Andreas E. Mach’s Monument to Memory: Jüdische Familienunternehmer in Hitlers München

A store damaged during Kristallnacht. Photo: German Federal Archives via Wikimedia Commons.

In an age of slogans and shortcuts, Andreas E. Mach has written a meticulous, unflinching book. Jüdische Familienunternehmer in Hitlers München (“Jewish Family Entrepreneurs in Hitler’s Munich”) is not only a history of businesses — it is a map back to a city that once existed, and a ledger of how it was unmade.

Mach’s canvas is Munich from the 19th century through the aftermath of 1945. His method is documentary and patient...