novels. This book has many weaknesses, but the worst for me was an ironic, nudge-and-wink quality to the writing that I suspect was seen as clever at the time, but I found really annoying. Here are some examples.
or
Which brings up another issue with the novel. Lanny is a perfect hero who stands tall under the threat of Nazism and commits brave, selfless acts to fight against it. Irma, on the other hand, is depicted as silly and shallow. This might be due to sexism or maybe it's Sinclair’s views on wealth, but whatever the reason, he robbed her character of any dignity and humanity. As her creator, he owes her more.
But Irma is doesn’t affect the plot all that much and I'm probably oversensitive to how she's characterized. Instead, the novel centers on Lanny’s daring efforts to get a Jewish friend out Germany. I’ve read a lot of positive reviews of Dragon’s Teeth, saying that Sinclair is a “master of plot, character development and suspense.”
I didn't see it and found the book to be a shallow, and badly written, polemic.
Upton Sinclair wrote 11 Lanny Budd novels during the 40s and early 50s, and they were all huge sellers at the time. Dragon’s Teeth won the Pulitzer in 1943, so I was expecting something entertaining, or at least readable, but I found it to be neither and finally abandoned the novel about 40% of the way through.
The action takes place during the depression and rise of Nazi Germany. Lanny is married to Irma Barnes, a wealthy heiress, and together they gallivant around Europe visiting with friends and family from the earlier novels. This book has many weaknesses, but the worst for me was an ironic, nudge-and-wink quality to the writing that I suspect was seen as clever at the time, but I found really annoying. Here are some examples.
Irma said, “Your mother must come and help us.” So Lanny wrote at once, and that old war-mare said “Ha,ha!” and scented the battle afar off. It would have been a mortal affront to invite one mother-in-law and not the other, so Irma sent a cablegram to [Lanny’s mother] and that older and more experienced charger dropped all her plans and took the first steamer.
or
The Jewish money-lord tried to keep friendly with everybody, and he knew that many who would not ordinarily darken his door were willing to come when a celebrated American heiress was his guest. [Irma] knew that this Jewish family had risen in the world with the [her] help but so long as they showed a proper gratitude and didn’t develop a case of “swelled head” it was all right for the help to continue.
Which brings up another issue with the novel. Lanny is a perfect hero who stands tall under the threat of Nazism and commits brave, selfless acts to fight against it. Irma, on the other hand, is depicted as silly and shallow. This might be due to sexism or maybe it's Sinclair’s views on wealth, but whatever the reason, he robbed her character of any dignity and humanity. As her creator, he owes her more.
But Irma is doesn’t affect the plot all that much and I'm probably oversensitive to how she's characterized. Instead, the novel centers on Lanny’s daring efforts to get a Jewish friend out Germany. I’ve read a lot of positive reviews of Dragon’s Teeth, saying that Sinclair is a “master of plot, character development and suspense.”
I didn't see it and found the book to be a shallow, and badly written, polemic.
November 21, 2020
"Let's Make Deutschland Great Again!"
The rise of Hitler and the Third Reich, told in novel form. So many frightening parallels with what's going on in our own country today.
********
Four years later, things have gotten even more frightening. We have 70 million people here who are following a fraudster cult leader and it's scary as hell.
The rise of Hitler and the Third Reich, told in novel form. So many frightening parallels with what's going on in our own country today.
********
Four years later, things have gotten even more frightening. We have 70 million people here who are following a fraudster cult leader and it's scary as hell.
October 16, 2023
A truly excellent series!
Fer authors review passed events so well! You smile and bod. Funny and intelligent prose.
Wide range of topics--art, music, dance, politics, finance, history- Interesting details--Isadore Duncan for example.
*********************
*The Jungle 3 stars
the Lanny Budd Series:
1. World's End 4 stars
2.Between Two Worlds 4 stars
3.Dragon's Teeth 4 stars
4.Wide Is the Gate 3 stars
more follow
Fer authors review passed events so well! You smile and bod. Funny and intelligent prose.
Wide range of topics--art, music, dance, politics, finance, history- Interesting details--Isadore Duncan for example.
*********************
*The Jungle 3 stars
the Lanny Budd Series:
1. World's End 4 stars
2.Between Two Worlds 4 stars
3.Dragon's Teeth 4 stars
4.Wide Is the Gate 3 stars
more follow
November 21, 2020
This book stunned me. I chose to read it because I want to read all the Pulitzer Fiction award winners and this book was next in line.
Initially, I enjoyed the book for the quality of writing, yet I wondered what the book was actually about. Slowly, it's development began to move forward slowly revealing it's topic in much the way as landscape becomes more and more clear in the early hours of dawn, sharpening with the light from the rising sun as all becomes bathed in light.
Lanny Budd is a well-off American who has married a very rich American girl. They love one another dearly but politically are very different, which is important in the European world in which they live. Set in the time of the rise of National Socialism in Germany [read "Hitler'], we watch as Irma Budd, a devout capitalist, tries to support her husband's efforts to strengthen Socialism, but not go so far as Communism. In the book the two groups are referred to as Pink and Red, respectively. But as he watches, Lanny realizes the danger with which Hitler and his comrades threaten Germany. Moreover, he is greatly concerned about his sister's husband's family who are wealthy Jews in Germany. Get out, he tells them. Oh, no, they answer, we have strong friends in government. As Lanny watches the situation in Germany worsen, he begs them Get out now. But they rely on their friends in the government, unaware of the trap set and ready to spring on them.
But what struck me most, as I read this book, was the uncomfortable comparisons of the path "Hitlerites" took as they gained more and more power and the path the Tea Party in this country is taking. And how, in Germany, the ultimate power brokered to Hitler came from the wealthy businessmen and factory owners. How, in this country, the wealthy businessmen are pushing the same agendas in this country. To quote Lanny Budd, "They seek to create a nation of slaves." The Nazi's succeeded in changing Germany. Will the Tea Party succeed? The Germans never believed the Nazi changes could ever happen in a civilized nation. But it did. Will it happen here? It could. Because too many of us are so foolish as to believe it never could, and that is the only opening the politicians need. After all, it was the capitalists of Germany, and not the Socialists, who ultimately put Hitler in power.
Initially, I enjoyed the book for the quality of writing, yet I wondered what the book was actually about. Slowly, it's development began to move forward slowly revealing it's topic in much the way as landscape becomes more and more clear in the early hours of dawn, sharpening with the light from the rising sun as all becomes bathed in light.
Lanny Budd is a well-off American who has married a very rich American girl. They love one another dearly but politically are very different, which is important in the European world in which they live. Set in the time of the rise of National Socialism in Germany [read "Hitler'], we watch as Irma Budd, a devout capitalist, tries to support her husband's efforts to strengthen Socialism, but not go so far as Communism. In the book the two groups are referred to as Pink and Red, respectively. But as he watches, Lanny realizes the danger with which Hitler and his comrades threaten Germany. Moreover, he is greatly concerned about his sister's husband's family who are wealthy Jews in Germany. Get out, he tells them. Oh, no, they answer, we have strong friends in government. As Lanny watches the situation in Germany worsen, he begs them Get out now. But they rely on their friends in the government, unaware of the trap set and ready to spring on them.
