The Nazi Mind: Twelve Warnings from History

Historian Laurence Rees examines the rise of Nazi extremism, how such ideology gained widespread support, and its relevance to modern extremist movements. The book is organized around twelve warnings—red flags to identify in contemporary governments and societies. Rees investigates fundamental questions about the Holocaust and World War II: Why did concentration camp commandants willingly oversee mass murder? How did the SS commit their crimes? What enabled ordinary Germans to tolerate the removal of Jews? Drawing on previously unpublished testimony from former Nazis and those living under Nazi rule, along with insights from psychological research, Rees traces the development of Nazi mentalities from the late 1910s through the 1940s. He explores the conditions that allowed this violent ideology to flourish and examines the propaganda apparatus that sustained it.