Hermann Wentker is one of Germany's best-known experts on the history of the Cold War. His latest book, running nearly 700 pages, looks at the transformation of Soviet policy toward Germany under Mikhail Gorbachev. He has thoroughly examined all the relevant archives in Germany and analyzed them in detail.
Wentker divides his book into six chronological sections, analyzing Gorbachev's time in office year by year. This approach makes sense, though it results in some repetition. First Wentker analyzes the West and East German assessments of Gorbachev after he took office, with 1986 marked by Chernobyl and the summit in Reykjavik, 1987 by nuclear arms control, 1988 by the advancing Soviet reform policy, 1989 by the peaceful revolutions in East-Central Europe (except Romania) and the opening of the Berlin Wall, and 1990 by German reunification.
In each section, Wentker analyzes the West and East German reactions in great detail, sometimes excessively....