Great Background. I bought this as I am a frequent visitor to Berlin, which is where you will no doubt be required to be to physically assimilate all that is in this book. It is eminently easy to read, citing genuinely interesting corners, with generous historical background to the whys and wherefores of each. Even without being there, the book has provided me with a rich source of material to build up a very detailed perspective on this young, cosmopolitan, historically turbulent, and influential world city. I have not encountered anything similar to compete with it.