THE COMING OF THE THIRD REICH by Richard J. Evans

The Coming of the Third Reich by Richard J. Evans

Narrated by Sean Pratt

Hitler’s Guide to Calculated Brutality When Staging a Government Takeover

This book begins with an introduction that was a bit off-putting. I had just finished listening to William L. Shirer’s popular THE RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH (RFTR) and learned a lot from Shirer’s narrative of the inside workings of the Nazi Party. Evan’s introduction pointed out that RFTR has been universally panned by the more academic historians. I then approached the balance of the book with some trepidation; not anxious to listen to some pompous dry work of pure scholarship or to possibly have my preconceptions shattered on what I thought I knew about WWII history. What followed was less a deconstruction of my WWII knowledge than an expansion. I thought the strong point of RFTR was on the rise of the Nazi party to power but Shirer barely scratched the surface. Richard J. Evans goes into the various cultural, political and economic currents that led to the Nazi Party. He traces the history of Germanic thought back to the time of Charlemagne, to the First Reich. I found this narrative history to be eminently accessible and engaging. After listening to this book I can begin to understand why the account of RFTR was incomplete; it just does not dig deep enough into the background of the German people to offer a full understanding ot the factors that led to the rise of Adolph Hitler. The Nazi movement was a product of years of Teutonic life in the shadow of strong rulers and a patriotic fervor that bordered on religion. Evans puts forth so many interesting concepts that I think it will require a second listening for me to grasp an understanding of the factors that led to the rise of National Socialism in Germany in the 20^th century..

Sean Pratt reads the text clearly and has excellent enunciation. His narration becomes transparent quickly making assimilation of the material possible.