The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany by William L. Shirer (PDF)

Description

The fiftieth anniversary edition of the National Book Award–winning bestseller that is the definitive study of Adolf Hitler, the rise of Nazi Germany, the Holocaust, and World War II. This special edition now features a new introduction by Ron Rosenbaum, author of Explaining Hitler and How the End Begins.No other powerful empire ever bequeathed such mountains of evidence about its birth and destruction as the Third Reich. When the bitter war was over, and before the Nazis could destroy their files, the Allied demand for unconditional surrender produced an almost hour-by-hour record of the nightmare empire built by Adolph Hitler. This record included the testimony of Nazi leaders and of concentration camp inmates, the diaries of officials, transcripts of secret conferences, army orders, private letters—all the vast paperwork behind Hitler’s drive to conquer the world. The famed foreign correspondent and historian William L. Shirer, who had watched and reported on the Nazis since 1925, spent five and a half years sifting through this massive documentation. The result is a monumental study that has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of one of the most frightening chapters in the history of mankind. Here is the complete story of Hitler’s empire, one of the most important stories ever told, written by one of the men best equipped to write it. This worldwide bestseller has been acclaimed as the definitive book on Nazi Germany; it is a classic work.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐This review is not of the excellent scholarly work of William Shirer but of the Kindle version of this book. Clearly the book was converted electronically without even cursory proofreading. Problems that I encountered include, but are not limited to:* Readability is impaired by the incorrect placement of commas instead of periods and apparent random insertion of periods in the middle sentences, usually due to incorrect interpretation of a comma but in some cases this appears to be random insertion.* There are many instances of random incorrect capitalization of words within a sentence.* Many words are not correctly recognized. For example “Uve” is printed in the Kindle conversion when the correct word would have been “Live” or the conversion interpreted “attack” to be “a tack” with the apparent two spaces between the two incorrect words.* Since this was a conversion from the original printed book most, if not all, of the hyphenation that was used for word wrapping now appears in the middle of a line instead of being combined into the correct single word.* Footnote hyperlinks are often misplaced and in one chapter the footnote links were not even present. The hyperlinks for footnotes often overflow in the text and in the worst extreme an entire paragraph is converted to hyperlink meaning that a user would not be able to select individual words, lines, etc. This version also attempts to hyperlink certain key names, locations and events to the Index, however the hyperlinked text far too often is only for part of the word or phrase which is extremely annoying when part of the word and/or phrase is in blue and the rest is in normal font color.* Many letters are incorrectly translated – most of these are the confusion between “1,” “I” and lower case “L” but as noted above this occurs with other words or letters.* Despite the updates to the Kindle for Android software, page numbering was not available, just the not formally defined position.Overall the book as originally written and published deserves 5 stars, or more, but the Kindle conversion is what I am rating at 2 stars. It would have been a single star but having previously read the 30th anniversary printed version I am better able to make the corrections within my mind although it sometimes takes several re-readings of a sentence or paragraph to determine what was really written. Correction – after previewing my review changed the rating to a single star.What is needed is to have each and every conversion of a book from print professionally proof-read before releasing this. To date I have only read two Kindle books and both share the same poor quality of conversion to Kindle format.What is Amazon’s policy if a Kindle book is eventually corrected and replaced with a more readable version? Do previous purchasers receive the correct version via sync and are they informed of this in the event that they were unable to finish the poorly converted version?Another problem is that the dates published for virtually all titles are only the date of release in Kindle version and do not reflect the actual date of release of the actual text being read or the edition. Others previously noted that this poor quality conversion was not either the 50th anniversary edition as indicated in the product description or the updated 30th anniversary edition but an apparent conversion of an earlier edition. While this sometimes can be gleaned if one carefully reads each and every word of the description but a more honest presentation of this information would be to make that a separate line item in the product details, not buried in the product description or in reviews.Correction – I have read three Kindle books and all share the same problems although one was to a much lesser degree.UPDATE: I copied and pasted this review into a support email to Amazon using their webform. They responded asking that I provide citation to the problems and their locations but I am not willing to be an unpaid volunteer proofreader. My reply was limited to a single example of most of the problems that I reported but the problems are spread throughout the entire Kindle version fo this book as well as another that I wrote a review of. I am reading these books on a 10-inch tablet using Kindle for Android.UPDATE: April 26, 2012 – Amazon still hasn’t taken any action except to find or manufacture over 350 additional reviews to dilute the negative reviews of the extremely poor kindle conversion. Somehow the number of reviews went from 31 to 385 in just 3 days. What a coincidence!UPDATE: May 2, 2012 – received a response from Amazon.com’s Executive Customer Relations. It stated that there was an update in progress by the publisher with a subsequent conversion to Kindle format by Amazon which should hopefully correct many of the errors that so many of us have reported, a time frame for replacement was not offered which is probably best as unforeseen delays would artificially create ill feelings.. They also responded favorably to a suggestion to clearly indicate the edition or date of publication as this is very important for historical books. Finally, the addition of so many extra reviews is being attributed by Amazon to merging reviews of other versions. While I may not agree with the last as the reviews of various editions were previously mixed before the Big Bang occurred it is also possible that the complaints and poor reviews may have triggered some of this as well as correction of existing errors. Again, Thank You to everyone that chose to post accurate feedback of the problems with the Kindle edition.UPDATE: August 8, 2012 – I could not get the version to update including many instances of deleting the title and finally Amazon forced a send. It took three more tries but I now have a version with page numbering. Having so recently labored through the defective version I am unable to re-read this new version to determine if most of the errors have been corrected or new ones added. Getting this updated required significant complaining finally resulting in addressing an email to Jeff Bezos and associated reassignment to higher level customer service representatives as the lower level representives declined to initiate investigative action.FINAL UPDATE (April 10, 2013): I managed to reread the entire Kindle edition and the majority of the incorrect words and character mistranslation (or scanning) has been corrected. The problems with footnotes and text hyperlinks was not addressed at all such as partial words being highlighted (and therefore in a different color, etc.) remain, selection and assignment of hyperlinks to such vital single characters such as a “c” and “h,” incorrect hyphenation because the words had been hyphenated in the print editions for word wrapping, random insertion of periods (although reduced), incorrect translation of the number one v. the lower case “l” v. uppercase letter “I” remain, etc. Words that are only partially hyperlinked therefore have a tendency to take the reader to a completely unrelated place in the index. Of course no one can forget the 114 Uves lost as a result of the torpedoing of the Athenia. I will not change my rating but when on sale this volume is acceptable with the understanding that this is the 30th Anniversary Edition, not the 50th which would be more updated. Amazon somehow fails to indicate the actual edition despite a commitment from Amazon management that the edition and actual date published would be added to the product details for historical books since that would be extremely important. The product description states “This first ever e-book edition is published on the 50th anniversary of this iconic work” but that is misleading, at best, as the book clearly identifies this as being the 30th Anniversary Edition (see the Afterward which is dated May 1990). It is extremely sad and disheartening to see that such a great and important work has been so poorly and carelessly formatted into e-book format eveen after so many complaints and communications with Amazon staff. I can only hope that the heirs of William Shirer will somehow run across this information and perhaps apply appropriate pressure to force this great historical work to be corrected, updated to the 50th Anniversary Edition and the false or misleading advertising be corrected.UPDATE November 20, 1019: After several years I decided to attempt to re-read the Kindle edition and was absolutely amazed to note that virtually all of the errors and issues have been corrected. I was at least 1/3 of the way through when I made the observation that I had not noted any errors or issues and it wasn’t until I was nearing the end that I finally noticed two issues and these were extremely minor and unlikely to be even noticed by most. I greatly appreciate that this extremely important historical work has not only been corrected but considering its length the almost complete absence of any errors seems a near impossible feat. I posted a separate thank you to Rosetta Books replying to a comment that they made four years ago.

