History and what it is...

Haffer, in justifying his story, reveals what real history is:

I am convinced that by telling my private, unimportant story I am adding an important, unrecognized facet to contemporary German and European history -- more significant and more important for the future than if I were to disclose who set fire to the Reichstag, or what Hitler really said to Rohm.

What is history, and where does it take place?

...It may seem a paradox, but it is nonetheless the simple truth, to say that on the contrary, the decisive historical events take place among us, the anonymous masses. The most powerful dictators, ministers, and generals are powerless against the simultaneous mass decisions taken individually and almost unconsciously by the population at large. It is characteristic of these decisions that they do not manifest themselves as mass movements or demonstrations. Mass assemblies are quite incapable of independent action. Decisions that influence the course of history arise out of the individual experiences of thousands or millions of individuals. (182-3)