The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
A History of Nazi Germany
by William L. Shirer · first published 1734
55% recommend43% neutral1% critical
Why HN recommends it
Comprehensive, readable narrative history of Nazi Germany by a journalist who was there, drawing on captured German records. Strong on how Hitler took power and how Germany was nazified; suits patient general readers.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Since it's publication five decades ago, William L. Shirer's monumental study of Hitler's empire has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of the twentieth century's blackest hours. A worldwide bestseller with millions of copies in print, 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. Here, in a thoughtful new introduction for the fiftieth anniversary of its National Book Award win, [Ron Rosenbaum](/auth
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"The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany" by William L. Shirer. It's a classic history book of our century which, despite its title, primarily focuses on Hitler's raise to power in the early 30s and the long, painful…
on “Ask HN: What book have you given as a gift?” ↗…deported, not exterminated, and then Jews brought their misfortune on themselves by some "declaration of war" by "World Jewry" that then "provoked" the extermination. Yes, read Hillberg. Read Shirer’s The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, particularly chapter 7 about nazification of Germany. And please read the book to the very deserved end. Not everything that Nazis did was bad or crazy, but much of it was. The economics certainly was.…
on “Explore the Swiss Leaks Data” ↗The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, William Shirer. Many arguments about why and how are answered in that
on “Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?” ↗• The Prize • The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich • The Lean Startup • Poke the Box • The Elements of Computing Systems • The Death of Common Sense • Up the Organization • The Personal MBA • The Wisdom of No-Escape • The Adapted Mind • Brain…
on “Ask HN: What books have made the biggest impact on your mental models?” ↗…stash. The Nazis were diligent record-keepers and an absolutely enormous trove of secret files turned up after the war. The best trawl through this marterial is the gargantuan (but highly readable) "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by William Shirer, an American journalist living in Europe during Hitler's rise to power and the second world war.
on “List of Assassination Attempts on Adolf Hitler” ↗The following have all had a significant effect on my worldview. You can find more information at [1]. - The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany - Thinking, Fast and Slow - Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind - Crime and Punishment - The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York - Guns, Germs, and Steel:…
on “Ask HN: What book changed your life?” ↗…opponents, but Suvorov never misses a chance to point out that most of them are (paid by) Soviet political/military figures, who are obviously biased and would never admit such a plan. Highly recommend "Rise and Fall of the Third Reich", the work which is almost academic in quality, if not in shape : http://www.amazon.com/Rise-Fall-Third-Reich-History/dp/06717...
on “Spades and Men” ↗Steven Levy's Hackers, to a boy considering a career in computers Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, to a fan of history
on “Ask HN: What book have you given as a gift?” ↗…to all of the 20th anniversary publicity and enjoyed it even more. Other kilo-page doorstop-sized single narratives that I've read and recommend include Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon, Wm. Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Tolstoy's War and Peace, and Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. (The world is also full of good single narratives that span multiple thick volumes, of course.)
on ““The Depressed Person” by David Foster Wallace (1998) [pdf]” ↗You definitely don't want to read any decent history books like The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich at the moment if you want to sleep well. I would particularly avoid focusing my attentions on the fiscal and legal history of the Weimar Republic, whose constitution nominally obtained until 1945 though…
on “Show HN: Two HN tabs I found together, that concern me” ↗My favorite books of 2016 was, and I can recommend all of them: Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality by Eliezer Yudkowsky The Martian by Andy Weir The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson Honorable mention from 2015: Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari. I have just started Homo Deus and my first impression is that is is a worthy sequel.
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2016?” ↗…by bureaucratic means, such as threatening their job security, in addition to various forms of physical violence. The most comprehensive book that I always recommend to people is William Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third reich.. I feel it's entirely appropriate to make this observation int eh context of discussing whether someone's job can be jeopardized by their participation in lawful political activity. When you ask 'how…
Great comment! A book I've (almost) finished recently that seems to generally fit your narrative is "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by William L. Shirer. I can't speak for its accuracy, but as a sidenote I found it fascinating and somewhat painful to read how the writer deals with homosexuality (quite negative). I suppose in its…
on “One-Percenters Close to Surpassing Wealth of U.S. Middle Class” ↗…or should start at the axioms, but it is there as an option, as it isn't with history. Even so, this point is a very interesting one. I hated history in grade school, but then stumbled upon Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich while browsing the shelves one day. It hooked me, but made reference to a lot of WWI history that I didn't know, so I started reading about WWI history. But, to understand the antipathies in WWI, you…
on “Conversations with a six-year-old on functional programming (2018)” ↗"Like it" is quite open ended but I think that "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" by Shirer is excellent.
on “Dark Humor in the Dark Ages (2014)” ↗