"In this chilling study of Nazi heroic mythology, Baird sheds a bright light on the dark, death-enthralled underpinnings of the German political and cultural psyche during the years 1918–45." —Booklist "Baird blends first-rate historical reconstruction with expert cultural analysis." —American Historical Review "Baird's fascinating account of Nazi heroism provides real understanding of the Nazi employment of aesthetics as politics and will be welcomed by students of twentieth-century German and European culture." —The Historian