Download Popular Titles Audiobooks in History, 20th Century

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Title: A Special Mission

Subtitle: Hitler's Secret Plot to Seize the Vatican and Kidnap Pope Pius XII

Author: Dan Kurzman

Narrator: George K. Wilson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-28-15

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 4 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

In September 1943, Adolf Hitler, furious at the ouster of Mussolini, sent German troops into Rome and ordered SS General Karl Wolff, who had been Heinrich Himmler's chief aide, to occupy the Vatican and kidnap (and perhaps kill) Pope Pius XII. At the same time, plans were being made to deport Rome's Jews to Auschwitz. Wolff began playing a dangerous game: stalling Hitler's plot against the pope, whom he hoped would save him from the noose in case Germany lost the war. To save Pius, Wolff and fellow conspirators blackmailed him into silence when the Jews were rounded up, hoping that Hitler would rescind his order.

Members Reviews:

A timely study

While an interesting read, there really doesn't feel like there is much new here. What makes this book important is that Pius is currently in the news and is being considered for sainthood. In this book, I appreciated Kurzman's willingness to consider Pius in an unbiased fashion even though Kurzman himself is a Jew. He plays out both sides of the argument about whether or not Pius should have been more vocal and, in the end, leaves it to the reader to decide. What I found annoying was that he felt the need to remind us that every SS officer was an evil Jew killer. While it is important to know where each character stands in terms of The Final Solution, a thoughtful and intelligent reader doesn't need to be reminded of how the SS should be judged. What I will say is that Kurzman does paint the SS personalities involved with a rather human brush, and it is important to remember that the fact that they were human is what made them so dangerous.

Well Done and Balanced View of Pius

Kurzman has done excellent work in this very well balanced history of Pope Pius and the Nazi threat in WWII. There are no excuses made or whitewash of what the Vatican did and did not do during the war but this book aids in having a better understanding of the situation, time, and place. It also offers some enlightenment into the thinking of the pope and the objectives of the Vatican. Very worthwhile to anyone interested in these issues and most certainly essential reading for anyone who has read "Hitler's Pope." It is clear from what Kurzman writes that Pius was not a supporter of Hitler and his policies. The complications, danger, and moral struggle of a basically good man of faith challenged by impossible circumstances in a world gone mad have never been presented in a better way.

Entertaining

This is a pretty quick and easy read, and it moves quickly due to the pace of writing and the strength of the narrative.

It's a great look at an often overlooked facet of the Nazi regime - it's relationship with the Catholic church.

Well written. Mr. Kurzman developed the characters in a way that makes them less historical and more familiar.

This book allows the reader to understand the minds of the men involved in this moving and dramatic time in world history.

Less than impressive

This book had a great deal of promise as a historical true detective mystery. However it turned out to be history at it's most mundane. The prose was circular and stiff making it harder to read than it should have been. The facts are there if you don't mind the stiff prose.

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Title: Life's Greatest Secret

Subtitle: The Race to Crack the Genetic Code

Author: Matthew Cobb

Narrator: John Lee

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 59 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-11-15

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 20 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

Everyone has heard the story of DNA as the story of Watson, Crick, and Rosalind Franklin, but knowing the structure of DNA was only part of a greater struggle to understand life's secrets. Life's Greatest Secret is the story of the discovery and cracking of the genetic code, the thing that ultimately enables a spiraling molecule to give rise to the life that exists all around us. This great scientific breakthrough has had far-reaching consequences for how we understand ourselves and our place in the natural world and for how we might take control of our (and life's) future.

Life's Greatest Secret mixes remarkable insights, theoretical dead ends, and ingenious experiments with the swift pace of a thriller. From New York to Paris; Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Cambridge, England; and London to Moscow, the greatest discovery of 20th-century biology was truly a global feat. Biologist and historian of science Matthew Cobb gives the full and rich account of the cooperation and competition between the eccentric characters who contributed to this revolutionary new science. And, while every new discovery was a leap forward for science, Cobb shows how every new answer inevitably led to new questions that were at least as difficult to answer. But the setbacks and unexpected discoveries are what make the science exciting. This is a riveting story of humans exploring what it is that makes us human and how the world works.

