Ian Kershaw: The End: Germany, 1944-45

What made Germany keep fighting to the death, even when it was clear they would lose the Second World War? Why did its rulers not cut a deal to save their own skin? And why did ordinary people continue to obey the Führer's suicidal orders, with countless Germans executing their own countrymen for desertion or defeatism? Ian Kershaw's searing account takes us into the heart of the Third Reich's final months, laying bare the fear and fanaticism that drove a nation to destruction. 'Brilliant . . . undoubtedly a masterpiece.' Mail on Sunday'No one has written a better account of the human dimensions of Nazi Germany's end.' James J. Sheehan, New York Review of Books'Masterly . . . Kershaw's gripping and boldly intelligent work will surely become the standard popularly accessible account of the Nazi system's terrible final phase.' Financial Times'Kershaw is a sure-footed guide through the Hades of the final dark months of the war in Europe.' Independent on Sunday'A compelling account . . . gives us much more then the view from the top . . . interwoven are insights into German life and death at all levels of society.' The Times'Brilliant . . . utterly terrifying.'Sunday Times, Books of the Year