But what struck me most, as I read this book, was the uncomfortable comparisons of the path "Hitlerites" took as they gained more and more power and the path the Tea Party in this country is taking. And how, in Germany, the ultimate power brokered to Hitler came from the wealthy businessmen and factory owners. How, in this country, the wealthy businessmen are pushing the same agendas in this country. To quote Lanny Budd, "They seek to create a nation of slaves." The Nazi's succeeded in changing Germany. Will the Tea Party succeed? The Germans never believed the Nazi changes could ever happen in a civilized nation. But it did. Will it happen here? It could. Because too many of us are so foolish as to believe it never could, and that is the only opening the politicians need. After all, it was the capitalists of Germany, and not the Socialists, who ultimately put Hitler in power.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 10, 2023
I was glad to finally get to this third in the series. I see that it has been just over 2 years since I read the last one. Sinclair gives enough in each installment to help remember what has gone on before, but I want to get to the rest without leaving so much time between them.
Lanny Budd, the main character and series name, is a person who witnesses history up close and personal. He is the son of Robbie Budd, of Budd Gun Works which does business in Connecticut. Here we are reminded that Lanny has been a close friend of the Robin family. They are Jews, living in Berlin. Johannes Robin is the head of the family. He grew up poor and made his way in life to become a very wealthy man with investments in many industries - including Budd Gun Works..
Many members have shelved this as WWII, but the series doesn't really get there yet. The time period is about the 5 years between the 1929 crash of Wall Street to about mid-1934. It is a time of political turmoil in Europe when not only the Fascists/Nazis were a political force, but there were also large groups of Communists outside Russia, Socialists, Monarchists and more. The book touches on these - Lanny is a Socialist and has an uncle who is a Communist. But Hitler is on the rise and the book deals more with Hitler gaining power in Germany.
I like how Sinclair writes. I like his characterizations. There is not a huge amount of plot but later in the book it feels somewhat thrillerish. With all that Sinclair writes about Hitler and his cronies, it's a wonder that, at the end of the war, so many seemed clueless about the concentration camps and what went on there. Dragon's Teeth won the Pulitzer in 1943. That may be more due to the subject matter in the middle of the war. For me, this was a good 4-stars.
Lanny Budd, the main character and series name, is a person who witnesses history up close and personal. He is the son of Robbie Budd, of Budd Gun Works which does business in Connecticut. Here we are reminded that Lanny has been a close friend of the Robin family. They are Jews, living in Berlin. Johannes Robin is the head of the family. He grew up poor and made his way in life to become a very wealthy man with investments in many industries - including Budd Gun Works..
Many members have shelved this as WWII, but the series doesn't really get there yet. The time period is about the 5 years between the 1929 crash of Wall Street to about mid-1934. It is a time of political turmoil in Europe when not only the Fascists/Nazis were a political force, but there were also large groups of Communists outside Russia, Socialists, Monarchists and more. The book touches on these - Lanny is a Socialist and has an uncle who is a Communist. But Hitler is on the rise and the book deals more with Hitler gaining power in Germany.
I like how Sinclair writes. I like his characterizations. There is not a huge amount of plot but later in the book it feels somewhat thrillerish. With all that Sinclair writes about Hitler and his cronies, it's a wonder that, at the end of the war, so many seemed clueless about the concentration camps and what went on there. Dragon's Teeth won the Pulitzer in 1943. That may be more due to the subject matter in the middle of the war. For me, this was a good 4-stars.
May 27, 2018
Haunting to read this book in 2018, as it mirrors some of today’s chaos in the world and in our political system. Interesting to read the many points of view of a troubled world, post WW I. Characters interesting and at times maddening. Example Lanny’s wife who is so ultra privileged and prejudiced that it hurts. Read this if you are historically interested but it’s also a cautionary tale.
January 27, 2016
Dragon’s Teeth is the third in the Pulitzer-winning Lanny Budd series. Set in 1942—the present, at the time it was written—it provides the reader with a fascinating, well-informed, hyper-literate view of Europe during the years before and during Hitler’s ascent to power. While it requires a fair amount of prior knowledge in order for the reader to keep up with the story, history lovers, political philosophers, and especially those fascinated by the period in question will find it riveting. Thank you Open Road Integrated Media and Net Galley for allowing me a DRC. This title is available for purchase digitally now.
Sinclair, himself a socialist of the Utopian variety, shows us the ideas of the “reds and pinks” that were plentiful and active—yet in the end, not active enough to prevent a Fascist takeover—during this period. Budd is the heir to a munitions-maker’s fortune, and so his is the life of the idle rich. He amuses himself by hosting salons, popular at the time, which were group discussions regarding alternative political ideas. His wife Irma is heir to an even greater fortune, and is uncomfortable hosting these odd people that speak of redistributing wealth, but in time she relaxes, understanding that this is just one of Lanny’s hobbies and is unlikely to ever affect her personal comfort level. And indeed, Lanny is never going to sully his hands by taking to the streets with working class militants; in fact, apart from buying and reselling artwork, he’s never going to even hold down a job, reasoning that it would be wrong of him to take a job he does not need when someone else really does need it. He is amused and comfortable in his role as armchair socialist and angel financier to a leftwing newspaper. Yet the idea of actually taking power…hmmm.
“It seemed to have begun with the Russian Revolution, which had been such an impolite affair.”
Nobody writes setting like Sinclair. The story begins in Italy following the First World War; Mussolini has risen to power, and we can almost hear the hard heels striking the cobblestones. Budd is somewhat concerned for Hansi, his brother-in-law who is Jewish, but he also believes that money talks, and any unpleasantness can probably be squared away with a donation here and a greased palm there. As long as the seas are safe, the family considers simply waiting out all the unpleasantness on the family yacht, hoping that things will be settled down by the time they want to dock somewhere.
Hitler is out and agitating, but no one really thinks he will take over the world; if he were going to do that, he surely wouldn’t stand in the streets and scream about it, now would he? And we feel, through Lanny and his family, the stark startled horror when his power increases and his Storm Troopers become an official government organization rather than simply a pack of street thugs. At the same time, we also experience his and others’ perplexity at the name chosen by the NSDAP, because it invokes the name of Socialism for a system that is actually far-flung from it, and it calls out to the working class even as it pounds their unions to dust and sends their leaders to concentration camps.
While the working class of Europe starves or stands on line at a soup kitchen, the Budd family has the traditional six meals daily; when they are not at home, they do the charitable thing, and instruct the servants to find some “worthy poor” to consume the unused meals. Well…not in the house, of course. Somewhere else.
At times, the tone is satirical, and in a few places made me laugh out loud, mostly in the beginning. Later the tone changes and is sharper, angrier. I found it deeply satisfying.
Particularly fascinating is the statement that “He who could get and hold the radio became God.” In one form or another, this has been true since the radio was introduced into first-world homes nearly 100 years ago. Major media sources had the monopoly on information, apart from the printed press. The radio, then television…only recently have ordinary people had the means to record and disseminate information on the phone they carry with them everywhere. And it’s interesting to see the changes that result.
Perhaps your thoughts will travel in different directions than mine did in reading this interesting nugget, but it is bound to make you think. If you are looking for some escapist material to take to the beach or curl up with by the fire, this isn’t it. This is fuel for the brain, fierce material that came from a time when all of Europe had to decide which side they were on.
For those that love history, literary fiction, or political science—or all three—highly recommended!