Critic Reviews:

"[G]ripping, insightful history." (Kirkus starred review)

Members Reviews:

Fascinating!

If you could sum up Life's Greatest Secret in three words, what would they be?

Fascinating, meticulous research

Which scene was your favorite?

n/a

Any additional comments?

"Life's Greatest Secret: The Race to Crack the Genetic Code" is not an easy read, but the author knows is subject matter thoroughly and writes in a clear and understandable manner. If you have any interest in molecular genetics it's a "must read".

Where does the science end?

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The book is meticulously researched and presents a great history of the cracking of the Genetic Code; however, the author's insistence of mixing in his own philosophy and interpretations were a bit frustrating. To me, the story and the author's input really confirm the genius of the Thomas Kuhn.

Which character as performed by John Lee was your favorite?

John Lee's performance was one of the best that I have ever listened to.

Could you see Life's Greatest Secret being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

No - the information was way to technical.

Narrator is terrible for American audience

Interesting book geared to those with a serious background in the subject. The narrator's accent is very difficult to understand for an American audience especially with the very technical material which this book deals with.

Recommended only for those with a serious interest in the subject.

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Title: The Fall of France: The History of Nazi Germany's Invasion and Conquest of France During World War II

Author: Charles River Editors

Narrator: Christian Carvajal

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 54 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-28-15

Publisher: Charles River Editors

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

"My Luftwaffe is invincible.... And so now we turn to England. How long will this one last - two, three weeks?" (Hermann Goering, June 1940)

One of the most famous people in the world came to tour the city of Paris for the first time on June 28, 1940. Over the next three hours, he rode through the city's streets, stopping to tour L'Opéra Paris. He rode down the Champs-Elysées toward the Trocadero and the Eiffel Tower, where he had his picture taken. After passing through the Arc de Triomphe, he toured the Pantheon and old medieval churches, though he did not manage to see the Louvre or the Palace of Justice. Heading back to the airport, he told his staff, "It was the dream of my life to be permitted to see Paris. I cannot say how happy I am to have that dream fulfilled today." Four years after his tour, Adolf Hitler would order the city's garrison commander, General Dietrich von Choltitz, to destroy Paris, warning his subordinate that the city "must not fall into the enemy's hand except lying in complete debris."

Of course Paris was not destroyed before the Allies liberated it, but it would take more than four years for them to wrest control of France from Nazi Germany after they took the country by storm in about a month in 1940. That said, it's widely overlooked today given how history played out that as the power of Nazi Germany grew alarmingly during the 1930s, the French sought means to defend their territory against the rising menace of the Thousand-Year Reich.

Members Reviews:

Great overview, strong but not perfect narration.

A great overview of the Battle for France, with several more in depth portions regarding the Maginot Line, the Battle of Arrass, etc. Narration could have gone without the sort of cheesy fake accents, especially when the French ones sounded German.

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Title: The Greatest Battles in History: The Battle of Okinawa

Author: Charles River Editors

Narrator: Todd Van Linda

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 33 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-15-15

Publisher: Charles River Editors

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 4 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

"If you die there will be no one left who knows the truth about the Battle of Okinawa. Bear the temporary shame but endure it. This is an order from your army Commander." (Mitsuru Ushijima to Colonel Hiromichi Yahara)

Near the end of 1944, as Allied forces were pushing across the Pacific and edging ever closer to Japan, plans were drawn up to invade the Ryuku islands, the most prominent of them being Okinawa. Military planners anticipated that an amphibious campaign would last a week, but instead of facing 60,000 Japanese defenders as estimated, there were closer to 120,000 on the island at the beginning of the campaign in April 1945. The Battle of Okinawa was the largest amphibious operation in the Pacific theater, and it would last nearly three months and wind up being the fiercest in the Pacific theater during the war, with nearly 60 thousand American casualties and over 100 thousand Japanese soldiers killed. In addition, the battle resulted in an estimated 40 thousand - 150 thousand Japanese civilian casualties.

