The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

A History of Nazi Germany

By: William L. Shirer

Narrated by: Grover Gardner

Length: 57 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Since its publication in 1960, William L. Shirer’s monumental study of Hitler’s German empire has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of the twentieth century’s blackest hours. The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich offers an unparalleled and thrillingly told examination of how Adolf Hitler nearly succeeded in conquering the world. With millions of copies in print around the globe, it has attained the status of a vital and enduring classic.

Now, years after the end of World War II, it may seem incredible that our most valued institutions, and way of life, were threatened by the menace that Hitler and the Third Reich represented. Shirer’s description of events and the cast of characters who played such pivotal roles in defining the course Europe was to take is unforgettable.

Benefiting from his many years as a reporter, and thus a personal observer of the rise of Nazi Germany, and availing himself of some of the 485 tons of documents from the German Foreign Office, as well as countless other diaries, phone transcriptions, and other written records meticulously kept at every level by the Germans, Shirer has put together a brutally objective account of how Hitler wrested political control of Germany, and planned and executed his six-year quest to dominate the world, only to see Germany go down in flames.

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich is a vast, richly rewarding experience for anyone who wants to come to grips with the mysterious question of how this menace to civilization ever came into being, much less was sustained for as long as it was. The answer, unfortunately, is that most of Germany, for a whole host of reasons, embraced Nazism and the fanaticism that Hitler engendered.

©1990 William L. Shirer (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“One of the most important works of history of our time.” ( The New York Times)

”A splendid work of scholarship, objective in method, sound in judgment, inescapable in its conclusions.” ( The New York Times Book Review)

A long read, but you will feel well-informed after

it took me a while to finish, but it was worth it. It's not like other WW2 books, in that the focus is on the political aspects rather than just the military manouverings.

Bias looms but comprehensive & riveting

Critics say this book lacks methodological sound historical analysis which is true in parts, particularly at the beginning (e.g. Lutheranism would eventually create a Hitler, bitter Homosexual bias) yet I think it's clear where these are and one can move on to a narrative that is so comprehensive that it is worth staying with. He knew the men of history as a journalist in Germany so he is scathing in tone but equally this creates a proximity to the characters that other histories fail to achieve. The early years are amazing and an eye opener. Despite years of the History Channel. The end comes quick and obviously the author felt others had covered the key military battles sufficiently enough not to waste too much time but reflect their impact on the system and Hitler. It's long and the names can be difficult to follow, particularly in an audiobook. Well worth the commitment.

Amazing!!! Listen Carefully

Would you consider the audio edition of The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich to be better than the print version?

This is much better than the print edition because it is a long read. There is a lot of information that I wanted to listen to twice. With Audible it was easy to rewind as many times as I needed.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The entire book is riveting for all 57 hours! We all remember that Hitler was evil, but what we forget is all of the details that helped him come to power. People need to wake up before we find ourselves in a similar position. It was haunting at times to listen to and realize that they could very well be talking about events happening today.

Gripping

At first I was dazed my the extensive details provided by the author. As I got further into it, I was amazed of the accounts and the story-telling in such a matter-of-fact way.
Sad, terrible but true this important part of history.

a book that has it all

a most excellent and complete book on Hitler's Germany. I've read as many books as I could get a hold of on Hitler's Germany, and I've watched every documentary I can find on Hitler's Germany. This book contains a nearly complete history of that. However it does lack certain information that we've learned since the fall of the Soviet Union and the opening of their archives. that said, this information was not available to the offer at that time. none the less, it is available to us now. that's my only detracting statement of the book. a thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining story

Comprehensive and compelling

William Shirer (an American journalist) succeeds in his attempt to comprehensively chart the rise and fall of Nazi Germany. Written in 1960, the book is largely based on captured Nazi documents found after the war. The author also includes personal reflections from his time as an American journalist living in Berlin during the 1930s. A warning to potential listeners of this audio book. This is NOT a World War 2 history lesson. I was very surprised to find that this book is about 70% finished before the outbreak of World War 2. Hence the book concentrates mainly on the rise of Nazi Germany and its initial acts of aggression and subsequent appeasement by the Western powers. Consequently, at times I found the middle section of this audiobook rather tedious. I must admit, however, that despite the books length (57 hours) I was still quite engaged for the majority of the time.

Long book

Good historical piece. Very long audio book. Pace moved slowly and methodically thought the material.

Wow

It's hard to describe the incredible quality and power of this work of research. A must read for anyone interested in the events of last century, or how modernity can be corrupted to the utmost evil. The length is more than worth it.

loved it

this book kept me interested and at the edge of my seat even though we know how the war ended.

Ponderous!

Enough detail to keep it fascinating. Organized in such a way that a person with a rather limited history background– – like myself – – could actually follow the progression chronologically. It was horrifying to see all of the times that Hitler might have been stopped were it not for someone's hesitancy. The world indeed has Winston Churchill, Britain and the USA to thank for its survival.