A cautionary tale for current events, LIEBESTRASSE is a quick read that is perfect for those who enjoy LGBT works or historical fiction and highlights an oft overlooked element of Nazi persecution. ( )

An American man, Samuel Wells, travels to 1950s Berlin and recalls his first visit in the 1930s when the cultural renaissance of the Weimar Republic was giving way to the rise of the oppressive Nazi regime. As the title Liebestrasse, or "Love Street," implies this is a romance, but a melancholic one, where 1930s Wells is falling in love with another man but 1950s Wells is dwelling on his regrets.

This historical fiction humanizes the loss of life and emotional toll caused by hateful Nazi policies against gay people. The story and art could be a bit more detailed for my tastes, but they're still quite good. ( )

La storia di un amore impossibile agli albori della seconda guerra mondiale. ( )

(Full disclosure: I received a fee e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Trigger warning for homophobic and anti-Semitic violence.)

In the early days of Nazi Germany, Samuel and Philip meet and fall in love. Samuel is an American visiting Berlin to help his boss open an office overseas; Philip is young man of means who travels in Bohemian circles. As their relationship deepens, so too does the schism in Europe.

Twenty years later, an aging Samuel returns to Berlin, ostensibly to procure some Holocaust-era artwork for his museum. But he has another goal as well: find out what happened to Philip, who was kidnapped and disappeared by the SS so many years ago. Haunted by the memory of Philip, whom he never stopped loving, Samuel sees his beloved - and the city they once called home - in the ruins of Berlin. He also grapples with survivor's guilt: as an American, he was simply sent home for his "deviancy," and was thus spared Philip's fate.

LIEBESTRASSE is a powerfully evocative look at the creep of fascism, just as relevant today as ninety years ago. ("We thought it was empty rhetoric...but they are doing everything they said they would," Samuel notes wryly in one panel.) It's a bittersweet story, wherein a charming budding romance is juxtaposed with raw, ugly moments of hatred. Though, thankfully, the Nazi imagery and violence is kept to a minimum, allowing Samuel and Philip's story to take center stage.

The artwork is lovely and complements the story nicely. The back matter contains notes from the creators on the comic's genesis, as well as their research, which includes trips to Germany. (The Memorial to Homosexuals Persecuted under Nazism, inaugurated in 2008, is especially poignant/horrifying.) ( )

Well, that was utterly heartbreaking. I will go sob in a corner now. ( )