These are the ten that I'd recommend, if you were going to build a practical knowledge of Germany.....going well past the 1930s, and even going back to the Roman era.
1. Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Fall of Prussia (1600-1947) by Christopher Clark. It's been around for ten years and gives you a wide landscape of history chatter. The negative? 800 pages....you can figure it'll take a good six weeks to finish.
2. The Unification of Germany, by Charles Rivers Editors. This is a simple book (100 pages) which covers the first unification (that bringing the Prussian Empire together). A lot of coverage over the 1800s, and how they reached one single nation status.
3. The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914, by Christopher Clark. It's another six-week project (roughly 700 pages). It describes in detail all the pieces that fell together and triggered WW I.
4. Bismark: A Life, by Jonathon Steinberg (2013). It's roughly 600 pages, and it drills down into the most well known Chancellor in German history.
5. Kaiser Wilhelm II: A Life in Power, by Christopher Clark. A lesser known work (only 300 pages, so it's readable in two weeks). It talks at length about the last Kaiser of Germany, and is a a great starting point to understand the 1890s of Germany.
6. Dark Valley by Piers Brendon (2002). This is another lengthy book (848 pages). It talks at length about the 1920s and 1930s, and how Europe itself was proceeding toward WW II. To be honest, it's covering a number of nations (not just Germany), but it's a well written book, with a vast landscape.
7. Debit and Credit by Gustav Freytag. First, you need to note that it was originally written in 1855 by Freytag. There is an English translation from the past decade (via E-books), and a paperback version. It is fictional (it's the only fictional work that I will advocate on German history). From 1850 to 1900....it was the largest selling book on the German market. At some point, Freytag was considered like a national 'folk-hero' (getting his own statue in Wiesbaden), and being a key-speaker. The book is written in the form of Uncle Tom's Cabin, and drills down into the idea of never taking risks or gambling.
8. A Short History of the Weimar Republic by Colin Storer (2013). Roughly 250 pages, and easily read in a month. It covers the 14-year history of the Weimar Republic, and the political chaos of the period. If you hate politics, then the book is not for you. However, it does detail the major players of the 1920s, and the things fell apart, and reshaped it to be Hitler's 'toy'.
9. Weimar Culture: The Outsider as an Insider, by Peter Gay (1968). Roughly 250 pages, easily read in a few weeks. This book talks at length about the media landscape, entertainment, and 'fun-factor' that existed after WW I. It's a unique period in Germany, and just about everything that would have been forbidden in the Kaiser era....was now allowed.
10. A Mighty Fortress, by Steven Ozment. From 2005, around 250 pages. It's a decent introduction to the Roman era of Germany.
Some other suggestions:
- Germany: A History, by Francis Russell (230-odd pages, 2015). A history professor-type book and lays out the landscape.
- Mein Kampf, by Hitler. First, it's an awful difficult book (actually two volumes) to get through, and if you hate political chatter, it's worthless. But if you want to understand the 'sales' point of Nationalist Socialism....it's probably a good starting point.
- Hitler Ascent, by Volker Ullrich (1040 page, 2017). Lots of research, and great landscape, but it's a book that would require a minimum of two months to read. He covers the whole period (1889-1945).
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