Voices From The Bunker: The True Account of Hitler's Last Days

by Galante (Editor), Eugene Silianoff (Editor)

A remarkable look at the final days of Adolf Hitler in which the survivors offer an intimate portrait of the daily lives of the Fuhrer and his inner circle in the bunker under the chancellery where he and others committed suicide.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, Military History

172 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1989

Reviews

[Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, Voices from the Bunker, but it is not what it is billed as. It says “Hitler’s personal staff tells the story of the Fuhrer’s last days.” The vast majority of it (153 of 166 pages) is from the (then) unpublished recollections of Traudl Junge, one of Hitler’s secretaries. In context only 13 pages was given to three of Hitler’s others intimates in his final days. Junge published her own memoirs (“Hitler’s Last Secretary”) a few years later (Note: I wrote a review here of it a few years ago). While Junge is a fascinating person, she still remains an enigma as sorts. While she later realized that the Hitler she knew as a regular person, as part of his inner circle, was not the same person the world knew as the megalomaniacal leader of Nazi Germany. Yet she had a difficult time accepting any responsibly for her own (albeit small) part in supporting Hitler over a few years of service in his last years. This book’s editors claim to present this book as a multitude of insiders’ voices, but as seen above, this book is really all about Junge with a few morsels thrown in from others. True enough, Junge is fascinating. The other accounts aren’t as much so. But if you want to read about Junge, then better to read Junge’s own full account, not this version. While Junge’s account is compelling in this insider view, better to read her own full account than this edited version that was not yet published.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read that any history lover would enjoy but there is something that bothered me throughout the book. These seemingly normal, average young ladies were swept up in the Nazi craze. I mean seriously how could they not know about the holocaust!!

[Sonja Seeber · Rating 4 out of 5]

A secretary (and other close servants) of Hitler's last months before he kills himself in his Berlin bunker. How a beastly megalomaniac can also be a charming dinner partner. It's called the banality of evil (Hannah Arendt)

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting to hear from people who were close to Hitler. Apparently, some of them had no idea how much of a monster he was until after the war.