Thirty Four

Thirty Four (2009) by William Hastings Burke explores the life of Albert Göring, the younger, interventionist brother of Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring. The book, although academically referenced, is written in the tradition of New Journalism where the author is embedded in the non-fiction narrative. The reader follows each step of Burke’s personal journey to uncover the life story of the protagonist, Albert Göring.
While sifting through Albert Göring’s case file at the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration in Washington D.C., Burke, a twentysomething Australian, stumbles upon a list that Albert Göring had drafted during his incarceration in Nuremberg. The list documents the thirty-four most prominent individuals Albert Göring had intervened on behalf of. The former chancellor of Austria Dr. Kurt von Schuschnigg, the wife of Franz Lehár, the husband of Henny Porten and Archduke Josef Ferdinand of Austria are some of the most notable members of the list. This list then forms the basis of the author’s research where he travels to eight countries tracking down the members of the list and their own accounts of Albert Göring’s interventions. Running parallel to this strain of the book is the chronological biography of Albert Göring, as well as segments of his brother’s.
Similar to Stasiland by Anna Funder, the book is part historical exploration, part biography, part travelogue.

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