Goebbels: Mastermind of the Third Reich [Hardcover]

David Irving (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1872197132 | ISBN-13: 978-1872197135 | Publication Date: December 9, 1996 | Edition: 1st

An in-depth biography of Nazi Germany's master of propaganda draws on thousands of pages from Goebbels's personal journals to describe the life of Hitler's confidant, his role in Nazi Germany, his hatred for the human race, and his death.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This is a repellent book, and not only because of its subject. Irving (Goering) has been increasingly under fire for exploiting seemingly indefatigable research to distort history. In the book in hand, he uses enough pejoratives to sustain the illusion of objectivity regarding Hitler's propaganda chief, yet suggests that the admittedly bad man had a cause not entirely bad in itself. Nazi brutality is almost always retaliation for the plots of international Jewry and the criminality of domestic Jews. Even the books notoriously burned are "decadent and anti-German." The term Redakteur (editor) "to Goebbels' sensitive ear had a Jewish ring." Protesters in Saarbrucken are "a clamoring ragbag of communists, Jews, freemasons and disgruntled emigres." There is always, in Irving's own words, a "Jewish problem" that Goebbels struggles to solve. Much of the book, heavily indebted to the self-serving Goebbels diaries, is in such a vein. There seems always to be an agenda to Irving's documentation, and the language of camouflaged admiration suffuses his pages amidst his ritual scolding of the Nazis for their excesses. The real insidiousness of the biography is that its formidable documentation will gain it acceptance as history. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This latest work by Irving (Goring: A Biography, LJ 3/1/89) depends heavily on Goebbels's diaries and related papers. Unfortunately, the diaries are boring. Goebbels devoted much of his journal to describing his emotions (banal), love life (promiscuous), and marriage (dysfunctional). At its best, this aspect of the book is keyhole history. Far more troubling is Irving's general approach to the history of the Third Reich. He takes pains to insist periodically upon his distaste for Goebbels's Nazi extremism, but to describe Hitler as "less radical on the Jewish question" in 1942 than was Goebbels is to deny reality. Paradigmatic as well is Irving's insistence that Goebbels's vicious attacks on Jews in the 1930s were in response to the "hysteria" generated by the foreign press, the Comintern, and such dangerous "Jewish" organizations as the World League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism. In contrast, Irving offers no new evidence establishing Goebbels as the Reich's "mastermind." He neglects such important subjects as the sources of Goebbels's anti-Semitism, his development of the theories and techniques of mass propaganda, and his role as wartime Gauleiter of Berlin. Ralf Reuth's Goebbels (Harcourt, 1993) offers readers a more balanced approach. [For a discussion of the controversy surrounding the publication of this book, see "To Buy or Not To Buy?" p. 70.]?Dennis E. Showalter, Colorado Coll., Colorado Spring.
-?Dennis E. Showalter, Colorado Coll., Colorado Springs
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 722 pages
• Publisher: Focal Point; 1st edition (December 9, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1872197132
• ISBN-13: 978-1872197135
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.5 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #508,276 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #64 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( H ) > Hitler, Adolf

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

119 of 137 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific, as WWII biographies go., November 8, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Goebbels: Mastermind of the Third Reich (Hardcover)

I was a military history major at an Ivy League school. Having said that, please understand that I have read enormous tracts of WWII history. David Irving's book on Goebbels is nothing short of perfect in terms of research, prose and refreshing analysis. Far from appearing like a right wing fanatic, Mr. Irving simply stands out as an exceptionally gifted historian trying to sift for the truth; something all true intellectuals strive to do. Any attitudes that he is a Nazi sympathizer can only stem from people who are afraid of the truth because I could discern no support either for Goebbels or the Nazis. Bravo, I wish more people in this world would try to reconstruct what happened rather than strain to protect distortions that serve either their own purposes or insecurities.

45 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Black and White and Every Shade Between, July 4, 2000

By 

Kurt Harding "bon vivant" (Boerne TX) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Goebbels: Mastermind of the Third Reich (Hardcover)

...Most of us can't understand what really goes through the minds of our own politicians and military leaders, much less understand the political landscape of other countries. It is so easy to be simplistic and form dogmatic opinions about that which we really know nothing about. Irving tries to give us a foundation of understanding of the political climate in Germany which culminated with the rise to power of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis. Goebbels' propaganda skills played a huge part in this, glorifying his own party and demolishing the opposition in the minds of the people. The Big Lie is no Goebbels invention, he just made effective use of it. His role in Hitler's rise is not much different than James Carville's role in Clinton's election or Lee Atwater's role in Bush's election. Political consultants the world over pay unspoken homage to the techniques of Joseph Goebbels. Irving's writing is sometimes tedious, I think he dwelt too much on Goebbels' youth, but perhaps he considered the background germane to the development of the reader's understanding of Goebbels' character. And he does ... tend to skip around. Despite the image some people have of Weimar Germany, it was not the democracy we are led to believe it was. Witness Goebbels' constant battles with the arrogant and self-important Police President in Berlin. Serious political opposition from the right or the left to the established order was brutally suppressed by "Isidor" Weiss. Many of us cannot imagine being jailed for heaping ridicule on a politician, but Goebbels was many times. Given such examples, it is little wonder the Nazis felt they had to be even more ruthless than their opponents once they gained power. Goebbels was subjected to merciless taunting at home and abroad for his club foot. Don't you know that in today's America, such taunting would be actionable? I did not detect anything in the book to suggest that Irving was in sympathy with Goebbels, Hitler or with Naziism and its crimes real and imagined. He shows Goebbels to have become an arrogant, a cold, cruel, vain and vindictive man as most of the other top Nazis were. Remember as you read, though, that this is a book primarily about Goebbels, not about Hitler. But in this book, you can see Hitler from another angle. Irving's work is certainly not the last word, but it deserves to be read objectively by anyone who hopes to develop an understanding of this watershed period of human history. ... Just as there is more than one side of the Battle of the Alamo, for instance, there is also more than one side of Goebbels, Hitler, Naziism and the Holocaust. Those who try to prevent another view from being heard are no better than the Nazis they so decry. In Goebbels:Mastermind of the Third Reich, David Irving tries to give us the story in black and white and every shade between.

45 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Finest WWII Book I have ever read, October 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Goebbels: Mastermind of the Third Reich (Hardcover)

There are those who would like to limit the written history of individuals like Hitler and Goebbels as a conclusory "EVIL," and try to suppress anything that would portray them in shades of grey, with good points and bad points, which of course all human beings have. This mindset, I believe, was what led to the well-known efforts to suppress publication of this book. It's too bad, because this is a work for which the author should receive acclaim, not slander. In the end, isn't is wiser to let all the information and opinions flow- or how are we to really understand what circumstances could lead the "next Hitler" or "next Nazi Germany" to arise?

David Irving's brilliant research and writing style put the reader into Goebbels' shoes and allows a real understanding (and not necessarily a sympathetic one)of what motivated this man and how he became what he did (My conclusion- cold, corrupt, narcissistic, hypocritical, and casually murderous). For those who are truly interested in preventing another human tragedy of the magnitude of what went on in the 1940's, I suggest that you open your minds and read this book. It is a classic and you won't regret it.