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  • The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

  • A History of Nazi Germany
  • Written by: William L. Shirer
  • Narrated by: Grover Gardner
  • Length: 57 hrs and 11 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (135 ratings)

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The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

Written by: William L. Shirer
Narrated by: Grover Gardner
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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.
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

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)

What listeners say about The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

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Almost an Anthropological Account of an Aeon!

I wanted to read it at least a decade back! The length of the book had scared me! In a way, I have a satisfaction that I 'read' it at the opportune time.

There is a misgiving about 'history', that it's recorded by the victors & written against the vanquished. The author, Mr. William Shirer is a war journalist. I always had the scepticism whether he would do justice to it and above all, this book is humongous by any standard! I was pleasantly surprised that the author himself is well aware of his limitations and he approached this tome with adequate trepidation but at the end he has aced it! And that's captured in his afterword!

The book captures history as impartially as possible and as factual & factful as possible! It's definitely not judgmental though the author has all the luxury!

In the process, the book turns out to be an Anthropological exploration of the Third Reich! The author has always relied on available unbiased facts and records. Many a time, well ... almost always, there must be conflict in the records and accounts due to the people's own personal foibles. ... And the dramatis personae, especially Hitler, Himmler & Goebbels had taken the art of propaganda to its zenith! So much so that the reality & propaganda was indistinguishable for both Hitler & Goebbels till their very end!

Especially, the most memorable aspect of the book is rejoicing of Roosevelt's death as a Divine signal by Hitler in his frail mind. The humanity's suffering under this unapologetically diabolic & plunderous regime, though extremely painful, is recorded with precision and is supported with numbers & facts as shared and available. The impartiality and neutrality of the author is highly commendable!

I thoroughly absorbed it and gained a lot from it!

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Amazing insight into second world war

This book kept me glued to my headphones till the end. It has an amazing description of the psyche of Hitler as well as others in Nazi Germany.
I have read many books on the second world war and this is one of the best. As it is written with references to original documents, it is authoritative and honest.

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A Masterpiece !

An excellent account, fact based and truly objective, well paced, well narrated. Hats off to the author and narrator for this real life account of dark days of world history.

Before starting it, I was worried if the lengthy book could hold interest and attention. However, I found myself immersed in it to the end though..

Grotesque and emotive as the details can be on this subject, the objectivity of author and narrator are beyond par. Author's occasional account of his own experiences of living in Germany of war time add the undocumented details and bring life and authenticity to the narrative .

Thoroughly recommend it to anyone interested in the history of this era ..

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Loved it

I loved the book. Please keep in mind this is a long book to read.

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Brilliant

Peace of art and a must read. The answers to the present lies in the questions of the past.

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A haunting masterpiece

This is like one long movie that you struggle to get through, simply because of vast canvas of characters and scope. However, this is worth it. The meticulous research and references, lend it an air of authenticity, that's missing in other times. Finally, the pure evil that man could inspire in an entire nation, is a bone chilling reminder of how gullible political followers, tend to be. A compulsory reading lesson for all future generations.

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Gripping! amazing, aweful, breath taking narrative

it's a great story, a master piece. painful that it is, but adds to the experience of the reader, strengthens beliefs in principles. a must read for any student of history. Fantabulous, fantastic

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past unforgettable

The narration is nice. The history well explained as if eyewitness. A must listen audio book to know the result of monarchy.

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Unprecedented, scholarly and excruciating.

A masterpiece of scholarly work, unprecedented in it's approach and excruciatingly detailed, as it is mostly referred from not works of other historians but actual captured nazi documents.

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Captivating and comprehensive historical account

Mr. Gardner has done excellent job narrating this historical account. The book although being an historical account isn't devoid of emotion and Mr. Gardner does a great job capturing this.

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