Okinawa witnessed every conceivable horror of war both on land and at sea. American ground forces on Okinawa had to deal with bad weather (including a typhoon), antitank moats, barbed wire, mines, caves, underground tunnel networks, and fanatical Japanese soldiers who were willing to use human shields while fighting to the death. Allied naval forces supporting the amphibious invasion had to contend with Japan's notorious kamikazes, suicide pilots who terrorized sailors as they frantically tried to shoot down the Japanese planes before they could hit Allied ships. As one sailor aboard the USS Miami recalled, "They came in swarms from all directions. The barrels of our ship's guns got so hot we had to use fire hoses to cool them down."

Members Reviews:

Learn The Salient Points of one of the Great WWII Battles for Okinawa, Signifying the End of Japan's Imperial Regime

At 69 pages, this is a fairly quick read, but is still sufficient in detail to be considered comprehensive.

Of late I have become a dedicated reader of Charles Rivers Editors publications. A few of them are a tad short and, dare I say, superfluous, booklets that provide little more than lists of movies this legend or that appeared in, with a brief on their scandalous behaviors.

Most, though, especially the booklets on Mosby and Quantrill, go into more detail and giv readers a sense of, you-are-there.

Their coverage of battles, however, are even more thorough. This booklet, goes well beyond any other of their commute booklets. I strongly recommend those interested in history, or in World War II, or anyone wondering as to why President Truman used atomic bombs to conclude the war with Japan, read The Greatest Battles in History: The Battle of Okinawa. It'll take an hour or two, but will benefit you far more than will a similar time guzzling beer or watching TV Reruns.

Oh, and if, like me, your father or grandfather, or a family friend, served time

In fighting The Battle of Okinawa, you're likely to find this history especially welcome.

Closing point: the people of Japan paid too stiff a price for their wayward regime, but, in my opinion, arose from the war to display the real greatness of their civilization.

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Title: The Archive Thief

Subtitle: The Man Who Salvaged French Jewish History in the Wake of the Holocaust

Author: Lisa Moses Leff

Narrator: Suzanne Toren

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs

Language: English

Release date: 07-07-15

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

In the aftermath of the Holocaust, Jewish historian Zosa Szajkowski gathered up tens of thousands of documents from Nazi buildings in Berlin and, later, public archives and private synagogues in France and moved them all, illicitly, to New York. In The Archive Thief, Lisa Moses Leff reconstructs Szajkowski's story in all its ambiguity. Born into poverty in Russian Poland, Szajkowski first made his name in Paris as a communist journalist. In the late 1930s, as he saw the threats to Jewish safety rising in Europe, he broke with the party and committed himself to defending his people in a new way, as a scholar associated with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. Following a harrowing 1941 escape from France and US army service, Szajkowski struggled to remake his life as a historian, eking out a living as a YIVO archivist in postwar New York. His scholarly output was tremendous nevertheless; he published scores of studies on French Jewish history that opened up new ways of thinking about Jewish emancipation, modernization, and the rise of modern antisemitism. But underlying Szajkowski's scholarly accomplishments were the documents he stole, moved, and eventually sold to American and Israeli research libraries, where they remain today. Part detective story, part analysis of the construction of history, The Archive Thief offers a window into the debates over the rightful ownership of contested Jewish archives and the powerful ideological, economic, and psychological forces that have made Jewish scholars care so deeply about preserving the remnants of their past.

Members Reviews:

Words matter because they are what history is made of

Remarkable information about the creation of history in general and French Jewish history in particular. original documents reveal and preserve precious information. facts replace silent ignorance. The long history of Jews in France is not common knowledge. The efforts of one flawed man to save this information and make it public are brilliantly revealed in this book.

I recommend this book to all Jews , to people interested in how history is written and to folks who can see a person in many shades of gray and not simply in stark contrasts.

Beautifully written.

I'm loving this book! It has a creative view of the archive, history and their interconnection.

Impressive the contradictory role of one men in the making and destruction of the archives.

Beautifully written.

Five Stars

A fascinating and revealing story, beautifullly rendered. It is simultaneously a detective story and cultural history--a rare combination.

Must read

A story you can't imagine.

Quite a captivating story line. Also, there were ...

