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)

Interesting contemporary insight

Compelling firsthand account, author's analysis weakened somewhat by obvious sentimentality toward communists and "real" socialism.

AMAZING. 57 hours but it did not feel long at all.

I would definitely recommend it. I enjoy this book very much. Very informative. I love that the author was in Germany during nazi times.

Fantastic

Absolutely the best audible book I have listened to. It lays out complex history in an understandable and compelling way. Beautifully written and the narrator is perfect. A long book that I enjoyed every minute, and incredibly relevant - in a frightening way - to today.

wow

An astonishing work. Content is matched with expert narrator. So richly detailed and engagingly written.

Fascinating!

Anyone interested in history and, more specifically WWII, owes it to him/herself this unparalleled account of the rise and fall from a man who was there, lived through it, and perforned the most meticulous research I have seen in any book in my lifetime. This book was published in 1960 (one year before I was born) and I remember having seen it in my father's library for many, many years, and promising myself I would read it someday, knowing by the awe my father (the man who inspired in me a love for reading and history) spoke about it that one day I would read it. Now, 60 years after its publication (an age I will reach in July 11 of this year) I finally fulfilled my promised to myself, and I couldn't be more adamant in my recommendation of this book. In all my years, I have never read anything so well researched, so powerful, so important and demanding of your attention than this honest, incredibly powerful and poignant account of one of the worst ordeals our world has endured. You consider yourself a history buff, a person who knows why the world is the way it is and brought it here? I'm going to propose to you, you can't be until you have read this book, and realize all the parallels to things that are happening now. Thank you William Shirer for giving us this amazing, unparalleled account of what the world went through because important, powerful men refused to do what was right (and neccessary). Thank you dad. I finally read that book in your library thar was too long for me to read, and too important for me to ignore. I love you.

One of the great works of history of the 20th century.

This is one of my favorite books. I have read it several times and the audiobook version is superb. Highly recommended. Any student of World War 2 has to read this book!

Must-listen for military history buffs

This epic history is a well known classic, and the details it provides are fascinating. What I enjoyed most about this narrative though, was that the author was a news correspondent in Germany during this time period. He witnessed first-hand, the rise and fall of the Third Reich from the inside, and his accounts of speeches and rallies he was present at are historical gold. It's a long listen, but I was riveted for all 57 hrs.

Amazing

This book is an absolute masterpiece, but be forewarned it is NOT for the faint of heart. There were sections in here that literally made me sick to my stomach. Unimaginable horror. How could things like this have happened? But they did.

But as a work of history it’s one of the best I’ve ever found.

The most thorough, thoughtful and well researched book on the topic

I have never had the time or ambition to read this lengthy book but I was happy to see the Audible version. I enjoyed the book immensely from start to finish. This is quite simply THE authoritative book on the subject. Well written, meticulously researched and read beautifully by the narrator- I highly recommend this Audible version.

Tremendously important book

This book, although daunting at 57 hours, was so educational that I came away with such a better understanding of how things played out in the early parts of the 20th century. What struck me the most, was the reluctance of the military men to respect and follow Hitler. They had opportunities to take Germany on a different course, but sat on their hands.
The narrator was fantastic. I felt like I was sitting in a chair with a family member reading to me. Great rhythm and often times, I laughed at how he described something.

I thought I knew a lot about WW2, but this book exposed me to newer thoughts that helped me understand the whole picture.