Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- According to Shirer, who played the biggest role in the rise and fall of the Third Reich? Was it Adolf Hitler himself, or were other individuals or groups equally culpable?
- What aspects of World War II does Shirer leave untouched or unexamined in the book, and why?
- What biases does Shirer exhibit throughout The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich? Do they diminish the reliability of his reporting?
- Why does Shirer emphasize the role of propaganda in the rise of Nazism?
- Based on Shirer's description, do you think Hitler was mentally ill?
- Does Shirer exhibit an anti-German bias in the book?
- How does the author's writing style help to carry the reader through this massive work?
- What impact do Shirer's eyewitness accounts have on the reader?
- What aspects of German culture, society, and national character does Shirer seem to value?
- What did Hitler's "scorched earth" order at the end of the war say about his character?
- Was Tom Cruise the right guy to portray Stauffenberg in Valkyrie?
- How many ants would it take to carry a paperback copy of The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich home to their queen?