The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

William L. Shirer

Oct 2011 · RosettaBooks

About this ebook

National Book Award Winner: The definitive account of Nazi Germany and “one of the most important works of history of our time” (The New York Times).
 
When the Third Reich fell, it fell swiftly. The Nazis had little time to destroy their memos, their letters, or their diaries. William L. Shirer’s sweeping account of the Third Reich uses these unique sources, combined with his experience living in Germany as an international correspondent throughout the war.
 
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich earned Shirer a National Book Award and continues to be recognized as one of the most important and authoritative books about the Third Reich and Nazi Germany ever written. The diaries of propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels, as well as evidence and other testimony gained at the Nuremberg Trials, could not have found more artful hands.
 
Shirer gives a clear, detailed, and well-documented account of how it was that Adolf Hitler almost succeeded in conquering the world. With millions of copies in print, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich is a chilling and illuminating portrait of mankind’s darkest hours.
 
“A monumental work.” —Theodore H. White

Ratings and reviews

Herein lies the life story of not only a person but also a country which reached its peak and fell to its deepest nadir. Shrier woves a wonderful web pieced together by his excellent research and German efficiency of the 1000 year Reich. It is a must read for any history buff who wish to get an idea about one of the worst period of human history.

A good book. This book covers a lot about Hitler's personal life and his rise to power with incredible detail. Unfortunately, in the WW2 chapters while there's useful informations but it's not much also this is a narrative story so if you expect a military operations discussed in detail than you'll be disappointed. Shirer in WW2 chapters is heavily reliant on Halder's diary and memoirs which isn't good. This book is also quite outdated in information. Btw I only read the physical book of this not the ebook.

What a history lesson! We all should acknowledge the fact that people can be misled and betrayed by the so called leaders of their governments. This is testimony to what Nazism started as and what it became and thankfully ended. I am appalled by what I've learned in the weeks of reading this horrific account of human history of such an incredible country and people as Germany. May this world someday learn peace and love, free of hatred and bigotry!

About the author

William Shirer was originally a foreign correspondent for the Chicago Tribune and was the first journalist hired by Edward R. Murrow for what would become a team of journalists for CBS radio. Shirer distinguished himself and quickly became known for his broadcasts from Berlin, accounting the rise of the Nazi dictatorship through the first year of World War II. Shirer was the first of "Edward R. Murrow's Boys"--broadcast journalists--who provided news coverage during World War II and afterward. It was Shirer who broadcast the first uncensored eyewitness account of the annexation of Austria. Shirer is best known for his books The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, which has seen millions of copies in print and is considered a seminal work on the Nazi party and the war, as well as his book Berlin Diary.