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The Third Reich At War, 1939-1945 (2000)

by Richard J. Evans(Favorite Author)

4.31 of 5 Votes: 4

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

series

The History of the Third Reich

review 1: This book is the prodigious conclusion to the epic 3 part Nazi history by Robert J. Evans. It is interesting to compare THE THIRD REICH AT WAR with William Shirer's classic THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH to find out the effect of new records released by Russian archives. It destroys the Nazi myth of a monolithic culture of evil, to show the fallacy of a German government based on an insipid goal: to obtain living space by killing off populations and living off the stolen land and to kill Jews because Hitler blamed them for Communism. The fact that the Nazis's plan was defective from the start, and was begat on a false premise - that the U.S.S.R. & Britain would collapse shortly after the Nazis initiated war and that Germany could win a sustained war would be laugh... moreable if not for the millions of people murdered by the Nazis during the course of their ill-fated War.What makes the Nazis so fascinating was their unique self-defeating blend of technology and buffoonery, expending their limited resources on a war machine that was doomed to fail from the start because Russia and America had superior resources and manpower. Ultimately, Hitler bet Germany's future on a bet which he could not win.Robert J. Evans maps out the culture, politics and economy of the 12-year Reich in a real-life narrative familiar to every fan of THE LORD OF THE RINGS. This volume is the best in the series because it begins with seemingly relentless inertia of the Nazi invasion of Europe, but makes clear that in the end the Nazis could not win because their superior weaponry was destroyed by a smarter and more cunning Stalin.
review 2: This book (and the entire series) provides a decent look into Nazi Germany particularly on culture and the Holocaust, but it significantly ignores key aspects of foreign policy. You hear ad nausea about music and art, while little is said about Germany's foreign relations, even military details are skimped on to an extent. Additionally, it only pays token lip service to America's impact on the war, while the British are continually highlighted. At the end of the day, I wish I had went with The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer. less

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