Informative about the roots and current struggles of Antifa groups. However, the first chapter reads like a Trotsky tract with an eye-crossing rapid fire of political faction names both foreign and domestic making the read a little bit of a slog but it is necessary for political grounding when moving on to the more interesting second chapter and beyond. The same problem is apparent in later chapters but not to the degree as the first and the reading off of org names is necessary. The paragraph-long anecdote at the beginning of chapter 6 was enlightening and I found this quote a good measure of Antifa itself:
You fight them by writing letters and making phone calls so you don't have to fight them with fists. You fight them with fists so you don't have to fight them with knives. You fight them with knives so you don't have to fight them with guns. You fight them with guns so you don't have to fight them with tanks.
-Murray from Baltimore
There were many pertinent historical and unfortunately current examples as to why Antifa is a necessary force on the stage of modern politics. Overall I would recommend this to anyone with a passing interest in Antifa especially those fed up with the far right and Trump emboldened racist groups. ( )

the book is a bit overambitious and overreaches in its claims to b a comprehensive history, but its still v good ( )

Incredibly uneven. Early pre-WWII history section and last two or three chapters about current antifa strategies are solid. Strangely skips Spanish Civil War and German anti-Nazi resistance in favor of long retelling of spotty, marginal antifa actions through 70s-2000s. Completely ignores dealing with the anti-WTO black bloc actions in Seattle. A slog to get through and fairly disappointing. ( )

Praxis and history on the run. An excellent primer. ( )

CONTENT SUMMARY:
This is a book for those who are curious and want to learn more about anti-fascism but aren't very familiar with it. I saw the book as separated into two main categories, the history of antifascist struggle in Europe and USA and an analysis of antifascist philosophy and tactics.

THOUGHTS:
In the first part there are a few key nations that are in focus. Germany, Italy, England, France, Greece and the United States. Antifascist struggle in other parts of Europe is also examined but not to the same extent and depth as those nations mentioned. Even though I really enjoyed reading and learning more about the history of anti-fascist struggle i struggled while reading it. Bray doesn't shy away from the details of historic events making this part of the book a very tough read, especially if you try to keep all the acronyms straight that the author throws at you. I got around that by in my mind substituting the acronyms with "the nazis" and "the antifascists" making it easier on my head.

In the second part Bray delves into the philosophical aspects of anti-fascism. Unfortunately it doesn't delve deeper than responding to the most basic arguments against militant anti-fascism like "shutting down nazis makes you a nazi" or "just ignore them, attacking them only gives them the attention they want" and others in the same vein. I can imagine it would be very useful for those who are only starting out learning about anti-fascism but there is little or no new insights to be had if you are anything else than completely unfamiliar with the subject. Despite this I still found this part useful since it put in words feelings and thoughts I haven't quite been able to articulate in a clear manner.

The book concludes with a collection of advice given by the antifascists Bray interviewed in the process of collecting material for his work. They range from obvious to thought-provoking. Some contradict each other, some are heart-warming while others are bone chilling reminders of the world we live in. A stylish way to wrap up a work that probably has no real natural ending. ( )