Angela Merkel’s long-anticipated memoir, “Freedom,” already translated into 30 languages, could not be timed more perfectly. The current German government, under Chancellor Olaf Scholz — whose three-year reign has been characterized by two consecutive years of economic recession,

Angela Merkel has set out to secure her reputation in a 700-page memoir in which the former German chancellor defends her 16 years in office. Critics increasingly believe that her leadership led Germany to chronic underinvestment, an underfunded military, and the growth of the far right.

In her memoir, the former German chancellor reflects on her political rise and defends her record as the outlook for her country turns grim.