The Third Reich in Power

It would be difficult to add anything new to the many excellent reviews of "The Third Reich in Power" that are already posted here. But I must briefly echo the praises for this monumental work. It should be required reading for all conscientious citizens, and especially for all politicians, as a cautionary tale of how governments that operate without "checks and balances" can destroy the very societies that put them in power. The detailed story of how the Nazi leaders of the Third Reich transformed Germany between their assumption of power in 1933 and the outbreak of World War II in 1939 is compelling reading of the highest standard. During that period, the Nazis by decree imposed their political, economic and racial agendas on virtually every aspect of German society--literature, art, music, education, broadcasting, retail sales, land ownership, architecture, banking, recreation, law enforcement, etc. The Nazi's programs affected the everyday lives of EVERY German citizen to a greater or lesser degree. Mr. Evans' readable, matter-of-fact style, and his reliance on supporting data and statistics from the historical record, make "The Third Reich in Power" perhaps the most valuable work yet written on the subject. While its 700+ pages may at first seem daunting, it is well worth the effort to read. You will definitely come away from the experience with a better understanding of how prejudice, inflexibility, demagoguery and unrestrained nationalism inexorably led to World War II, and of the threat that such attitudes continue to pose to the world today. I give it the highest possible recommendation.

Do you like your history light or full-strength with nothing taken out? If you want to skim through yet another book about the Nazis that tells you something you probably already knew but in a different way then don't bother with this book. However, if you want to read first class, detailed historical writing then this is certainly the book for you. Evans makes 1930s Germany come alive. How does he do it? By using historical records and documents to recount incidents involving `ordinary' people. He recalls appalling things that happened to people no different to his readers. He recounts cases of `ordinary' people doing unspeakable things to their fellow Germans. The reader is brought back 70 years and is really made to feel (as much as is possible now) what it must have been like to live in an all-embracing dictatorship. The author forces you to ask yourself the uncomfortable question, "Would I have behaved differently"? You'll have guessed by now that this book does not make for easy reading. This is exactly the way it should be. You probably won't pack this book the next time you're going on a sun holiday. However, if you want to read a book that actually tells you something new then this is the book for you. Evans makes no concessions to readers who don't like too much, `boring' details and who are only interested in the `big picture'. This book describes in detail how the Nazis mercilessly quashed all opposition, controlled every element of German society, remilitarised at breakneck speed and remorsely drove Germany into a second world war. This is full-strength, full-fat, nothing taken out history. Thank God for that!

The Coming of the Third Reich is British historian Richard J. Evans monumental work on the Nazis seizure of power. In this second book he surveys the governance of Gemany and in his projected volume 3 the tale will be told of their downfall in World War II. In this book "The Thiird Reich in Power" the focus is on how the Nazis and the evil Adolf Hitler ruled Germany from his takeover in JANUARY 1933 to the outbreak of World War II launching the horrific war which would claim over 50 million human souls. Evans portrays what life is like under a cruel dictatorship. He explores every aspect of German life in the 1930s including economics; the arts; the horrible racial laws; jurisprudence;military preparation for the planned war; diplomacy; sports; the regimentation of society beginning in youth and many other topics. Evans is an academic whose prose is easy to read and comprehend. This book would be well used in a class on Nazi Germany. Along with Ian Kershaws two volumes on HITLER and Shirer's "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich'I consider Evans contributions to understanding the Third Reich to be essential reading for this terrible time in human history. Excellent! I look forward to his third volume with eager anticipation.

Continuing with the second volume of what is undoubtedly destined to be an epic work for both historians and the general public alike, Richard J. Evans explains how Hitler transformed--or attempted to transform--Germany after seizing control. This work differs from predecessors because it challenges the idea that the German people were mindlessly accepting of Hitler's policies. He points out that when the Nazi regime began, both the communists and social democrats had received a third of the vote in the national elections of that year. More however, he argues that a majority of the German people themselves were reluctant to enter into another war--correctly believing that it would not end in their favor. Infighting allowed the Nazi's to go ahead with their own plans. Partisan gridlock and the public's weariness of this coupled with a desire for 'anybody' to do 'anything' to end it and promises of economic rejuvenation gave the Nazi's an opening. And they exploited it. The Nazi's established a police state and warned citizens that their every word was being watched. The Nazi leadership was so determined to control the people that they even tried to dictate personal grooming and consumer products. Yet, Evans provides lots of documented information that this part of the plan was not as successful. People (including those who were members of the Nazi party) were resisting. Constant political proselytizing by the government actually turned many 'every day' Germans off. He includes several chapters on the Nazi persecution of the Jews and the German people's failure to help resist this persecution. What could have deflated his own thesis works here because Evans uses primary source reports of the people who were there and did nothing. Evans explains how the Gestapo, the Nazi's infamous police, was not composed of party elite. The majority actually were career policeman. They were everyday Germans who were enforcing compliance with a state ideology their neighbors etc...did not particularly care for. Because this era already had many books previously written about it, I was amazed by the wealth of information and original research contained within this one volume. Evans's research illustrates what happens to public and private life when a fascist government assumes power and promises to make everything better.