Sinclair, himself a socialist of the Utopian variety, shows us the ideas of the “reds and pinks” that were plentiful and active—yet in the end, not active enough to prevent a Fascist takeover—during this period. Budd is the heir to a munitions-maker’s fortune, and so his is the life of the idle rich. He amuses himself by hosting salons, popular at the time, which were group discussions regarding alternative political ideas. His wife Irma is heir to an even greater fortune, and is uncomfortable hosting these odd people that speak of redistributing wealth, but in time she relaxes, understanding that this is just one of Lanny’s hobbies and is unlikely to ever affect her personal comfort level. And indeed, Lanny is never going to sully his hands by taking to the streets with working class militants; in fact, apart from buying and reselling artwork, he’s never going to even hold down a job, reasoning that it would be wrong of him to take a job he does not need when someone else really does need it. He is amused and comfortable in his role as armchair socialist and angel financier to a leftwing newspaper. Yet the idea of actually taking power…hmmm.
“It seemed to have begun with the Russian Revolution, which had been such an impolite affair.”
Nobody writes setting like Sinclair. The story begins in Italy following the First World War; Mussolini has risen to power, and we can almost hear the hard heels striking the cobblestones. Budd is somewhat concerned for Hansi, his brother-in-law who is Jewish, but he also believes that money talks, and any unpleasantness can probably be squared away with a donation here and a greased palm there. As long as the seas are safe, the family considers simply waiting out all the unpleasantness on the family yacht, hoping that things will be settled down by the time they want to dock somewhere.
Hitler is out and agitating, but no one really thinks he will take over the world; if he were going to do that, he surely wouldn’t stand in the streets and scream about it, now would he? And we feel, through Lanny and his family, the stark startled horror when his power increases and his Storm Troopers become an official government organization rather than simply a pack of street thugs. At the same time, we also experience his and others’ perplexity at the name chosen by the NSDAP, because it invokes the name of Socialism for a system that is actually far-flung from it, and it calls out to the working class even as it pounds their unions to dust and sends their leaders to concentration camps.
While the working class of Europe starves or stands on line at a soup kitchen, the Budd family has the traditional six meals daily; when they are not at home, they do the charitable thing, and instruct the servants to find some “worthy poor” to consume the unused meals. Well…not in the house, of course. Somewhere else.
At times, the tone is satirical, and in a few places made me laugh out loud, mostly in the beginning. Later the tone changes and is sharper, angrier. I found it deeply satisfying.
Particularly fascinating is the statement that “He who could get and hold the radio became God.” In one form or another, this has been true since the radio was introduced into first-world homes nearly 100 years ago. Major media sources had the monopoly on information, apart from the printed press. The radio, then television…only recently have ordinary people had the means to record and disseminate information on the phone they carry with them everywhere. And it’s interesting to see the changes that result.
Perhaps your thoughts will travel in different directions than mine did in reading this interesting nugget, but it is bound to make you think. If you are looking for some escapist material to take to the beach or curl up with by the fire, this isn’t it. This is fuel for the brain, fierce material that came from a time when all of Europe had to decide which side they were on.
For those that love history, literary fiction, or political science—or all three—highly recommended!
June 18, 2018
I'm nearing the end of this Pulitzer challenge, and this book (along with the not-at-all famous The Reivers) makes me think there's a category I'm missing in my spreadsheet. I'll call it "Oops! We didn't give this author a Pulitzer when he/she wrote something that turned out to be canon?!?! Let's just give them one for whatever they write next."
So yeah. Maybe The Jungle should have won?
But it didn't. So then it became 1943, and they were scrambling. "Did Upton Sinclair publish anything this year?"
"Well, yes, but..."
"HE WINS!"
That has to be how this one won.
So yeah. Maybe The Jungle should have won?
But it didn't. So then it became 1943, and they were scrambling. "Did Upton Sinclair publish anything this year?"
"Well, yes, but..."
"HE WINS!"
That has to be how this one won.
Read
May 2, 2015The 11 books in the Lanny Budd series are perhaps the best, and easiest, study of world history (especially European)from WWI to the beginnings of the Cold War told in an engaging way with a charming protagonist. I am reading them again for the 4th or 5th time. Hard to find (it took me years to acquire all of them regardless of condition) but so worth it. Try your library or used books sites.
April 16, 2025
Reason read: Pulitzer winner 1943, TIOLI
An American in Germany fights against the Nazi Terror. A "saga of the 20th century world history". There really is nothing new under the sun. Reading this is like reading something than could be occuring now. Racism is one of the themes so that is not a new topic. It is promoting "pink" or socialism and opposed to jingoism (extreme patriotism, for of aggression". "...loud voices--economic determinism. The nearer the country to crisis the more noise its intellectuals made." It was an interesting book, I guess a part of a series. I won't read further. I think it was a bit long and definitely a promotion of socialism over capitalism. The author's bias was obvious.
An American in Germany fights against the Nazi Terror. A "saga of the 20th century world history". There really is nothing new under the sun. Reading this is like reading something than could be occuring now. Racism is one of the themes so that is not a new topic. It is promoting "pink" or socialism and opposed to jingoism (extreme patriotism, for of aggression". "...loud voices--economic determinism. The nearer the country to crisis the more noise its intellectuals made." It was an interesting book, I guess a part of a series. I won't read further. I think it was a bit long and definitely a promotion of socialism over capitalism. The author's bias was obvious.
July 20, 2025
This is a book almost entirely about the struggle of a Jewish family to leave Germany before the beginning of World War II as the Nazi persecution of the Jewish population begins. Our hero Lanny plays a major role in obtaining the release of this family and includes a good deal of Suspense and gruesome descriptions. At the conclusion of the book, Lanny is in his mid 30s. He continues to have a series of in person connections with significant historic people, including the Nazi leadership. He has the benefit of having his experience and his lines created by a talented author. Believability is always an issue in historic novels. Lanny has a busy and event filled life.
September 7, 2024
I found this Pulitzer Prize winning novel to be far too long, far too detailed and far too preachy. In the first half of the novel, we are treated to endless lectures about various new social movements and economic systems. In the later half, the threat of the rising Nazi party under Hitler shifts from a conversational topic of criticism to a personal crisis as the protagonist’s Jewish German brother-in-law’s family is targeted. I suspect that the theme of this book may have been more daring and prophetic when it was written than it feels today. And that may have won it the Pulitzer.
July 9, 2025
In the 1930s, the rich were far more worried about Communists taking power. Communists wanted to seize the fortunes of the rich factoryowners and give it to the workers, as well as take away the factories and nationalize them. So the rich funded fascist groups to take out the communists.
It didn’t start with the oppression of the Jews. It started with the Reds.
Dragon’s Teeth is the story of Lanny Budd, son of a munitions manufacturer, and his wife, Irma, wealthy daughter of another well-to-do family. They navigate High Society in Europe and the United States in the immediate wake of the Great Depression. Irma is a socialite, born and raised into the upper classes whose only purpose is to live off the dividends of her parent’s business empire. She spends her money entertaining other members of her social class. Lanny is a Socialist, a Pink. He knows where his money came from and that he has it easy while the rest of the planet suffers. He’s trying to do something about it, attempting to use his station for good, but no matter what he does he can’t seem to make a difference.