⭐One of the most well known historical pieces of work from the latter half of the twentieth century, and for good reason. I confess I’ve always been intimidated by this book. Simply the shear size of this volume (over 1200 pages) was always scary – and no pictures to boot! Well, for those who know how owning an Amazon Kindle works, you know that from time to time, you can find great bargains to add to your library. So when this one was advertised at $1.99 for a period of time time, who could pass that up? Certainly not me. It always helps when Amazon has a large number of positive customer reviews as well of a particular piece. Of course, I wasn’t sure how much I would enjoy the volume, nor if I would even have the tenacity to finish such a formidable body of work.One of the ways I can tell when I have thoroughly enjoyed a historical piece, is when, upon finishing the book, I want more. Such was the case here. For starters, the most appealing factor of this book, is it was written by journalist William Shirer, who was actually there in Germany, covering the stories, as they happened. The book is so well written, that it was very easy for me to forget that the book was written and released back in 1961. Having a first-hand witness to so much of the pomp and ceremony in Germany during the volatile 1930s is a huge asset for the reader.There are so many aspects and side tales of this time in history, that it’s very easy for any author to go off on a rabbit trail, and lose focus of the topic at hand. Although this might actually be desirable, the author does a great job of keeping the main thing (The Third Reich) the main thing. Example: As World War II starts, some of the events are told in thorough detail, yet other events seemed to be glossed over (i.e. Japan’s involvement) and you almost feel cheated. Then, of course, you have to remind yourself that this is not a retrospective of the War, yet only Germany’s involvement as it pertains to Hitler and his band of devout goons.Speaking of Hitler, he’s obviously the main character in this tale. And again, there are times when we want more. I’ve never read a book that detailed Hitler’s early years as much as this one (although I’m sure they exist), so it’s commendable when Shirer shows discipline within the narrative. Then, when we get to the “Fall” of the Third Reich, it isn’t told in as much detail as I would have liked. It happened very quickly, as history tells us, yet I would have loved to have much more details around the Nuremberg trials. Again, though, I’m sure that episode warrants a book by itself.You could make the argument that, more than 50 years after this book was first released, that there really isn’t anything new within these pages for the modern reader, and that’s true. In fact, I’m sure there have been many revelations around the atrocities of the parties since then that were unknown barely 15 years after the walls of the intended 1,000 year Reich came crashing down. The detail, however, is incredibly impressive. The only part that seemed to be a bit dry was during the 1920s when the Nazi party was coming into power. The Nazis were battling all of the other, existing political entities at the time to try to bring Germany out of its embarrassment and ruin after its defeat during the first World War.Also worth mentioning is that the hatred of minorities, German arrogance, and the desire for a “pure” race through Darwinian methods were not Adolph Hitler’s original ideas. Sadly, such behavior was very commonplace for centuries amongst many. Hitler was just the only one who could pull off such a thing. Yes, the man was a lunatic. But sadly, he was a very smart lunatic. So we witness Germany becoming a “great nation” once again under Hitler’s direction, while most citizens simply look the other way when Jews, Gypsies and Communists are brutally humiliated, ostracized, and eventually killed in brutal form and fashion that was hard for many to believe shortly after the events were revealed.And, yes, a detailed account of The Third Reich simply cannot be told without details of the Holocaust. For me, anyway, I was a bit relieved that Shirer only spent one chapter on the details of such monstrosities. I accept that it’s an important part of the story, but it sickens and saddens me to read the details of such events. When you read about the sadistic behaviors of many of the “doctors” and the bizarre experiments done to human beings, you simply can’t only fault a maniac such as Hitler. Sadly, evil is much more widespread.Speaking of evil, it must be said, that there were several of Hitler’s top generals that realized the man had an elevator that didn’t quite go to the top floor. There was a lot of talk and planning of assassinating the former Bavarian Corporal, yet for the most part, these plans never came to fruition (to be blunt – the plotters chickened out), and when there was a serious attempt by Von Stauffenberg and company (the Tom Cruise character in the movie Valkyrie), it, sadly, failed, and the perpetrators were brutally tortured and killed for their actions.So as the war progresses, things which were at first rosy for Hitler, start to falter. Hitler, being the megalomaniac he was, simply refused to acknowledge that his superior race could ever be defeated, so he pressed on, ignoring his leaders, and letting his empire slowly fall to ruin. We see his cronies (Goehring, Himmler, Goebells, et. al) feverishly holding on to some sort of twisted ideology that the Reich will prevail, whereas cooler heads seemed to know the terrible destiny that awaits (I was not aware that General Rommel aka “The Desert Fox” was not a supporter of Hitler, and was part of the talks to have him eliminated). There are a lot of characters here, yet careful reading allows the uneducated reader enough detail to separate the wheat from the chaff in determining who the true crackpots are amongst the major players of the evil Axis.A great piece of work, yet a sad reminder of the evil that exists in the hearts of many people, and the result of when such behaviors are unchecked.

