This is one of the most important books I've ever read. A topic that I don't believe I've ever heard discussed but absolutely needs to be.

This was a really informative book. So often we hear about Jewish people who were killed during the Holocaust, and while we know that gay men were targeted we do not often get this glimpse into it like this. Raw and heartbreaking. The lingering affects on The survivors was just awful to fully grasp.

This is a very short but thorough introduction to the history of gay men who were sent to concentration camps, tortured, and killed for their homosexuality.

It contains specific stories of men who spoke about their experiences and is incredibly moving and equally horrifying.

The narrator of the audiobook is Bill Marchant and he did an excellent job.

I was given a copy of the audiobook for free from NetGalley and Second Story Press in exchange for an honest, voluntary review.

In my studies of WWII, I have always known that gay men were persecuted during the Holocaust, yet I have never learned much more beyond that fact. This book brings to light the pre-war days of Berlin's gay community. This book was fascinating and eye opening. Rich with new information, and shedding light on truths that are often overlooked when talking about the Nazi's destruction during WWII.

This is an extremely well researched and heartbreaking look at one of the corners full of atrocities that lurk in Holocaust history that sometimes gets overshadowed by all of the many many corners full of atrocities that lurk in Holocaust history.

It begins in Germany, before Hitler’s rise to power and provides a really interesting look into the relatively easygoing LGBT scene in prewar Berlin—where homosexuality was illegal, but more or less only technically. Enforcement of that law was rare enough to be unlikely and the overall atmosphere was much more welcoming than other parts of the world at the time. Germany thus had a thriving gay community, which made what came next all the more heartbreaking.

Another aspect that I found interesting was the way that homophobic rhetoric and anti-gay legislation that emerged during Hitler’s rise to power was tied to anti abortion sentiment as well. On the surface, when the topic is first introduced, this seemed like an almost nonsensical connection. The section of the book that outlines how the political and social rhetoric was shifting to prioritize raising good German children (a patriotic duty to reproduce), was fascinating.

This audiobook was well narrated, and at under three hours is a quick (but heavy) listen. The narrator is excellent and engaging. However, I suspect that the book works better in print format, as it includes many photographs and while the audiobook does provide in depth image descriptions, the descriptions almost serve to highlight that a part of the intended experience is missing.

This book is a MUST READ.

Opinions: I cannot express how much this book needs to be in school libraries - or any libraries, for that matter. Everybody is taught about the Holocaust, where 6 million Jewish people died under Hitler's ruling. If you pursued history past middle school, you might know that another 5 million asocials were murdered for "rejecting" the ideal German lifestyle. Branded by the Pink Triangle is the first easy-to-read, heartbreaking, reliable resource about the conditions LGBTQ+ members faced in Nazi Germany. The life of fear, guilt, and denial is one of recent history that more people need to understand. There is nothing else to say: this book is a must-read, no matter how much you know about WWII or how many LGBTQ+ friends you have or how much you think it matters nowadays. Read the facts. Look at the photos. Understand the past and how it has affected the future. Learn.


Recommended For and Similar Reads: Branded by the Pink Triangle is a MUST-READ nonfiction novel for all active members of our society. Similar reads are We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez, Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne, And the Band Played On by Randy Shilts, The Men With the Pink Triangle by Heinz Heger, and The Mayor of Castro Street by Randy Shilts.

This was a really great short non fiction book about the lives of gay men in Germany/Europe during the Nazi reign. I really did enjoy it! It has stories from people who lived through and suffered from the Nazi rule and their "purifying" of the German population.

Gay men were seen as undesirable because they will not pass on the Master Race. I found this to be very encompassing of what it would have been like for those in Germany and Europe at the time and gave real life stories and photos of what happened. It gives a good amount of background and other information to make sure those who don't know a lot about the Nazis and Holocaust to understand some of the references and why things were like this. I enjoyed learning about a subject that isn't commonly talked about and the suppression they faced after the war.

The writing was fairly good, was a little simplistic in spots but it didn't take away too much from what the book was trying to get across. Would recommend this book for anyone!

Branded by the Pink triangle gives a very different perspective on the experiences of mainly gay men and their perspectives of Nazi German.

As someone who had to study the World Wars over and over again, it was very interesting reading and learning about a different narrative that history books do not provide. While mentioned in the passing, details are omitted and the book was even more interesting by all the different experience and perspectives it provided well into details. This helps comprehend how cruel Nazi German was to not only a certain group, but everyone that didn’t fit their narrative no matter how perfect the fit the ‘superior race’ description.

With Berlin taking a total 360 with the rise of the Nazi’s, going from the capital of gays to the most persecuted of them, Branded by the Pink Triangle provides crucial information for the otherwise lacking of it in our history narrative. If you would like to learn more about how one of the most accepting places turned into the most dreadful and the experiences and perspectives that queers under Nazi German went through, I highly recommend picking up Branded by the Pink Triangle by Ken Setterington.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing the audiobook in exchange for an honest opinion.

