Hitler Is No Fool (1939)
"Probably No One Is More Surprised at Hitler's Success
Than the Feuhrer Himself"
Paul Massing, under the pseudonym Billinger, Karl. Hitler Is No Fool. New York: Modern Age, 1939.
Octavo. Paper Wrappers. 1st Edition.
First edition of this expose about Hitler's state of mind and his intentions for Nazi Germany by a German exile and Soviet spy. The author of this work, Karl Billinger a.k.a. Paul Massing, was a committed communist who, along with a number of like-minded Germans, saw adapted Marxism as a solution to the ills of Germany. However, he became somewhat disillusioned during his time in the Soviet Union and returned to his native Germany in the early 1930s. At the time, communists were one of the Nazis' first targets and Massing was arrested from the Gestapo for his affiliation with the illegal M Section. Massing was thrown in Oranienberg concentration camp. There, Massing was brutally beaten and saw the worst of the Nazi's plans for those who dissented. He was released during an amnesty action following five months spent in solitary confinement. Massing fled to the United States, where he began writing about his unique experience of being one of the first people on American soil to survive a concentration camp. Notably, Massing was an NKVD Soviet spy, who, along with over a dozen comrades, worked on turning prominent New Deal figures into spies for the Soviets. Massing and his wife--who preceded him into spying--eventually came to the attention of the FBI. Massing's wife turned over colleagues including Noel Field and became one of the main witnesses against Alger Hiss. Ultimately, Massing refused to give up his fellow spies and, though he was denied citizenship through FBI intervention, spent the remainder of his time in the United States teaching quietly at Rutgers and writing about his experiences. He turned to Germany two years before his death in 1979. Hitler Is No Fool was one of his earlier works, devoted to tearing away the veil of mystery and unveiling him as a low-born failure committed to an antisemitic genocidal agenda and complete conquest of Europe. Owner signature opposite title page. Interior fine, faint crease to rear wrapper, only light rubbing. A near-fine copy.