I thought I'd read a few chapters of Erik Larson's In the Garden of Beasts, get a sense of Berlin in 1933, then move on to something else, something fluffier, less rooted in reality.

Instead, I wound up reading this nonfiction book cover to cover (well, not quite, I skipped the abundant endnotes) and found it fascinating.

Newly elected president Franklin Delano Roosevelt had a hard time finding a suitable candidate for the ambassador post in Germany. Instead of selecting one of the usual sort, a wealthy ivy leaguer, he chose a self-made man, history professor William Dodd. Dodd prided himself on his Jeffersonian outlook, but was faced with a daunting set of circumstances, including unsupportive colleagues. Dodd's number one task was to ensure that Germany not default on their one billion dollar loan. Once he arrived in Germany, however, he soon learned there were other, more pressing matters.

The book offers first person perspective from Dodd's written communication and that of his daughter, Martha, and a shocking look at the political tango involved in both Hitler's rise to power and FDR's attempt to avoid USA involvement in a war we didn't want and couldn't afford.