Most of the book is about rich people doing rich people things. Going on cruises in their private yacht. Making deals with other rich people. Entertaining other rich people. Navigating high society. So many useless rich people who have nothing better to do with their time. Irma is especially irritating. She knows nothing, understands nothing, yet it’s not her fault because her education focused on manners and social etiquette. She was born and raised to be part of Society, not to understand history or social issues.
At least Lanny is aware he is part of the problem and he is trying to do something about it by supporting socialist groups who want to tell the workers things could be better if they unite to make demands on their employers. Still, he is a moderate and wants to understand all sides. He is not alone; most people in his circles are intellectuals, and they can only stand back and watch as the Nazis give fiery speeches and stir the masses to action with lies and propaganda. People like Lanny, who value facts and want the people to understand these facts, fall behind.
Thus the Left always loses.
Lanny recognizes things are not the same now as they were when he was younger. By the 1930s, the German republic has had over a decade, and yet millions are unemployed and few can meet their basic needs. Of course the German people turn to a strongman because the alternative is status quo:
Dragon’s Teeth was published in 1943, so Sinclair has something to say about the rise of Nazism, how a good chunk of the country was swayed. All the Nazis had to do was repeat that foreigners and Jews were the cause of the country’s woes, and they got votes. Not enough votes to make a difference in parliament, but enough to make them a force to be dealt with.
The Nazis only received about a third of the seats in parliament at their height, and nobody liked working with them, so they made few friends. Still, everyone assumed once Hitler became part of the machinery of government that he would mellow out and work with others. Such had been the pattern before—every politician prior to him had abandoned his radical ideals when it came time to get anything done.
Instead, Hitler went after the Communists with physical force, and nobody stopped him because rich people in charge didn’t like Communists or Socialists. As far as businessmen and High Society were concerned, the Nazis were doing them a favor, protecting their wealth from an uprising of the masses who wanted to take away their money, so the rich supported Hitler.
Politics catered to the interests of the elites. Instead of dealing with the social consequences of Capitalism and relieving the poverty caused by a global depression, the rich chose to fund fascists.
Seeing the rise of Nazism from this point of view makes the whole thing seem like mere background noise. Movies and documentaries make it look extraordinary, but it wasn’t, and knowing the rich elites allowed it to happen because they benefited from it makes it all the more infuriating.
_____
The type of person Hitler was should be familiar to all of us by now.
When people lose faith in their elected institutions, they will fall for a strongman. When the strongman fails to alleviate their suffering, either the guillotines will come out or the nations of the planet will unite to shut this guy up.
Isn’t that the goal? Shut the fuck up and let us live our lives.
But no, the people in power want to use the labor of the population for their own purposes. Everything else is an elaborate scheme to justify this.
_____
Dragon’s Teeth is a phenomenally boring read in the beginning. One has to trudge through page after page of rich people doing rich people things and living happy lives through the Great Depression before one gets to anything interesting. At the 1/3 mark, when the Nazis start to assert their dominance, the story finally gets moving. Lanny and Irma go deep into Nazi territory to find out what happened to relatives of theirs, arrested and detained for being Jews.
The “action” of the book amounts to drawing-room drama. Rich people navigating Nazi society and talking to important figures within the regime. There is a twist in book 5 which I did not see coming. Irma speaking to Lanny:
After everything she has seen, Irma agrees with Hitler. Though her relatives are good people, she thinks the Jews, as a race, deserve what Hitler is doing to them. Maybe they deserve to be rounded up and detained for the good of the country because they, as a race, are angry at their lot and are seeking revenge and have no loyalty to any country therefore they have a vested interest in overthrowing people like her. People who did nothing to earn their inherited wealth.
In the 1930s, antisemitism was logical.
Lanny has done his reading and his in-person research. He sees that the world’s woes are caused by Capitalism upsetting the social order and that nobody has offered a remedy for this, so of course people are fighting back. Irma does not see a wider picture, only whatever affects her as a social class, and it seems perfectly logical that Jews are behind all the uprisings around Europe because they are bitter as a race and have every reason to despise those who have more than they do. This deflects the blame for the current social uprisings from her to someone else. Irma did not do a thing to earn her wealth, but she still considers it hers, and wants to guard it against anyone who wants to take it away from her.
This is a hard truth to swallow, that hatred for the other had logic backing it. Despite being married to a socialist, this rich woman has heard nothing her husband has said. Even she cannot be convinced, so what hope is there to convince anyone else that the foreigner is not the cause of the country’s woes? That maybe spending money on staff and catering to entertain politicians and other rich people does not stimulate the economy and keep money circulating?
Rescuing his relatives means helping the Nazis. Lanny should be giving resources to the people who are trying to resist the Nazis, and he hates what he must do. How is a young Socialist supposed to kiss up to fascists for the sake of his family? I’m pleased to report that Lanny does leave the drawing room eventually and take action to rescue his relatives from a concentration camp. The payoff is bittersweet.
While too long for its own good, and dwelling far too long on rich-people-problems, Dragon’s Teeth is a compelling work of historical fiction. It’s one of the few to portray Adolf Hitler not as a larger-than-life figure of history, or some genius hellbent on world domination, or even as a madman trying to destroy the planet, but as a kook ranting about conspiracy theory and throwing wild tantrums when he doesn’t get his way.
Nobody took him seriously in the 1930s. We should be on the lookout for people like this today.
It didn’t start with the oppression of the Jews. It started with the Reds.
Dragon’s Teeth is the story of Lanny Budd, son of a munitions manufacturer, and his wife, Irma, wealthy daughter of another well-to-do family. They navigate High Society in Europe and the United States in the immediate wake of the Great Depression. Irma is a socialite, born and raised into the upper classes whose only purpose is to live off the dividends of her parent’s business empire. She spends her money entertaining other members of her social class. Lanny is a Socialist, a Pink. He knows where his money came from and that he has it easy while the rest of the planet suffers. He’s trying to do something about it, attempting to use his station for good, but no matter what he does he can’t seem to make a difference.
Most of the book is about rich people doing rich people things. Going on cruises in their private yacht. Making deals with other rich people. Entertaining other rich people. Navigating high society. So many useless rich people who have nothing better to do with their time. Irma is especially irritating. She knows nothing, understands nothing, yet it’s not her fault because her education focused on manners and social etiquette. She was born and raised to be part of Society, not to understand history or social issues.
At least Lanny is aware he is part of the problem and he is trying to do something about it by supporting socialist groups who want to tell the workers things could be better if they unite to make demands on their employers. Still, he is a moderate and wants to understand all sides. He is not alone; most people in his circles are intellectuals, and they can only stand back and watch as the Nazis give fiery speeches and stir the masses to action with lies and propaganda. People like Lanny, who value facts and want the people to understand these facts, fall behind.
They all wanted to do something; but first they had to agree what to do, and apparently they couldn’t; they talked and argued until they were exhausted. Lanny wondered, is this a disease which afflicts all intellectuals? Is it a paralysis which accompanies the life of the mind? If so, then it must be that the thinkers will be forever subject to the men of brute force, and Plato’s dream of a state ruled by philosophers will remain forever vain.
Lanny thought: “Somebody ought to lead them!” He wanted to say: “My God, it may be settled this very night. Your republic will be dead! Let’s go now, and call the workers out!” But then he thought: “What sort of a figure would I cut, taking charge of a German revolution? I, an American!” He settled back and listened to more arguments, and thought: “I’m like all the others. I’m an intellectual, too! I happen to own some guns, and know how to use them—but I wouldn’t!”
