The Third Reich

Humans have a fascination with evil. We long to identify it, quantify it and understand it. To this end, newspapers frequently splash photographs of murderers with the caption, "The face of evil." Heading most lists of the 20th-century's most evil people would be Adolf Hitler but, as Michael Burleigh's tour de force makes clear, evil is not always as cut and dried as we would like. The Nazis could not have come to power and committed Germany to a policy of war and genocide without the tacit consent of the German people. This makes Germany as a whole responsible for the crimes committed in its name, but it is clearly wrong to label each and every German as evil. Through his painstaking research and direct prose, Burleigh slowly builds up a picture of a people desperate for identity and economic prosperity who, bit by bit, closed off their conscience as the price of their dreams. There was no one cathartic moment when Germany, under the Third Reich, lapsed from goodness into badness; rather there was an incremental realignment of a collective morality. Burleigh's explanation of this phenomenon is so simple and yet so obviously right, that you can only wonder that it hadn't become the generally accepted currency years back. Instead of viewing Nazi Germany in purely social, political and economic terms--though he doesn't ignore these spheres --Burleigh wraps them all into a picture of a country gripped in a religious, messianic fervour and that which had previously felt inexplicable suddenly seems crystal clear. If you want the nitty-gritty details of the Second World War and the genocide, then they are here, as well, if not better, retold than many of the other histories of this period. But it's Burleigh's take on the ordinary people of Germany that makes this book so special. Above all, with similar genocidal wars currently being fought in Kosovo, Rwanda and Iraq, it makes you think, "Would I be able to resist becoming complicit in such regimes?" This is a must for every 20th-century historian.--John Crace

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Immense - Rated
This brick of a book is truly excellent. The detail is superb & the writing is of the highest quality. Burleigh offers a fresh perspective on an extremely well documented period of history.
I found this book engrossing & difficult to put down.Charting the rise of Nazism & the decisions & dogma which shaped Nazi policies, this book is surely a must for those with an interest in the subject.
It is obvious why this book has won the plaudits it has. The section on the invasion of Russia is particularly well done, although the whole book is of the highest quality. A work of immense proportions.

Definately a NEW history - Rated
Having used this book at university i would recomend it to anyone wishin to further their understanding of the Nazi dictatorship. This book helps to enlighten the reader and explain the Third Reich like no other. It is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand just how a civilised country can descend into terror and repression. It offers a 'startingly original interpretation' of the mind set of the Nazis and the mental world of Germany at the time.

This is historical writing at its best!

(For those who are interested in this book you should also look into the works of Richard Evans and Ian Kershaw.)

I've never thought about it this way... - Rated
You will NOT read this book in one sitting. By now you probably know that this book presents the case for Germany in and around World War 2. It takes into consideration so many things one doesn't normally think about, in an attempt to try to explain (but not justify) why the German Nation (often perceived as meticulous, calculating, precise and level-headed) seemed to have "lost it" during this critical time in their history. And it makes sense.

By now you probably also know that this is a good book: it has won literary prizes and I've never seen a bad review. So, if you are interested enough in 30s German history, enough to sit through almost 1000 pages of it, you can't go wrong, especially since this book approaches it from a fresh angle. It was worth it for me.

The Case for the opposition - Rated
You will NOT read this book in one sitting. By now you probably know that this book presents the case for Germany in and around World War 2. It takes into consideration so many things one doesn't normally think about, in an attempt to try to explain (but not justify) why the German Nation (often perceived as meticulous, calculating, precise and level-headed) seemed to have "lost it" during this critical time in their history. And it makes sense.

By now you probably also know that this is a good book: it has won literary prizes and I've never seen a bad review. So, if you are interested enough in 30s German history, enough to sit through almost 1000 pages of it, you can't go wrong, especially since this book approaches it from a fresh angle. It was worth it for me.

AN IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION - Rated
Although it is not an easily readable book, for the general public, if you have a serious interest about the history of the third Reich, make no mistake: you will not be able to overlook this book, which will surely be a classic. It is a thoroughly well researched contribution about the connection between religious beliefs and mass fanaticism; the interaction between the "new" domestic and international values, based on aggression; and the other causes involved in the rise (and fall) of the III Reich. From a different perspective from other mainstream historians, this winner of the Samuel Johnson prize for non fiction, has accomplished quite an original scholarly feat, one which will enlighten the comprehension of this particular period of history. No wonder many international critics have found the subtitle of this opus -A new History- particularly well deserved. Of great interest is the chapter related with the demise of the rule of law, a thorough analysis of the penetration of the judiciary and the subordination of the police and government to the totalitarian Fuhrerprinzip.