These three volumes are part of a series of studies--"Heisse Eisen"--dealing with contemporary and contentious issues in Germany. Ellwein's book is a rather polemical discussion of clericalism in the Federal Republic, in political life and in education. Some of the responses and criticisms of his study are presented in the companion "Kritikspiegel." Uhlig raises the question whether the German Social Democratic Party can play a constructive rôle in the present domestic and international situation. His answer is a very conditional affirmative.