Top 2012 Germany WWII Books

The history of Germany during World War II is tragic, violent and disturbing-but ultimately important to study for everyone, historian or otherwise. The study of the past can help us recognize, prevent and control the dangers of the future. The top WWII Germany books released in 2012 cover a wide range of topics, from the role of German nurses in the euthanasia program to the “deadliest book in the world.”

The Nazis rise to power was experienced by many different kinds of people, including numerous Americans who either visited or lived in Germany during the 1930s. Although some focus has been put on the experience of foreign visitors to Nazi Germany during the Olympic Games, this new study by Andrew Nagorski offers the first full glimpse of Nazi Germany through a range of American viewpoints.

Title: “Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power”

Author: Andrew Nagorski

ISBN: 978-1439191002

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Publication Date: March 13, 2012

Summary: A new look at the rise of Nazi Germany through the eyes of American citizens – including diplomats, military personnel, visiting authors, Olympic athletes, journalists and more – who visited or lived in Germany during the Nazi rise to power. Hitlerland offers a fresh and unique perspective of how Nazi Germany was perceived in its early days through the unfolding of its utmost horrors through American eyes.

The Nazi ‘euthanasia’ program was intended to eradicate mental and physical disease from Nazi Germany. Thousands of men, women and children were killed under this program. While in some instances those murdered were voluntarily surrendered by their families for “mercy killing,” most were deceived by nurses, doctors and propaganda that the disabled were being sent to Special Facilities or hospitals where they would receive treatment. The role of the nurse in the euthanasia program was a central one, which this new book by Susan Benedict and Linda Shields thoroughly explores.

Title: “Nurses in Nazi Germany: The Nazi ‘Euthanasia’ Program”

Author: Susan Benedict and Linda Shields

ISBN: 978-0415896658

Publisher: Routledge

Publication Date: April 1, 2012

Summary: In the 1930s, Germany began a program which authorized the murder of individuals who had mental or physical disabilities, especially children. In 1939, the “euthanasia” program was expanded to include adult patients in psychiatric hospitals. Nurses were employed to help transport the patients and to help deceive the patients and their loved ones about the true nation of the “special centers” they were being sent to. This new work analyses the central role of the nurse in the euthanasia program, which helped contribute to its success in deceiving and ultimately murdering thousands.

Technically, this work is centered around Germany and Germans after WWII but because it is an under-studied subject, I felt it definitely appropriate for the top books about WWII Germany in 2012. After WWII, millions of German civilians were forced to relocate from around Europe to Germany. This forced relocation killed half a million civilians and helped contribute for the desperate situation of German civilians post WWII. This is the first full book published about the expulsion of Germans after WWII, and is a definite must-read this year.

Title: “Orderly and Humane: The Expulsion of the Germans after the Second World War”

Author: R.M. Douglas

ISBN: 978-0300166606

Publisher: Yale University Press

Publication Date: June 26, 2012

Summary: The forced relocation of German speakers from their hopes throughout Europe to Germany is an understudied event which had a momentous effect on live in Europe after WWII. Around 12 to 14 million civilians, mostly women and children. At least half a million of these civilians died while being detained in former concentration camps, locked in trains en route to Germany, or after arriving in Germany with no means of shelter or food. This new work is the first full study of the forced relocation of Germans, and fills a much needed gap in the study of life in Germany post WWII.

The power of the written word is almost immeasurable. Books, manuscripts and even scrawled messages on city walls can have profound effects-both positive and negative-on society and culture. Tacitus’ Germania is one such work. Tacitus’ description of the ancient Germans as people with a stout build, who could handle hard labor and cold, and who primarily had “blue eyes and reddish hair” helped contribute to the Nazi propagandist ideal of the “real German.” This look at how Germania influenced various cultures from its initial publication during the Roman Empire to its deadly use during the Third Reich is an illuminating study on the power of words.

Title: “A Most Dangerous Book: Tacitus’ Germania from the Roman Empire to the Third Reich”

Author: Christopher B. Krebs

ISBN: 978-0393342925

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Publication Date: August 27, 2012

Summary: Roman history Tacitus’ Germania was written as an ethnographic work on the tribes of Germania, which was less than flattering. However, the Nazis used Germania as a major propagandist point in their mission to “resurrect Germany” from the ashes of WW1. This compelling history traces the influence of Germania from the Roman Empire through its use by the Nazis before and during WW2.

Sources

The information in this article has been acquired from Amazon.com. Publication dates are subject to change.


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