How long does it take to read Berlin Diary?
the journal of a foreign correspondent, 1934-1941
Berlin Diary by William L. Shirer takes about 10 hours 7 minutes to read at 250 words a minute.
About 10 hours 7 minutes
A week or two of reading
First published 1941. 552 pages, about 151,800 words.
21 days at 30 minutes a day
Estimate based on 275 words per page.
At other speeds
| Slow, 150 words a minute | 16 hours 52 minutes |
| Average, 250 words a minute | 10 hours 7 minutes |
| Fast, 400 words a minute | 6 hours 20 minutes |
The page count is the median across 64 editions, so your copy may differ. How we calculate.
About the book
Essential Historic Document. This is a most important historic document as it is the only known diary written by a professional journalist while on assignment in nazi Germany from 1933 to 1941. Prior to this, Bill Shirer was on assignment in Paris. There is no other Book I know that provides a better description of Germany's transformation from an essentially western democratic nation to a nazi gangster society. Many historians wonder 'how could this happen'? William Shirer answers this question. This is not an amateur diary and Shirer understood during the writing that it would become an important historic document. He was in the belly of the beast for all the important transformative years -1933 to 1941. He displayed great bravery by staying to the last minute. He was also a master at keeping the nazis from deporting him yet also reporting the factual news. —A juggling act that has never been matched. We owe much to William Shirer. Moreover, Shirer understood the Weimar, Prussian, German, nazi and European psyche better than any other American writer. Shirer was fluent in German, French, Swiss, and few more European languages. This is essential reading for a serious historian, anthropologist or sociologist.
Subjects: American Personal narratives, Diaries, Germany, Journalists, Politics and government, nazi
