Overview

Fat Boy and the Champagne Salesman offers a compelling behind-the-scenes exploration of the road to World War II and the invasion of Poland by the Hitler's Third Reich. Focusing on the personal power plays within Hitler's inner circle, author Rush Loving details the struggle for Hitler's approval, long before the battle for Poland had begun. The rivalry was between ""Fat Boy,"" the moniker given to Hermann Goering by his fellow Nazi generals, and ""the Champagne Salesman,"" Joachim von Ribbentrop, nicknamed for his previous career, and it was at the heart of Germany's plans for the expansion of the Reich into Poland. Goering, founder of the Luftwaffe and the man who oversaw the armaments industry, was convinced that any invasion of Poland would lead to war with England and France, who were committed to its defense. Von Ribbentrop, Hitler's foreign minister, argued that the Allies would stand down and continue their policy of appeasement. Only one would be proved correct. An engrossing and dramatic tale, Fat Boy and the Champagne Salesman shows Goering and Ribbentrop playing a tug-of-war with Hitler's will. Loving's vivid narrative of the struggle between the two advisers lends a new understanding of the events leading to the opening days of World War II.

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9780253061959

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Reviews

With a reporter's time-honed instinct for unearthing a great story, and a raconteur's sense of description and timing, Loving gives us this scene-by-scene portrayal of Hitler compelling his high command - using his voice and his insanity as his sole resources - to arrive at the only counsel he would accept: blitzkrieg against Poland. The fog of war would come later. First, there was utter chaos as Hitler started the biggest one ever.--Walter Wells, former executive editor of the International Herald-Tribune Fat Boy and the Champagne Salesman is a wonderfully researched, written, and fast-paced book about the inevitable march toward World War II, and the personalities who made it a reality.--Fred Rasmussen, The Baltimore Sun

With a reporter's time-honed instinct for unearthing a great story, and a raconteur's sense of description and timing, Loving gives us this scene-by-scene portrayal of Hitler compelling his high command - using his voice and his insanity as his sole resources - to arrive at the only counsel he would accept: blitzkrieg against Poland. The fog of war would come later. First, there was utter chaos as Hitler started the biggest one ever. -Walter Wells, former executive editor of the International Herald-Tribune Fat Boy and the Champagne Salesman is a wonderfully researched, written, and fast-paced book about the inevitable march toward World War II, and the personalities who made it a reality. -Fred Rasmussen, The Baltimore Sun In his book Fat Boy and the Champagne Salesman, Loving, a former journalist, focuses on the rivalry between Ribbentrop, the champagne salesman, a nickname based on his previous career, and Hermann Goering, the fat boy who was president of the Reichstag and head of the Luftwaffe as Hitler planned his attack on Poland. This is a fascinating, meticulously researched account of the infighting at the top of the Nazi hierarchy during the run-up to the opening act of World War II. -Andrew Nagorski, Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs

With a reporter's time-honed instinct for unearthing a great story, and a raconteur's sense of description and timing, Loving gives us this scene-by-scene portrayal of Hitler compelling his high command - using his voice and his insanity as his sole resources - to arrive at the only counsel he would accept: blitzkrieg against Poland. The fog of war would come later. First, there was utter chaos as Hitler started the biggest one ever. -Walter Wells, former executive editor of the International Herald-Tribune Fat Boy and the Champagne Salesman is a wonderfully researched, written, and fast-paced book about the inevitable march toward World War II, and the personalities who made it a reality. -Fred Rasmussen, The Baltimore Sun

Author Information

Rush Loving Jr. is former associate editor of Fortune and former business editor of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. He is author of The Men Who Loved Trains and The Well-Dressed Hobo. Loving also served as assistant director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Jimmy Carter and worked as a consultant specializing in transportation economics, issues before Congress, and corporate communication problems.

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