Quite a captivating story line. Also, there were more than a few side bars which I found extremely interesting. Prof. Leff engages the reader by posing some very thought provoking questions; also, I found the book to be very informative.

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Title: Hoover Dam

Subtitle: An American Adventure

Author: Joseph E. Stevens

Narrator: Kevin Charles Minatrea

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-02-15

Publisher: University Press Audiobooks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 15 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

In the spring of 1931, in a rugged desert canyon on the Arizona-Nevada border, an army of workmen began one of the most difficult and daring building projects ever undertaken: the construction of Hoover Dam. Through the worst years of the Great Depression as many as five thousand laborers toiled twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, to erect the huge structure that would harness the Colorado River and transform the American West.

Construction of the giant dam was a triumph of human ingenuity, yet the full story of this monumental endeavor has never been told. Now, in an engrossing, fast-paced narrative, Joseph E. Stevens recounts the gripping saga of Hoover Dam. Drawing on a wealth of material, including manuscript collections, government documents, contemporary newspaper and magazine accounts, and personal interviews and correspondence with men and women who were involved with the construction, he brings the Hoover Dam adventure to life.

Described here in dramatic detail are the deadly hazards the work crews faced as they hacked and blasted the dam's foundation out of solid rock; the bitter political battles and violent labor unrest that threatened to shut the job down; the deprivation and grinding hardship endured by the workers' families; the dam builders' gambling, drinking, and whoring sprees in nearby Las Vegas; and the stirring triumphs and searing moments of terror as the massive concrete wedge rose inexorably from the canyon floor.

Critic Reviews:

"Joseph Stevens' Hoover Dam is a pure marvel of scholarship and storytelling - history in the grand style... no better tale of the extraordinary effort that got it built has ever been told and none is ever likely to match it." (Wilderness)

"I thought it was marvelous - absolutely enthralling." (Alvin M. Josephy, Jr.)

Members Reviews:

A full background of the reasons for and building of Hoover Dam

This book was really interesting. The author on occasion made attempts to be a bit flowery with his writing, but his description of all that was involved in building Hoover Dam is in great detail and he obviously did a LOT of research. I found it particularly interesting living in the Las Vegas area, having visited the dam on a number of occasions, and visiting Boulder City often as well. This book ads a lot of color not only to the building of the dam but the political atmosphere as well. I found the information about down stream very interesting as well, the efforts to control the river, venturing into Mexico, and the great benefit the dam (and others along the Colorado River) have had on farming in California.

Wonderful

This book will bring you in the middle of the desert and will make you live the adventure of one great engineer and great people who in the middle of the depression era will build the one most complex civil project ever attempted.

You will assist to the birth of the city in the middle of nowhere, you will feel the dangers of the builders working in precarious conditions hanged on canyon walls , and you will follow the technology advancements needed to create something that was never attempted.

A real masterpiece.

Very good

An extremely well written tale of the inception and construction of Hoover Dam. It covers the political aspects, the big business aspects, and especially the human aspects of building the dam in a time frame that would be virtually impossible today.

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Title: Fracture

Subtitle: Life and Culture in the West, 1918-1938

Author: Philipp Blom

Narrator: Ralph Lister

Format: Unabridged

Length: 16 hrs and 59 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-30-15

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 40 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

When the Great War ended in 1918, the West was broken. Religious faith, patriotism, and the belief in human progress had all been called into question by the mass carnage experienced by both sides. Shell-shocked and traumatized, the West faced a world it no longer recognized: The old order had collapsed, replaced by an age of machines. The world hurtled forward on gears and crankshafts, and terrifying new ideologies arose from the wreckage of past belief.

Historian Philipp Blom argues that in the aftermath of World War I, citizens of the West launched into hedonistic, aesthetic, and intellectual adventures of self-discovery. It was a period of both bitter disillusionment and visionary progress in which artists, scientists, and philosophers grappled with the question of how to live and what to believe in a broken age. America closed its borders to European refugees and turned away from the desperate poverty caused by the Great Depression. On both sides of the Atlantic, disenchanted voters flocked to Communism and Fascism, forming political parties based on violence and revenge that presaged the horror of a new World War.

