Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany

Since its publication in 1960, William L. Shirer's monumental study of Hitler's German Empire has been widely acclaimed as the definitive record of this century's blackest hours. 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. With millions of copies in print around the globe, it has attained the status of a vital and enduring classic.

William L. Shirer has had a distinguished career as foreign correspondent, news commentator, and historian of the contemporary world. He reported from Berlin for the Universal News Service and for CBS on the rise of the Nazis and he covered their all as a war correspondent. Out of these reports grew his best-sellers Berlin Diary and The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, which has sold more copies for the Book-of-the-Month Club than any other book in the club's history.

Shirer is the author of many other best-selling books, including The Collapse of the Third Republic and an autobiography, Twentieth Century Journey: A Memoir of a Life and the Times, composed of three volumes -- The Start: 1904-1930, The Nightmare Years: 1930-1940, and A Native's Return: 1945-1988. He is at work on a new book about the last two weeks of Tolstoy's life.