War of the Century

The powerful follow-up to The Nazis incorporates previously unpublished material to provide new insight into Hitler's invasion of Russia. With new access to Russian archives previously unavailable to the international community, Laurence Rees, author and producer of the Peabody Award-winning The Nazis, combines unpublished primary-source material and photographs, dramatic interviews with witnesses who knew Hitler or Stalin, and the voices of soldiers and civilians to create a groundbreaking look at Hitler's "war of annihilation." Hitler's invasion of Russia played a major part in determining the outcome of World War II and shaped the political landscape of Europe for the next forty-five years. War of the Century focuses on key events and policies such as Hitler's decision to invade the Soviet Union, the legendary and horrific siege of Stalingrad, the Germans' barbaric treatment of Soviet civilians and Red Army prisoners of war, and Stalin's paranoid revenge against real and perceived enemies. Published in conjunction with Rees's major BBC/History Channel documentary, War of the Century also contains both color and black-and-white photographs, many of which have never been published before, as well as a foreword by preeminent Hitler historian Ian Kershaw.

Laurence Rees is the editor of Timewatch, BBC Television's historical documentary series, as well as head of BBC Television's history programs unit. Under his editorship, Timewatch has won three Emmy Awards in three years. He is the author and producer of the award-winning book and documentary The Nazis: A Warning from History (The New Press).