Under the Bombs: The German Home Front, 1942-1945

by Earl R. Beck

Under the Bombs tells the story of the civilian population of German cities devastated by Allied bombing in World War II. These people went to work, tried to keep a home (though in many cases it was just a pile of rubble where a house once stood), and attempted to live life as normally as possible amid the chaos of war. Earl Beck also looks at the food and fuel rationing the German people endured and the problems of trying to make a public complaint while living in a totalitarian state.

Genres: History, World War II, Germany

280 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1986

Reviews

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was basically an academic study of how Germans lived as they started losing WWII. It was interesting (if not riveting).

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book for providing an idea of the hardships that the German civilian encountered during the war.

[Karen Koppy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read that concentrated on what it was like to live in Germany during the worst years of the second world war. It was informative but I felt like it was missing something. There were few anecdotal events of a personal nature and the ones that he wrote about were somewhat superficial. The "Postscript" was very sensitively written and gave an excellent summary of the most important topics covered in the book. It was factual yet included feelings the author shared while writing the book.

[Sharon Zink · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book that describes the German, and more specifically the Berlin, experience of being bombed in World War II. Good writing.

[Stacy Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book to learn how the German civilians dealt with the war

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gave a very detailed account of what life was like, when the allies bombed the daylights out of Germany! The civilian population lived in perpetual fear, because during World War II, there was no distinction made between combatants and noncombatants. The destruction of Germany was horrific. Hitler continued the war long passed the time when it was possible to win, causing terrible suffering, and death to those who just wanted the war to end. He and his Nazi party were responsible for the terrible destruction of his country.