Thus the Left always loses.
Lanny recognizes things are not the same now as they were when he was younger. By the 1930s, the German republic has had over a decade, and yet millions are unemployed and few can meet their basic needs. Of course the German people turn to a strongman because the alternative is status quo:
How different it had been twelve years ago during the “Kapp Putsch”! Then the workers hadn’t waited for their leaders, they had known instantly what to do—drop their tools and come into the streets and show their power.
But now, apparently, they had lost interest in the Republic. What good had it done them these twelve years? It couldn’t prevent hard times and unemployment, it couldn’t even make promises any more! It was so chained by its own notions of legality that it couldn’t resist the illegality of others.
Dragon’s Teeth was published in 1943, so Sinclair has something to say about the rise of Nazism, how a good chunk of the country was swayed. All the Nazis had to do was repeat that foreigners and Jews were the cause of the country’s woes, and they got votes. Not enough votes to make a difference in parliament, but enough to make them a force to be dealt with.
Say the very simplest and most obvious things, say them as often as possible, and put into the saying all the screaming passion which one human voice can carry—that was Adolf Hitler’s technique. He had been applying it for thirteen years, ever since the accursed treaty had been signed, and now he was at the climax of his efforts.
He and his lieutenants were holding hundreds of meetings every night, all over Germany, and it was like one meeting; the same speech, whether it was a newspaper print or cartoon or signboard or phonograph record. No matter whether it was true or not—for Adi meant literally his maxim that the bigger the falsehood, the easier to get it believed; people would say you wouldn’t dare make up a thing like that. Imagine the worst possible about your enemies and then swear that you knew it, you had seen it, it was God’s truth and you were ready to stake your life upon it—shout this, bellow this, over and over, day after day, night after night. If one person states it, it is nonsense, but if ten thousand join in it becomes an indictment, and when ten million join in it becomes history
The Nazis only received about a third of the seats in parliament at their height, and nobody liked working with them, so they made few friends. Still, everyone assumed once Hitler became part of the machinery of government that he would mellow out and work with others. Such had been the pattern before—every politician prior to him had abandoned his radical ideals when it came time to get anything done.
it had come: the thing which Lanny had been fearing for the past three or four years. The Nazis had got Germany! Most of his friends had thought it unlikely; and now that it had happened, they preferred to believe that it hadn’t. Hitler wasn’t really in power, they said, and could last but a week or two. The German people had too much sense, the governing classes were too able and well trained; they would tone the fanatic down, and the soup would be eaten cool.
But Adolf Hitler had got, and Adolf Hitler would keep, the power which was most important to him—that of propaganda. He was executive head of the German government, and whatever manifesto he chose to issue took the front page of all the newspapers. Hermann Göring was Prussian Minister of the Interior and could say to the world over the radio: “Bread and work for our countrymen, freedom and honor for the nation!” Dwarfish little Jupp Goebbels, President of the Propaganda Committee of the Party, found himself Minister of Propaganda and Popular Enlightenment of the German Republic. The Nazi movement had been made out of propaganda, and now it would cover Germany like an explosion.
Instead, Hitler went after the Communists with physical force, and nobody stopped him because rich people in charge didn’t like Communists or Socialists. As far as businessmen and High Society were concerned, the Nazis were doing them a favor, protecting their wealth from an uprising of the masses who wanted to take away their money, so the rich supported Hitler.
Politics catered to the interests of the elites. Instead of dealing with the social consequences of Capitalism and relieving the poverty caused by a global depression, the rich chose to fund fascists.
Seeing the rise of Nazism from this point of view makes the whole thing seem like mere background noise. Movies and documentaries make it look extraordinary, but it wasn’t, and knowing the rich elites allowed it to happen because they benefited from it makes it all the more infuriating.
_____
The singular advantage enjoyed by Adolf Hitler was that his own people believed what he said, while other peoples couldn’t and wouldn’t. The attitude of the outside world to him was that of the farmer who stared at a giraffe in the circus and exclaimed: “There ain’t no sich animal!” [sic] The more Adolf told the world what he was and what he meant to do, the more the world smiled incredulously. There were men like that in every lunatic asylum; the type was so familiar that any psychiatrist could diagnose it from a single paragraph of a speech or a single page of a book. Sensible men said: “Nut!” and went on about their affairs, leaving Adolf to conquer the world. Here and there a man of social insight cried out warnings of what was going on; but these, too, were a well-known type and the psychiatrists had names for them.
The type of person Hitler was should be familiar to all of us by now.
There lay the drama of present day events in Germany, and Lanny strove to explain it to the French workers and to such of their leaders as he met. Hitler sat in his study in Berlin, or in Munich, or in the retreat which he had bought for himself in the mountains, and the Nazi chieftains came to him and argued and pulled him this way and that; he thought it over, and chose whatever course seemed to him to open the way to power. He was as slippery as an eel, and as quick to move, and nobody could say what he was going to do until he had done it. The one thing you could say for sure was that National Socialism was power without conscience; you might call it the culmination of capitalism, or a degenerate form of Bolshevism—names didn’t matter, so long as you understood that it was counter-revolution.
The important question was, whether this same development was to be expected in every country. Was the depression going to wipe out the middle classes and drive them into the arms of demagogues? Were the workers being driven to revolt, and would their attempts be met by the overthrow of parliaments? Were the Communists right in their seemingly crazy idea that Fascism was a necessary stage in the breakdown of capitalism?
When people lose faith in their elected institutions, they will fall for a strongman. When the strongman fails to alleviate their suffering, either the guillotines will come out or the nations of the planet will unite to shut this guy up.
Isn’t that the goal? Shut the fuck up and let us live our lives.
But no, the people in power want to use the labor of the population for their own purposes. Everything else is an elaborate scheme to justify this.
_____
Dragon’s Teeth is a phenomenally boring read in the beginning. One has to trudge through page after page of rich people doing rich people things and living happy lives through the Great Depression before one gets to anything interesting. At the 1/3 mark, when the Nazis start to assert their dominance, the story finally gets moving. Lanny and Irma go deep into Nazi territory to find out what happened to relatives of theirs, arrested and detained for being Jews.
The “action” of the book amounts to drawing-room drama. Rich people navigating Nazi society and talking to important figures within the regime. There is a twist in book 5 which I did not see coming. Irma speaking to Lanny:
“Freddi’s an idealist, and you’re an idealist. It’s a word you’re fond of, a very nice word, and you’re both lovely fellows, and you wouldn’t hurt anybody or anything on earth. You believe what you want to believe about the world—which is that other people are like you, good and kind and unselfish—idealists, in short. But they’re not that; they’re full of jealousy and hatred and greed and longing for revenge. They want to overthrow the people who own property, and punish them for the crime of having had life too easy.
“That’s what’s in their hearts, and they’re looking for chances to carry out their schemes, and when they come on you idealists, they say: ‘Here’s my meat!’ They get round you and play you for suckers, they take your money to build what they call their ‘movement.’ You serve them by helping to undermine and destroy what you call capitalism. They call you comrades for as long as they can use you, but the first day you daredto stand in their way or interfere with their plans, they’d turn on you like wolves.”
[...]
