" . . . a rich, complex, authoritative, scholarly survey of Germany's socialist heritage." - The Midwest Book Review"Can twenty-three essays present the history of German socialism and communism, as well as those movements' members, supporters, and policies in the context of social history? This fine collection comes close to achieving that difficult task . . . A very high quality work." - Central European History"Certainly the best collection of essays on the SPD and KPD . . . The editors and contributors . . . have provided fresh intrepretations . . . and have set a high standard for present and future scholars." - H-Net ReviewsThe powerful impact of Socialism and Communism on modern German history is the theme which is explored by the contributors to this volume. Whereas previous investigations have tended to focus on political, intellectual and biographical aspects, this book captures, for the first time, the methodological and thematic diversity and richness of current work on the history of the German working class and the political movements that emerged from it. Based on original contributions from US, British, and German scholars, this collection address a wide range of themes and problems.David E. Barclay is Professor of History and Director of the Center for Western European Studies, Kalamazoo College.Eric D. Weitz is Professor of History at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.