Books: Hitler's Niece

It's hard to imagine Adolf Hitler as a sex symbol. Yet during the '30s, he set many a Madchen's heart aflutter. Unfortunately for them, the Fuhrer was already smitten by a saucy teenager named Angelika Raubal, daughter of his half-sister. Hansen's fictional tour de force sticks to the historical record, but what may or may not have been said or done in private is of necessity impure fiction--dramatizations of Hitler as a sexually disabled masochist are graphic and over the top. Still, this is a painless way to learn a little history and enjoy such priceless dialogue as "She touched the swastika and said, 'Won't the girls at school be envious.'"

--By R.Z. Sheppard