“Yes, I admit it’s too bad. You just told me that you didn’t invent Mein Kampf and you didn’t invent the Brownshirts. Well, I didn’t invent Béla Kun and I didn’t invent Liebknecht and that Red Rosa Jewess who tried to do the same thing in Germany, nor Eisner who did it in Bavaria, nor Trotsky who helped to do it in Russia. I suppose the Jews have an extra hard time and that makes them revolutionary; they haven’t any country and that keeps them from being patriotic. I’m not blaming them, I’m just facing the facts, as you’re all the time urging me to do.”
“I’ve long ago faced the fact that you dislike the Jews, Irma.”
“I dislike some of them intensely, and I dislike some things about them all. But I love Freddi, and I’m fond of all the Robins, even though I am repelled by Hansi’s ideas. I’ve met other Jews that I like—”
“In short,” put in Lanny, “you have accepted what Hitler calls ‘honorary Aryans.’”
He was surprised by his own bitterness.
“That’s a mean crack, Lanny, and I think we ought to talk kindly about this problem. It isn’t a simple one.”
“I want very much to,” he replied. “But one of the facts we have to face is that the things you have been saying to me are all in Mein Kampf, and the arguments you have been using are the foundation stones upon which the Nazi movement is built. Hitler also likes some Jews, but he dislikes most of them because he says they are revolutionary and not patriotic.
After everything she has seen, Irma agrees with Hitler. Though her relatives are good people, she thinks the Jews, as a race, deserve what Hitler is doing to them. Maybe they deserve to be rounded up and detained for the good of the country because they, as a race, are angry at their lot and are seeking revenge and have no loyalty to any country therefore they have a vested interest in overthrowing people like her. People who did nothing to earn their inherited wealth.
In the 1930s, antisemitism was logical.
Lanny has done his reading and his in-person research. He sees that the world’s woes are caused by Capitalism upsetting the social order and that nobody has offered a remedy for this, so of course people are fighting back. Irma does not see a wider picture, only whatever affects her as a social class, and it seems perfectly logical that Jews are behind all the uprisings around Europe because they are bitter as a race and have every reason to despise those who have more than they do. This deflects the blame for the current social uprisings from her to someone else. Irma did not do a thing to earn her wealth, but she still considers it hers, and wants to guard it against anyone who wants to take it away from her.
This is a hard truth to swallow, that hatred for the other had logic backing it. Despite being married to a socialist, this rich woman has heard nothing her husband has said. Even she cannot be convinced, so what hope is there to convince anyone else that the foreigner is not the cause of the country’s woes? That maybe spending money on staff and catering to entertain politicians and other rich people does not stimulate the economy and keep money circulating?
Rescuing his relatives means helping the Nazis. Lanny should be giving resources to the people who are trying to resist the Nazis, and he hates what he must do. How is a young Socialist supposed to kiss up to fascists for the sake of his family? I’m pleased to report that Lanny does leave the drawing room eventually and take action to rescue his relatives from a concentration camp. The payoff is bittersweet.
While too long for its own good, and dwelling far too long on rich-people-problems, Dragon’s Teeth is a compelling work of historical fiction. It’s one of the few to portray Adolf Hitler not as a larger-than-life figure of history, or some genius hellbent on world domination, or even as a madman trying to destroy the planet, but as a kook ranting about conspiracy theory and throwing wild tantrums when he doesn’t get his way.
Nobody took him seriously in the 1930s. We should be on the lookout for people like this today.
November 13, 2024
It seems like this book has not been reviewed in quite a while. After reading some of those reviews, as well as those for other books in the series, I feel like it is deserving of a fresh opinion.
“Dragons Teeth” is the third book in the Lanny Budd series, and the reason I began reading the series. I stumbled upon the title when researching what book to read next. I realized it was the third book, and as I would never jump in at the middle of a series, I decided I would start from the beginning. That decision completely changed the impact of this book, and made the series itself a transformative experience for me.
The only literary work I have come across that compares is Colleen McCullough’s Masters of Rome series. Both are masterpieces of historical fiction on an epic scale. The main difference is that the Lanny Budd series was published during the period of history it was covering. Thus it is also an invaluable secondary source which breaths life into one of the world’s most widely covered eras, showing it to us through the eyes of the people who were living it. Some reviewers have called the writing in this series outdated. Would you say the same thing of Marcus Aurelius or Dostoevsky?
These books are 100% a product of their time. Sinclair was writing them in support of his friends in England at the very moment the Nazis were conducting their air raids. The large cast of this series spans a wide demographic range of the different peoples living across the world from World War I through World War II. Through their perspectives we see and experience life as it would truly have been, along with all the nuanced perplexities of that era. In addition, Sinclair employs his penchant for raw journalism seen in “The Jungle” to expose the forces of corruption and contradiction that shaped the course of history while unseen in the background.
The frustration of many reviewers stems from the fact that they began the series at this book, book number three. I absolutely believe there is only one way to read this series, starting from the very beginning. By the time you get to “Dragon’s Teeth”, the characters in the book, and the world itself, have experienced over two decades of history which have unfolded on the page. No matter how well you know your history, you will be missing large, important chunks of it, which can only be revealed through this series. In addition, it is the experiences of the characters themselves that transform this from a history lesson to a living breathing experience. There are plenty of books out there for people who simply want to learn about what happened from World War I to World War II. This series is for the people who want a chance to live it.
On that note, many reviewers have complained that these books can at certain points be slow and tedious. They claim that entire sections of so-called mundane every day life can be entirely removed. I believe in complete opposition that even those sections are purposeful and entirely necessary for achieving the overall effect. If you are looking for a story that is short and sweet, to the point, with a classic structure and a clear, zippy message at the end, there are hundreds of thousands of options for you. This series on the other hand, and especially this book, are one of those rare gems. This is a story you feel in your gut. You experience actual raw emotion running the gamut from joy and love to despondence and anger. If you want a story that makes you actually feel emotion, a series that makes you question truth, and what is right and wrong, this series will not disappoint.
The last few paragraphs of “Dragon’s Teeth” left me in shock. It was one of those rare moments when a book produces so much range of emotion that you have to re-read those last lines five or six times to fully process it. And the feeling lingers long after you’ve put the book away. This effect could not be achieved without the hundreds of pages and two other books that came before it. And trust me, this effect continues to build strength as you progress into the series. The reason is, you are not just watching the characters live their story, you are living it with them. You have hundreds of pages of shared history between you and them. You have watched Lanny Budd grow from an innocent artistic boy to a disillusioned man of the world trying to do what he can to make it a better place. You have been proud of his success, commiserated over his failures, and confronted the ugliest parts of life alongside him. There are some very key characters in this story, and as they have become a part of his family, they have become a part of yours as well. You have laughed and cried with them and grown to love them. As the pages unfold and terrible times beset them, you feel it in your chest as you would watching your own friends and family go through something terrible. That connection comes through time and shared experience. Long after you have finished reading, a sense of nostalgia remains.
The negative reviewers I have alluded to have all been correct in a way. This is not a quick and easy read. This is not a series you can jump in and out of at different points. This is a long haul, and at times you will find yourself confused or slogging through. I liken that to life itself. If you are looking for a deeper experience from reading, an experience that envelops you in emotion and leaves you different than when you began, this is the series for you. Like any other journey we may undertake in life, you get out of it what you choose to put in. If you commit yourself to this journey and all that it entails, I truly believe you will agree it was worth what you found at the end of the road.