I really enjoyed this book. There are many books about Jews during the Holocaust. I did not realize that there were so many gay men in concentration camps. Setterington pulled me into the horrors of what these men were enduring. I also appreciated the background information about the gay clubs of Berlin and the laws that prohibited homosexual behavior. We've come a long way, but still have farther to go.

I enjoyed the narrator, but like most audiobooks, I listened at 1.25 or 1.5. I did feel that I was missing out a little by not being able to see the photos.

Wow.

Like many who support the LGBTQIA+ community, I knew the general history of the pink triangle. This book spells out the history in an honest way, but in a way suitable for older kids, I would recommend this book for parents and teachers looking to educate kids on the abuses the LGBTQIA+ community received at the hands of nazis. It is brutally honest while not being overly graphic.

It would also a good short primer for adults who have not heard of this aspect of the nazis crimes against humanity.

From someone with a degree in history this was a very thoughtful and well written non fiction account of the persecution of homosexuals during Nazi Germany. In the book you are able to read how life was in Berlin prior to Nazi Germany and how things changed through the Nazi “Final Solution”. Setterington research is laced with victim and survivor stories through the Holocaust. This book reminds us that the Final Solution not only affected the Jewish people.

To be completely honest I found it very hard to listen to this without the book. There are many times the narrator notes photos making it hard to picture the photo. BIll Marchant narrated the book in such a way that gives the utmost respect to the subject matter.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this audiobook.

This book won the Stonewall Award in 2014 and having the information now available in audiobook form is wonderful. This non-fiction title packs a lot of important information in a short amount of time. It provides an approachable introduction into LGBTQIA history during this period of time. It is well researched and the audiobook reader handles the difficult topics well.

Educators can include the whole book or chapters in their curriculum. People already interested in this time period will most likely gain additional knowledge. The suppression of LGBTQIA+ people, existing organizations, and research and the large scale murders of the community are largely ignored by existing textbooks and materials. Branded by the Pink Triangle is an important addition to the large collection of writings related to WWII, Nazi Germany.

Great introduction to a sensitive topic. A short, sobering audiobook about the persecution of gay men at the hands of the Nazi regime. It provided statistics, narratives, and follow-up to both ground and solidify this audiobook. It is by no means comprehensive (especially given the length), but for the target audience, I think it is a great place to start for anyone wanting to learn about this horrible part of history. I will say that if I were to reread this, I would get a physical copy of the book because the narrator just cites the images on the pages instead of describing them and that was unfortunate. For accessibility purposes, it could have been better. -1 star for the audiobook for me for that but still 5 stars overall for the work.

Branded by the Pink Triangle Audiobook Review
Author: Ken Setterington
Narrator: Bill Marchant
Genre: Non-Fiction, Queer History
Pages: 196

This is a newly released audiobook about the persecution of gay men during the rise and fall of Nazis.

What I liked about this audiobook:
•I appreciated that this book gave the reader a glimpse into what Berlin, the Gay Capital of Europe, looked like before World War 2. This discussion was eye-opening to know how accepted queer culture was in Berlin before World War 2.
•The narrator had a clear, crisp voice that was easy to listen to and his tone matched the serious nature of this book.
•The book had a good balance of historical background and personal accounts.
•Many World War 2 books stop at the end of the war. I appreciated that this book explored the aftermath for gays in Germany after the war. It was quite appalling to hear that many Nazis were persecuted for their treatment of Jewish people, but their treatment of gay men was not part of the charges or discussed. This lack of recognition resulted in many victims not telling their story.
•The book tackles a tough topic in a easily digestible format but leaves the door open for further exploration.
•The length of the book was perfect as an introduction to this topic.

What I did not like:
•The narrator refers to photos and graphs throughout the audiobook and describes them. I’m not sure why they did this for the audiobook as many people would just be listening and not have a book to reference.
•The focus of this book was primarily on the persecution of gay and bisexual men. The book does discuss the lesbian experience during this time but does not discuss transgender people who were also targeted by the Nazis. I would have liked to know more about this group as well.

I highly recommend this audiobook as it is a fantastic introduction to this topic. I consider myself rather well-read on World War 2 and I did not know anything in this book aside from the meaning of the pink triangle. I found it an incredibly informative and important piece of LGBTQIA history.

ARC provided to me by Second Story Press, via Net Galley, in exchange for an honest review.

