A Woman in Berlin

“This book, A Woman in Berlin, is one of the great diaries of the whole war. Although it was published anonymously we do know the name of the woman who wrote it now. She was called Marta Hillers and she was an extremely intelligent journalist who had travelled quite a lot before the war and was certainly not a Nazi. She was extremely open-minded and it was her enquiring mind and observation which really showed the reality of the Soviet attack on Berlin in April 1945 through to the beginning of May.” Read more...

The best books on World War II

Antony Beevor, Military Historians & Veteran

“I chose this because I think it really epitomises the vengeance that took place against Germans in Germany in the aftermath of the war. It’s by a German housewife in Berlin who was repeatedly raped when the Russians arrive in 1945. It’s heart-rending but, miraculously, not depressing.” Read more...

Books on the Aftermath of World War II

Keith Lowe, Historian