“Dragons Teeth” is the third book in the Lanny Budd series, and the reason I began reading the series. I stumbled upon the title when researching what book to read next. I realized it was the third book, and as I would never jump in at the middle of a series, I decided I would start from the beginning. That decision completely changed the impact of this book, and made the series itself a transformative experience for me.
The only literary work I have come across that compares is Colleen McCullough’s Masters of Rome series. Both are masterpieces of historical fiction on an epic scale. The main difference is that the Lanny Budd series was published during the period of history it was covering. Thus it is also an invaluable secondary source which breaths life into one of the world’s most widely covered eras, showing it to us through the eyes of the people who were living it. Some reviewers have called the writing in this series outdated. Would you say the same thing of Marcus Aurelius or Dostoevsky?
These books are 100% a product of their time. Sinclair was writing them in support of his friends in England at the very moment the Nazis were conducting their air raids. The large cast of this series spans a wide demographic range of the different peoples living across the world from World War I through World War II. Through their perspectives we see and experience life as it would truly have been, along with all the nuanced perplexities of that era. In addition, Sinclair employs his penchant for raw journalism seen in “The Jungle” to expose the forces of corruption and contradiction that shaped the course of history while unseen in the background.
The frustration of many reviewers stems from the fact that they began the series at this book, book number three. I absolutely believe there is only one way to read this series, starting from the very beginning. By the time you get to “Dragon’s Teeth”, the characters in the book, and the world itself, have experienced over two decades of history which have unfolded on the page. No matter how well you know your history, you will be missing large, important chunks of it, which can only be revealed through this series. In addition, it is the experiences of the characters themselves that transform this from a history lesson to a living breathing experience. There are plenty of books out there for people who simply want to learn about what happened from World War I to World War II. This series is for the people who want a chance to live it.
On that note, many reviewers have complained that these books can at certain points be slow and tedious. They claim that entire sections of so-called mundane every day life can be entirely removed. I believe in complete opposition that even those sections are purposeful and entirely necessary for achieving the overall effect. If you are looking for a story that is short and sweet, to the point, with a classic structure and a clear, zippy message at the end, there are hundreds of thousands of options for you. This series on the other hand, and especially this book, are one of those rare gems. This is a story you feel in your gut. You experience actual raw emotion running the gamut from joy and love to despondence and anger. If you want a story that makes you actually feel emotion, a series that makes you question truth, and what is right and wrong, this series will not disappoint.
The last few paragraphs of “Dragon’s Teeth” left me in shock. It was one of those rare moments when a book produces so much range of emotion that you have to re-read those last lines five or six times to fully process it. And the feeling lingers long after you’ve put the book away. This effect could not be achieved without the hundreds of pages and two other books that came before it. And trust me, this effect continues to build strength as you progress into the series. The reason is, you are not just watching the characters live their story, you are living it with them. You have hundreds of pages of shared history between you and them. You have watched Lanny Budd grow from an innocent artistic boy to a disillusioned man of the world trying to do what he can to make it a better place. You have been proud of his success, commiserated over his failures, and confronted the ugliest parts of life alongside him. There are some very key characters in this story, and as they have become a part of his family, they have become a part of yours as well. You have laughed and cried with them and grown to love them. As the pages unfold and terrible times beset them, you feel it in your chest as you would watching your own friends and family go through something terrible. That connection comes through time and shared experience. Long after you have finished reading, a sense of nostalgia remains.
The negative reviewers I have alluded to have all been correct in a way. This is not a quick and easy read. This is not a series you can jump in and out of at different points. This is a long haul, and at times you will find yourself confused or slogging through. I liken that to life itself. If you are looking for a deeper experience from reading, an experience that envelops you in emotion and leaves you different than when you began, this is the series for you. Like any other journey we may undertake in life, you get out of it what you choose to put in. If you commit yourself to this journey and all that it entails, I truly believe you will agree it was worth what you found at the end of the road.
January 26, 2015
The next of the Pulitzer winners that Steve and I are reading. This is apparently the 3rd of 11 novels about the main character, Lanny Budd. This period deals with the emergence of Hitler on the German scene and the escalation of his power mania (as it were). I found that my enjoyment of this work was hampered by my abysmal knowledge of German history - a situation i will have to rectify to fully understand this novel.
February 7, 2023
I’ve never read a book by this very well-known author. I read about The Jungle, his novel that exposed the horrors of the meat-packing industry and heavily influenced public opinion, resulting in legislation and the USDA inspection system we now have ( so things could be worse! ) It was pretty disgusting so I never actually read it. But I started this one about a wealthy young couple who spent a carefree life in Europe living a life of luxury and ease. The young man, Lanny Budd, is a member of an American family who made a fortune in selling arms to all sides of wars. He is struggling to make the world a better place by encouraging various Socialist causes, and has many friends who are committed Marxists, Leninists, etc. His wife is not thrilled by his causes and thinks maybe the Nazis are doing a better job. I really enjoyed Sinclair’s writing which is often funny and always insightful. His analysis of the prewar situation and all the competing factions and political groups was really good—some of the best—without being able to completely embrace any viewpoint, because each has too many shortcomings. But he absolutely knows that Hitler and his henchmen are purely evil. The book concerns his attempt to help family friends, a wealthy banker and his political dissident children to escape Germany. At this point, the book becomes deadly serious, dangerous, and finally brutally violent, with one description of torture that was too much for me, but made his point quite vividly. Nevertheless, it was a very good book, well-written, by a very witty and brilliant author. His insights clarified the gathering horrors of the Holocaust and especially of the political and economic problems. I can see why the book won a Pulitzer!
April 30, 2018
The scene is set with the global stock market crash and the impending Depression. Europe is devoid of hope and ideas, bolshevism is rising as a possible solution in Eastern Europe. Political landscapes are torn in two and capitalists come under pressure from righteous workers. Right across Europe the propaganda machines denounce communism as anti religious and violent. Mussolini is the first fascist leader to crush labour unions and to carry out murderous night raids on communist agitators. His success leads Hitler to attempt a coup (beer hall putsch), his eventual imprisonment and Mein Kampf. His anti-semitism and Germanism eventually saw him elected. His complete power came with the enabling act, he then instituted anti jewish laws. What was unknown to me was that he was supported by the European powers, he promised peace, employment and industry. Bolshevism was being touted as Jewish, some literature suggested 75% of Communists were Jews. In the mid 1930's the jewish pogroms in Germany were largely misunderstood an in some cases accepted by conservative European and Americans.
October 10, 2022
amazing read
This book caught and held my attention with its insights into the Nazi terror prior to the worst actually happening. It’s as if Sinclair could see the horrible future and others could not. At times, the political stories were slow, most likely because I am unfortunately ignorant of that era. I read it to meet my goal of reading all the Pulitzers and am so glad to have discovered this gem.
This book caught and held my attention with its insights into the Nazi terror prior to the worst actually happening. It’s as if Sinclair could see the horrible future and others could not. At times, the political stories were slow, most likely because I am unfortunately ignorant of that era. I read it to meet my goal of reading all the Pulitzers and am so glad to have discovered this gem.