⭐An immensely detailed history of a dysfunctional, criminal & totally corrupt collection of mentally deficient, power mad people, who led a not unwilling nation into an horrific slide to destruction, both physically & economically.The book also details the shortcomings of the so called Allied politicians & military leaders, who must take an large amount of the blame for thesuccess of the Nazis in rising to such giddy heights of power.A must read for anyone interested in those dreadful years.The author has a perfect grasp of the events, both as an eyewitness & having taken details from captured documents & writes in an easily read manner.

⭐Beware, this is a very long tome but essential reading for anyone interested in the Nineteen-thirties in general and the rise of Hitler in particular. Very detailed (the author was an American journalist present at most of the events described, who knew many of the personalities involved.) Beware, I got very angry at some of the background to the appeasement years – it’s not a comfortable read.

⭐First read this 30 years ago and have just re read it. It remains essential reading for anyone who has a real interest in the subject matter. Although a long read its written in an easily accessible journalistic style made more poignant by the fact that he was a personal observer of the machinations of the Nazi regime.It has dated in places inevitably as material is now available that wasnt available to him. In particular Shirer significantly underestimates Albert Speers role in perpetuating the war by over a year which was second only to Hitlers. I would recommend Gitta Serenys masterpiece ‘Albert Speer his battle with truth’ as an excellent companion book for this one.One book covers the corruption of a nations soul. The other the corruption of a mans soul.Each are intrinsically linked.

⭐This is one of the few books i didn’t finish because they felt too good. I always delayed learning about WWII since it was too “mainstream” for me, and when i read this book i was completely captivated. The Author was in the thick of it in Berlin, so you can get first person information about the situation in Nazi Germany and the Rise of Adolf Hitler.Since i know how it ends (lol), i didn’t read the last few pages, which is something i’ve noticed myself doing with a lot of books i enjoyed. I don’t know why, i stopped reading books when protagonists were on their deathbeds, and when nations were about to be destroyed, probably because i was too into the books.So if you want a vivid book, this one is for you

⭐The author – an American journalist – lived in Nazi Germany throughout the Hitler years, until 1939. This is a superb, detailed, fact-backed and analytical account of a period whose consequences we all still live with. I cannot recommend this highly enough. I particularly enjoyed the parts of the book where (unchained by today’s wokeism and PC) the author tries to explain how it was possible for Hitler to succeed so completely in Germany, rather than anywhere else. Capital!

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