The Last 100 Days: The Tumultuous and Controversial Story of the Final Days of World War II in Europe

by John Toland

Overview

A dramatic countdown of the final months of World War II in Europe, The Last 100 Days brings to life the waning power and the ultimate submission of the Third Reich. To reconstruct the tumultuous hundred days between Yalta and the fall of Berlin, John Toland traveled more than 100,000 miles in twenty-one countries and interviewed more than six hundred people—from Hitler’s personal chauffeur to Generals von Manteuffel, Wenck, and Heinrici; from underground leaders to diplomats; from top Allied field commanders to brave young GIs. Toland adeptly weaves together these interviews using research from thousands of primary sources.

When it was first published, The Last 100 Days made history, revealing after-action reports, staff journals, and top-secret messages and personal documents previously unavailable to historians. Since that time, it has come to be regarded as one of the greatest historical narratives of the twentieth century.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780812968590
Publisher:	Random House Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/27/2003
Series:	Modern Library War
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	640
Sales rank:	665,921
Product dimensions:	9.18(w) x 10.84(h) x 1.14(d)

About the Author

John Toland was one of the most widely read military historians of the twentieth century. His many books include Ships in the Sky; Battle: The Story of the Bulge; But Not in Shame; The Rising Sun; Adolf Hitler; and No Man’s Land. Originally from Wisconsin, he lived in Connecticut for many years with his wife.

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Excerpted from "The Last 100 Days"
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Copyright © 2003 John Toland.
Excerpted by permission of Random House Publishing Group.
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Editorial Reviews

Fascinating . . . The narrative shifts from scene to intimate scene of every conference room . . . from liberated camp to Hitler’s underground bunker, to GIs storming the railroad bridge across the Rhine. . . . Toland has woven the tapestry of history.” —Chicago Tribune

“A hundred stories fill out these hundred days—portraits, battle plans, ironies, feats of espionage, mass brutalities, insanity, diplomats, generals, soldiers, snipers, the cool and the fanatic. Hitler’s horoscope, what General Eisenhower was reading on the morning of surrender, Quisling’s final auto ride, orders,
counterorders, impatient statesmen, conflicting strategies, the stench of fire and death, telegrams to Moscow, plunging armies, straggling refugees. . . . In fascinating and exhaustively researched detail—it is all here!” —The New York Times

“Brilliant . . . The reader is in suspense throughout. . . . Each scene is played out close-up and point-blank, as if one were there, listening to the dialogue, counting the stakes, feeling the emotions of the principals.” —The New York Times Book Review

From the Publisher

The late author wrote many books about WWII, but this one, first published in 2003, broke new ground because of its use of previously unreleased documents and personal interviews. The audiobook is now available, and the material is just as enlightening as it was on paper. Narrator Ralph Cosham brings an authoritative British accent to the work, and he’s suitably respectful of the awesome story he’s telling. His variations in pitch and his delivery of especially painful passages are effective and engrossing. He also has excellent diction and keeps to a lively pace. Over the course of this long book, however, his steady narration lacks a bit of variety. R.I.G. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine

OCTOBER 2014 - AudioFile