BrandedbythePinkTriangle by @kensetterington is a short, sobering audiobook about the gay men persecuted, imprisoned, tortured, and murdered by the Nazis during WWII. It is a subject I hadnt encountered when pondering on the horrible plight of those who suffered in concentration camps. It is mentioned, however briefly, how many different people, including romas, political prisoners, and homosexuals, or those aiding the jewish people, were also rounded up, however, there is so much that is not discussed about it. The shame, the inability for the public (back then) to acknowledge the suffering of homosexuals because back then, it was a crime in Germany. It took the German government more than 40 years to acknowledge the suffering of gay men at the hands of the Nazis. Almost none that survived ever received any compensation. To have to admit that you were incarcerated due to your sexual preference was not something that many wanted to speak on, fearing further humiliation and disdain from the general public.
I never knew that anyone other than the jewish population were ordered to wear symbols of color on their clothes to help "identify" the cause of their imprisonment. These men with pink downward triangles were repeatedly made targets of humilation and torture. They were believed to have been spared immediate extermination to be forced in labor and torture by the nazis. I have great sympathy for them, the jewish people, the Romas, handicapped, and all those who were imprisoned and this makes me want to learn more about those stories that were never taught to me, never highlighted, never spoken of, for so many years. It makes me want to read #thepinktriangle and learn more, although bleak and horrific, it is important that we all #neverforget the #holocaust and the many many fellow human beings tortured and murdered just for being who they were. No crimes, just BEING was your crime. My heart breaks and my mind rebels for them all!
#neveragain

I enjoyed learning about the Pink Triangle men through this book. The author completed extensive research for this book which showed throughout the book.

I wish I was reading versus listening to this book though so that I could have viewed the pictures and tables.

If you want to know more about the holocaust and how gay men were treated during that time then this is a great book for you.

I got an ARC of this audiobook.

I am fascinated and horrified by the Holocaust. It is not uncommon for me to sit completely still for a ten hour documentary about the construction of a single camp. I devour the media. I go to the talks and movie screenings of survivors. In the hundreds of hours of reading, watching, and listening I feel like I know very little about what happened to the gay men of the Holocaust.

The thing is, most media focuses on Jewish victims and survivors. This makes sense. There were millions and their stories need to be told and remembered. The few things I know about gay men have come from seeking it out. It never just appeared, outside of a mention that gay men were involved. The numbers, the facts, the history, nothing is delved into. I have a single book that focuses on gay men, it is more dense and definitely aimed at adults. This book is aimed at YA, it is very much watered down. I am not saying there is not references to horrific things, but they are breezed over to focus on social aspects and the survivors. This is not a bad method of telling the story, but it also felt like a disservice. I was excited to see that there was coverage of Jewish gay men, gay men in occupied territories, and gay men in Germany. They were treated differently and this was a good distinction to make. It gave a more complex look into why the Nazi party looked down on gay men.

The author focuses only on gay men. He mentions lesbians in passing and goes as far to say they are not victims. Having to deny who you are in threat of punishment and submitting to what amounts to rape for your own survival sounds like being a victim to me. There is also the issue of trans people only being mentioned in passing in the chapters on recent advancements in queer rights. Trans people were also victims, they were labeled as homosexual and treated as such, if they had not already gotten their paperwork changed to reflect their gender. The Stonewall Riot was not the first riot, nor was it started by gay men. That riot and the predecessor the Compton Cafeteria Riot were started by black trans women, sex workers, and gay men. It felt like the author often erased other identities in his effort to focus on gay men. Even a single sentence, like I did above, about trans people’s treatment would have made the book more complete and would have shown a true effort to stop the erasure of queer suffering in the Holocaust.

The narrator took a bit getting used to. His voice is a bit like one of my favorite video series that is a comedy, so I had to adjust to not expecting inappropriate sex jokes from appearing in the middle of the narration. The narrator didn’t have a lot of life in his voice and often felt monotonous. He didn’t have a bad voice, but it was not the best voice I have heard for an audiobook.

Despite my issues with the book, it is an important book. The history of gay men in the Holocaust is so rarely given attention and they are so often only mentioned in passing or in a footnote. I both understand and don’t understand the mention of the It Gets Better Campaign. It really adds nothing to the book. It doesn’t show the change in rights. The author also refers to countries that don’t have gay rights like the US or England as less than other countries. I forget the exact word, but it was something like “uninformed” or something that implied inferiority. Yet, ignores the fact that things like gay marriage are not the end all be all of gay rights. So the idea that things are better (and the the US, Canada, and the UK are the best) is true (and relative). Trans people are still left to die instead of being allowed to access services in the US. Black trans women are still killed and their killers are getting away with it, while the media goes out of its way to deny that the person was trans. Gay people are being denied adoptions. Trans people get their children taken away from them by the court systems because they are trans, so therefore unfit parents. I can go on and on about how things are still not great, so yes things are better but not great. Things are better if you are a well off, white gay man who can afford to go to college. Yes, queer people in the US don’t fear concentration camps. Things have gotten better, but there is still a need for a fight. The book mentions a bit about the fight the survivors had to face just to get recognition. They just started getting recognition in my lifetime, yet they are still just that footnote. The happier ending of “things are better now!” just doesn’t sit right with me as it is not the full story.