February 1, 2017
This the third of Upton Sinclair's Lanny Budd novels picks up Lanny's tale shortly after the events of Between Two Worlds. It is the early 1930's and the world has been plunged into the great depression. The book starts slowly, following the events of Lanny and his family as they cope with the changing times. As wealthy folk, they are largely unaffected by the economic turmoil. However, there are clouds on the horizon in the form of the rise of the Nazis. In the second half of the book, the pace clicks into high gear as Lanny struggles to rescue Jewish relatives from imprisonment and torture in Germany. In doing so he strains some relationships within his family and also places himself in extreme danger.
While reading Dragon's Teeth I found it useful to keep in mind that it is a book of its time. It was published in 1943 while World War 2 was raging and the outcome was still in doubt. The events it depicts were still fresh in the memories of the readership of the time. The fact that it is still a good read 73 years later is a testament to Sinclair's skill as a storyteller. 4.5 stars rounded up.
While reading Dragon's Teeth I found it useful to keep in mind that it is a book of its time. It was published in 1943 while World War 2 was raging and the outcome was still in doubt. The events it depicts were still fresh in the memories of the readership of the time. The fact that it is still a good read 73 years later is a testament to Sinclair's skill as a storyteller. 4.5 stars rounded up.
February 16, 2021
PULITZER PRIZE WINNER: 1943
===
I find it incredibly vexing when the Pulitzer Prize goes to a book in the middle or at the end of a series. :/ While this can be read as a standalone, it was clear that most of the characters had been introduced in earlier novels and the author has written with the expectation that you know and/or care about them, and it did make for an occasionally frustrating reading experience. I did find the period of time, during Hitler's rise to power but before WWII to be interesting, particularly from this POV, and I did generally enjoy the book, which I honestly wasn't expecting. I liked that each chapter was essentially broken up into very short sub-chapter sections which made it easy to read. I appreciated some of the author's attempts to speak on politics and class, but found the main character Lanny to be a bit unsympathetic, if realistic, with his idealism but inability to commit to said ideals. He pouts about being rich, but he doesn't really *do* anything about it. IDK, it felt a bit self-indulgent, and though I did generally enjoy, it wasn't enough to keep reading in this series.
===
I find it incredibly vexing when the Pulitzer Prize goes to a book in the middle or at the end of a series. :/ While this can be read as a standalone, it was clear that most of the characters had been introduced in earlier novels and the author has written with the expectation that you know and/or care about them, and it did make for an occasionally frustrating reading experience. I did find the period of time, during Hitler's rise to power but before WWII to be interesting, particularly from this POV, and I did generally enjoy the book, which I honestly wasn't expecting. I liked that each chapter was essentially broken up into very short sub-chapter sections which made it easy to read. I appreciated some of the author's attempts to speak on politics and class, but found the main character Lanny to be a bit unsympathetic, if realistic, with his idealism but inability to commit to said ideals. He pouts about being rich, but he doesn't really *do* anything about it. IDK, it felt a bit self-indulgent, and though I did generally enjoy, it wasn't enough to keep reading in this series.
December 25, 2017
As a Baby Boomer, I am the product of WWII. I know the general atrocities that occurred during in Germany and Europe during the war, but this book brings home the specifics. It also highlights the progression of events that brought the Nazis into power in Germany. What has been so interesting, and scary, is the parallels with what is occurring in the US currently. When could Germany have stopped the Nazis? What can we do? The way they controlled the people and convinced them of the nonhumaness of the Jewish people is terrible. So scary and so possible. Upton Sinclair has brought the era alive. Written in 1943 and winning the Pulitzer Prize that year, this book tells how one man of means tries to extricate family and friends from the grip of Nazism. It is a very long book and very graphic, as to the atrocities. In the end, there are tears. I think this is a must read, as for too long we have felt that our democracy could weather any storm and that the people were in charge. So did the citizens in Germany in the 1930s.
March 29, 2019
An excellent adventurous rescue story set within a magnificent historical novel. I gave the book 5 stars in spite of the fact that it was incredibly tedious and dull for the first couple hundred pages. By about half way through the book, though, I became totally hooked by the story and it more than made up for the slow start. The story is about Lanny Budd attempting to rescue a couple of Jewish relatives of his that have been captured by the Nazi's which added a great deal of drama but the real value of the book is the incredible amount of detail used in telling the story of the rise of Hitler and the Nazi party. The time period that the book covers is before the actual war began and was written almost contemporaneous to the events. It was not only a very entertaining read but a very informative one as well.
April 17, 2010
Dragon's Teeth was the 1942 winner of the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel. The novel is mainly set in Germany in the years before World War II. We get a glimpse of Nazi Germany as viewed by Lanny Bud who is a socialist and has a family member who married into a Jewish family. Lanny uses his influence to help free members of his half-sister's family from Germany and gets caught up in the power struggle within the Nazi party in the progress. A great look at the Nazi rise to power and how it affected the world.
I read this book as part of a quest to read all of the Pulitzer Prize winners. However, this is the third book of the World's End series by Upton Sinclair that features Lanny Bud. After reading this book I plan on checking out others in the series.
I read this book as part of a quest to read all of the Pulitzer Prize winners. However, this is the third book of the World's End series by Upton Sinclair that features Lanny Bud. After reading this book I plan on checking out others in the series.
May 27, 2016
This 3rd volume in Upton Sinclair’s epic 11 volume saga following the fortunes of Lanny Budd covers the years from 1929 to 1934, and concentrates largely on the rise of Nazism in Germany. It’s a wide-ranging and comprehensive depiction of a time and place, and very good at simplifying political and social complexities. With its mix of fact and fiction (but with the fictional elements always firmly rooted in reality) and its combination of real-life and invented characters, it’s a wonderful way to absorb a history lesson whilst being entertained. Not great literature perhaps and sometimes a little long-winded admittedly, I’m nevertheless now firmly hooked on this series and hope to work my way through all 11 books.
May 26, 2017
Un libro tan sublime, con tantos temas, personajes potentes y situaciones históricas novelizadas... simplemente hay que leerlo, porque cualquier palabra que diga no le hará justicia.
Para mí, descubrir a Upton Sinclair ha sido toda una sorpresa. Me alegro haber llegado a leerle, porque de verdad que sé, con seguridad, que sus libros van a ser de los que más me gusten en el año que los empiece.
Apabullantes las últimas 80 páginas. Y queda mucho por leer.
Hacedme caso y leedle, acercaos a su saga de Lanny Budd.
https://lahierbaroja.wordpress.com/20...
Para mí, descubrir a Upton Sinclair ha sido toda una sorpresa. Me alegro haber llegado a leerle, porque de verdad que sé, con seguridad, que sus libros van a ser de los que más me gusten en el año que los empiece.
Apabullantes las últimas 80 páginas. Y queda mucho por leer.
Hacedme caso y leedle, acercaos a su saga de Lanny Budd.
https://lahierbaroja.wordpress.com/20...
July 16, 2017
No fantasy dragons here
Upton Sinclair's meisterstück, pure and simple. Here is the engaging history of mankind's worst period told in a way that matches the epic proportions of the Alpine surroundings and the abyss of the Nazi horrors. Both thrilling and disturbing, and utterly anwendbar to our time.
Upton Sinclair's meisterstück, pure and simple. Here is the engaging history of mankind's worst period told in a way that matches the epic proportions of the Alpine surroundings and the abyss of the Nazi horrors. Both thrilling and disturbing, and utterly anwendbar to our time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 131 reviews