scipio_africanus's review
4.0
Horrifying. If your life is too bright and sunny, and needs to be brought back down a notch, then crawl into the dark pit which was Baron Von Ungern's life.
Has to be one of the most violent and dark historical accounts ive ever read. It was really hard to get through.
Bleak
Has to be one of the most violent and dark historical accounts ive ever read. It was really hard to get through.
Bleak
spinnerroweok's review
2.0
Listening to this book instead of reading it was probaby my mistake. It is hard to go back and "reread" portions and with so many foreign names, no map to refer, this type of text is difficult to follow. Portions wer interesting, but I think the greater context was lost.
firerosearien's review
4.0
So basically this dude was Hitler before Hitler. The similarities - virulent anti-Semitism that called for the extermination of the entire Jewish population, and racial dogma - are astounding. Thankfully, this dude overreached himself and was executed, at least...
I'm not going to give this five stars because it presupposes a lot of knowledge about the Russian Revolution - if I hadn't just finished Figes' monumental work many of the names here wouldn't have made any sense to me.
I'm not going to give this five stars because it presupposes a lot of knowledge about the Russian Revolution - if I hadn't just finished Figes' monumental work many of the names here wouldn't have made any sense to me.
viktoriya's review
I gave my all to try to finish this book. I really did. I love history, fascinated by Mongolia, love reading biographies, and yet, I couldn't finish this book. I found author's writing boring...
samypants35's review against another edition
4.0
The story of Baron von Ungern is wild - there are so many things in here that I had a hard time with believing that were the bibliography not so through, I would think things were exaggerated. Mr. Palmer had a hard job in front of him and I think he did a good job. It's always hard to do a history of an individual, especially when that person lived to destroy stuff, but he managed to bring together a reasonable amount of information.
I really appreciated more the context given to Ungern's exploits. Palmer characterized Mongolia well at the time, and those parts were more enjoyable. Ungern seems like an insane sadist, and it was hard for me to keep reading about his exploits. The book reads quickly though, and I think even Palmer himself was starting to get tired of how awful Ungern was by the end, but the story is so captivating that you want to know how it ends.
I really appreciated more the context given to Ungern's exploits. Palmer characterized Mongolia well at the time, and those parts were more enjoyable. Ungern seems like an insane sadist, and it was hard for me to keep reading about his exploits. The book reads quickly though, and I think even Palmer himself was starting to get tired of how awful Ungern was by the end, but the story is so captivating that you want to know how it ends.
chyde's review against another edition
5.0
This book was a short, fascinating read. It taught me a lot about Buddhism, how the Russian Revolution affected Asia, Asia in WWI, beginnings of the Nazis and theosophy, among other things. I highly recommend it! I'd love to read more of Palmer's stuff. Unfortunately, this is his only book.
squiddyvicious's review against another edition
4.0
Well, I learned a lot about Mongolia, Buddhist hell and new, insane ways to torture and kill people. Insane, anti-Semitic Russian entertainment all around.
chramies's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyable read although apparently inaccurate in places. Levels this accusation against Ossendowski but is also true here. Later parts of the book dispense with the Baron himself and become a diatribe about Soviet misrule in Mongolia.
bkbarons's review against another edition
1.0
I thought it woudl be interesting - the story of a crazy Russian who managed to take over Mongolia in the early 20th century to the point where he was considered a god. It was the story of how he was a sadistic, egomaniac who loved torturing his underlings in the military and regular civilians. Generally, I really like history, but this was painful (no pun intended) to get through. I can't decide if it was just a boring topic after all, or the author is a boring writer. Probably a little bit of both.