Book Reviews earned him the Nobel prize, and then he suddenly switched to completely devote himself to chemical warfare. This major decision to abandon nitrogen fixation and its economical and military consequences was decisive not only for Haber's own life but for that of millions of others, tragically also including the victims of gassing in concentration camps. However, his reasons are discussed in two short paragraphs as being a result of differences with Walther Rathenau! It may be unfair to criticize this lack of information, because more may just not be available, but it is most unsatisfactory to be otherwise overwhelmed with so many details about Haber's life when a most significant transition is so neglected.
The triumphs and sufferings, the glory and the disgrace, the rigid attitudes and the compromises of this career are laid out in almost too much detail. The structure of the book, with chapters arranged in part chronologically and in part dedicated to various subject areas, makes many trips between different chapters a necessity. As it is presented, this book is not just about Fritz Haber, it is a detailed and fascinating account of the political and technological developments in Europe up to the middle 1930s, of the politics and practices in the German academic world of that time, of the early years of the now Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, all surrounding Haber's public and private life. This well researched "biography" will serve very well as a broad source of information and makes good reading. It may also be read as a warning on how not to become another Fritz Haber.