Vividly re-creating this era of unparalleled ambition, artistry, and innovation, Blom captures the seismic shifts that defined the interwar period and continue to shape our world today.

Critic Reviews:

"This historical account will be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in cultural analysis." (Library Journal)

Members Reviews:

Lots of good trivia information

I am reading this book as part of my World War One anniversary project.

Philipp Blom asks the central question that arose for so many everyday people after WWI. What values were there left to live for? Blom is thorough in documenting the many attempts to answer the question. He discusses some stories of the day such as the stirrings of fascism by Italian poet DAnnunzio. H.G. Wells scathing review of Fritz Langs film Metropolis. He discusses the various forms of art and the prominent artists of the time period. Blom reviews the activism of Americas eugenics enthusiasts. He also discussed the increase of totalitarian regimes, Dadaism, the lost generation and an excellent section on Jazz and the Blues.

Blom discusses the hopeless and lost feelings of the time and the dread, paranoia and anger that pervaded everything. The book is well written and brings a refreshing clarity to uncertain times of any era including our own. Ralph Lister narrated the book.

Clap trap with a British accent

Lots of cliched superficial so-called history. Dull writing. A bore

The book just treads water

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Title: Jimmie Lee and James

Subtitle: Two Lives, Two Deaths, and the Movement That Changed America

Author: Adar Cohen, Steve Fiffer

Narrator: Tom Perkins

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-30-15

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 7 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

"Bloody Sunday" - March 7, 1965 - was a pivotal moment in the civil rights struggle. The national outrage generated by scenes of Alabama state troopers attacking peaceful demonstrators fueled the drive toward the passage of the Voting Rights Acts later that year. But why were hundreds of activists marching from Selma to Montgomery that afternoon?

Days earlier, during the crackdown on another protest in nearby Marion, a state trooper, claiming self-defense, shot Jimmie Lee Jackson, a 26-year-old unarmed deacon and civil rights protester. Jackson's subsequent death spurred local civil rights leaders to make the march to Montgomery; when that day also ended in violence, the call went out to activists across the nation to join in the next attempt. One of the many who came down was a minister from Boston named James Reeb. Shortly after his arrival, he was attacked in the street by racist vigilantes, eventually dying of his injuries. Lyndon Johnson evoked Reeb's memory when he brought his voting rights legislation to Congress, and the national outcry over the brutal killings ensured its passage.

Most histories of the civil rights movement note these two deaths briefly before moving on to the more famous moments. This book gives listeners a deeper understanding of the events that galvanized an already-strong civil rights movement to one of its greatest successes, along with the herculean efforts to bring the killers of these two men to justice - a quest that would last more than four decades.

Critic Reviews:

"This is a must-read for all who care about the fight for civil rights and the right to vote, then and now." (Julian Bond, NAACP chairman emeritus)

Members Reviews:

Bloody Sunday March 7 1965

This book examines the killing of civil rights activists Jimmie Lee Jackson and Rev. James Reeb and how they inspired the march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama and led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The authors provide the reader a deeper understanding of the events that galvanized the Civil Rights Movement. Cohen and Fiffer detail how the killers of these two men finally were brought to justice after forty years.

The authors did meticulous research for this book. They traveled to Alabama to interview the individuals involved and conducted interviews with the witnesses to the two murders. They also reviewed State and FBI records and documents as well as private papers, diaries, memoirs, oral histories and newspaper and magazine articles.

Adar Cohen is an educator and researcher at DePaul University in Chicago and Steve Fiffer is an author.

The book is a well written page turner, about the struggles for equality and justice. I thought this might be a good review of the fight for Voting Rights after watching the Supreme Court begin to reverse the Voting Rights Act. After reading this book I want to watch the movie Selma. Tom Perkins narrated this book.

Read this and weep

Ive just finished reading Jimmie Lee And James by Stephen Fiffer and Adar Cohen which is about the above which the film Selma is also aboutits shocking to a think that a country that preaches democracy to the world is trying to undo the right to vote in its own countryand is barefaced enough to lie to itself about it. Great book.

