• The Third Reich in Power

  • By: Richard J. Evans
  • Narrated by: Sean Pratt
  • Length: 31 hrs and 58 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (1,211 ratings)

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The Third Reich in Power  By  cover art

The Third Reich in Power

By: Richard J. Evans
Narrated by: Sean Pratt
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Publisher's summary

The definitive account of Germany's malign transformation under Hitler's total rule and the implacable march to war. This magnificent second volume of Richard J. Evans's three-volume history of Nazi Germany was hailed by Benjamin Schwartz of The Atlantic Monthly as "the definitive English-language account... gripping and precise." It chronicles the incredible story of Germany's radical reshaping under Nazi rule. As those who were deemed unworthy to be counted among the German people were dealt with in increasingly brutal terms, Hitler's drive to prepare Germany for the war that he saw as its destiny reached its fateful hour in September 1939.

The Third Reich in Power is the fullest and most authoritative account yet written of how, in six years, Germany was brought to the edge of that terrible abyss.

©2006 Richard J. Evans (P)2010 Gildan Media Corp
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic reviews

“[Evans’s] three-volume history... is shaping up to be a masterpiece. Fluidly narrated, tightly organized and comprehensive." (William Grimes, The New York Times)

What listeners say about The Third Reich in Power

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Well done narrative

Opens your mind to how completely the Nazi Regime entered every corner of the German society

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Thorough and Informative

Incredible detailed insight into the people that not only led the government, but the every day impact on every aspect of German society. A great lesson in what to expect from an authoritarian regime founded only on hatred and cruelty masked by alleged patriotism.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A challenging but rewarding read

I found this second volume in Richard Evans’ “trilogy” very different from the first (“The Coming of the Third Reich), but equally superb. This volume focuses on a mere six and a half years, from Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor in early 1933 to the outbreak of war in September 1939, during which Germany underwent a transformation that was mind-boggling in scope, and in horror.

But rather than adopting a chronological approach, Evans addresses nearly every imaginable sector of German life under the peacetime Third Reich in great depth — the economy, politics, arts and culture, religion, etc. — each aspect is covered in incredible and meticulously-researched and referenced detail, with copious examples that drive home the realities of life in the Third Reich and the motivations of its overlords, especially of course, Adolf Hitler.

It was challenging to wade through some of the material, simply by virtue of the mere extensive and detailed account, but worth doing so. I find that this is easier with an audiobook in some ways — my attention flagged in some detailed, nitty-gritty sections, but never for long. This would be more difficult with a printed book, but I did long to consult the notes and photographs that I assume are in the printed volume.

This is outstanding, serious history. I had read William Shirer’s “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich” and other works about this period, but Evans fills in so many gaps and profoundly deepened my understanding of the subject. I’ve been interested in World War II and the events leading up to it since I was very young, but I find this history particularly relevant today with the rise of authoritarianism around the world, again, today — even in my own country. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the subject. It is not a light read by any stretch of the imagination, but a rewarding one indeed.

I have seen criticism of the narrator in some other reviews, but I found Mr. Pratt’s narration exceptionally clear and easy to follow. “Five stars” all around!

Richard Evans, thank you for writing these monumental books.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

The details of political actions before WWII

We know how Germany absorbed its
neighbors in the early Nazi years. This fills in the complex task involved before 1939.
A good filling in of the complex tasks needed
to get a war started and missing the many
chances that were missed to avoid WWII

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Great follow up

The second installment of Evans' masterwork. Very detailed and also very listenable. The narrator is great.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Very informative. This second book of the three gives the most detailed rendering of how the Nazis came to have complete control

This is the best explanation of the hideous ways the Nazis infiltrated their hatred into the fabric of Germany. It is the book I have been looking for.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Tedious

You will hear more detailed discussion of unfunny anti-nazi jokes than you will about the economy or foreign policy. You’ll grow tired of hearing the name Victor Klemperer.

Heavy focus on diary entries. Replete with snark. Do not go in with the expectation of an academic overview of the operation of the nazi state comparable to Tooze’s history of nazi economy. Do not expect academic rigor in analysis of ideology. This is not on par with the previous volume in the series, which was a decent account of Weimar politics. This is a severely bland documentation of nazi propaganda and police action for a general audience.

Suffers additionally from the a-chronology derived from sectioning chapters and sections by topic.

The sections are:
The Police State
The Mobilization of the Spirit
Converting the Soul
Prosperity and Plunder
Building the People’s Community
Towards the Racial Utopia

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Tragedy obscured by an ocean of details

Excessive detail and perfunctory writing style collapses the work.
More like reading a massive index or reference.
This made worse by one of the driest, most boring readers audible has to offer, Sean Pratt.
Sounds like a robot—disconnected from the text—well, he is a robot, after all—with an emotionless, light, prepubertal high school voice, oblivious, reading the index to a textbook.
The first volume was bearable and helped by brevity.
Dreading the third and final.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Translated too strictly

Great overall. Every word was translated, even those traditionally said in German. Slightly distracting.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Fantastic, just not exactly what I was looking for

It’s an important and valuable work on life in the prewar Third Reich. The structure of the book is thematic, and the listener walks away with a vast amount of knowledge on nearly all social aspects of the Third Reich, to the point of revulsion.

It took me some time to get fully immersed, I probably didn’t fully buy into the book until halfway through. But it did happen. When I learned of Mickey Mouse’s distribution in Germany, I was mildly interested. When I learned about Darre’s idealistic agrarian nonsense, I was intrigued. By the time I learned of some disgusting German housewife’s idiotic self justification of Jewish boycotts in Braunschweig, I was all in. But it took a while.

It should probably be a 5 star work, but the brevity of the coverage of international relations and high politics was a little disappointing to me. The narrative history portion in the last part of the work was done very well, it was just too truncated for my particular tastes. Those looking for more coverage of the world confronted by the Third Reich before September 1939 may wish to look elsewhere.

Additionally, it’s actually a testament to the accomplishment of the author, but by the 2/3 mark I felt exhausted with, and repulsed by, the Germans. Because of that, I didn’t love this book as I’ve loved many others on this time period. Again though, maybe that’s the way it should be. It shows how masterfully the author recounts the repugnance on this state and it’s society.

With a different reader, it may have been easier to be entranced by this difficult subject matter. But the reader was mediocre at best. Not terrible, but poor pronunciation and rather boring on the whole. Not what this work called for.

Overall, it’s actually a fantastic work and an important achievement for the author. It just wasn’t exactly what I wanted, but maybe it’s what I needed.

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