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Title: The Scopes Monkey Trial: The History of 20th Century America's Most Famous Court Case

Author: Charles River Editors

Narrator: Christian Carvajal

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 25 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-22-15

Publisher: Charles River Editors

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 11 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

"I never had any idea my bill would make a fuss. I just thought it would become a law and that everybody would abide by it and that we wouldn't hear any more of evolution in Tennessee." (John Washington Butler)

In the early 20th century, Darwin's theory of evolution was still a relative novelty, but it had spurred some Americans to react by preventing it from being taught in schools, including in Tennessee, which passed the Butler Act to prohibit teaching the theory in a state-funded school. This set the stage for proponents of the theory to challenge the law by having a teacher bring up Darwin's theory in a classroom, which is how a little known substitute teacher named John Scopes had his name attached to one of the most famous cases in American history.

While the case was technically challenging a law and proceeded like a normal trial, including an appeal to Tennessee's Supreme Court, the Scopes Monkey Trial was essentially a national debate on theology, science, and each one's place in the classroom. The trial is best known not necessarily for the results but for the rhetorical arguments that were made on each side and for the manner in which Darrow and Bryan squared off. In perhaps the most famous scene of the entire affair, Darrow actually cross-examined Bryan himself.

Members Reviews:

Four Stars

Was okay, not what I expected.

Very interesting.

Good history of this trial.

Four Stars

It was ok. Interesting.

Four Stars

interesting story.

Four Stars

Interesting read

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Title: The Greatest Battles in History: The Battle of Berlin and the End of World War II in Europe

Author: Charles River Editors

Narrator: Tom McElroy

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 21 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-16-15

Publisher: Charles River Editors

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 10 votes

Genres: History, 20th Century

Publisher's Summary:

"On the walls of the houses we saw Goebbels' appeals, hurriedly scrawled in white paint: 'Every German will defend his capital. We shall stop the Red hordes at the walls of our Berlin.' Just try and stop them! Steel pillboxes, barricades, mines, traps, suicide squads with grenades clutched in their hands - all are swept aside before the tidal wave.

"Drizzling rain began to fall. Near Bisdorf I saw batteries preparing to open fire. 'What are the targets?' I asked the battery commander. 'Centre of Berlin, Spree bridges, and the northern and Stettin railway stations,' he answered. Then came the tremendous words of command: 'Open fire on the capital of the Fascist Germany.'

"I noted the time. It was exactly 8:30 a.m. on 22 April. 96 shells fell in the centre of Berlin in the course of a few minutes." (A Soviet war correspondent)

While much has been written of the Battle of the Bulge, Okinawa, Midway, Stalingrad, and many other conflicts of the Second World War, the Battle for Berlin has remained in the shadows for many historians. Its importance in toppling Hitler cannot be denied, despite the fact that some thought its strategic value unnecessary to the war itself. The capture of the city and the red Soviet banner hanging victorious over the Reichstag is one of history's most famous (and ominous) images. In the weeks it took for the Battle of Berlin to be fought, an American president passed away, a British Prime Minister had to make concessions he did not desire, a Russian leader fought his way into Western Europe to stay, and a German one took his own life. The battle's implications would be felt for the next 50 years.

Members Reviews:

Short and sweet no new information.

Really short, felt like I was reading cliff notes. If you are a history buff, don t bother no new information. Reason I gave it two stars was that it did have some first person accounts that I had never heard before, but they were to few and just thrown in hap hazard like, no flow to it. Only took me about roughly 5 hours total to get through this.

The Lst Days of Berlin

Great synopsis of the various elements and nation's efforts in the waning days of the European battleground. Well structured and easy to follow read. Purposely includes the feelings and thoughts of the various factions of the citizenry in Berlin in those last days. Would highly recommend this book.

Short summation of the final battle

It was well written but too short to be of much use for anyone who wants to know the actual tactics and strategies used to fight this battle. I would still recommend it to anyone who is interested in the final European battle.

Nice summary of the battle of Berlin

Nice summary of the battle of Berlin. It does the job acceptably. It's a good place to start, but I believe "The Fall" is much more in depth for those with a larger historical appetite.

Very good!

Extensive, well researched, I enjoyed this book immensely.