Countdown to Valkyrie The july Plot to Assassinate Hitler by: Nigel Jones

This book is a fantastic look into the German military during World War II, and Hitler's Germany. It presents incredible detail, well documented, and an intricate look at the military structure that made up this time altering nation. Few people realize the instability of the structure behind the Nazi machine. Destabilized within the military units -- torn between loyalty to country, and loyalty to a mad man, this book presents the struggles that Germans faced in the midst of a crisis that not all of them wanted.

This book presents the stories of the fractured support that stood behind Hitler -- those that supported him, those that vacillated, those that hated him, and those that were willing to sacrifice everything to get rid of him. Few books look into the German people and the crises that Hitler presented, when he seized power. The shame that he brought to many of the military leaders -- as they were forced to declare loyalty to a man they did not agree with, while still firmly grounded in the country they were devoted to. These men had to stand by and watch as Hitler forced their country into a position they did not feel they should be in, and he forced them into a war they felt they should not fight, and forced them into trying to find a solution that would cost the lives of so many.

In the introduction there is a quote from Roger Casement, a man hanged for treason in the First World War: "'It is a cruel thing to die with all men misunderstanding.'" This quote could not be better used in a description for the events that are portrayed in this book. The people involved in the plot were presented as real people, struggling with their own moral values, their own fear, and pride -- as they struggled to come to terms with the only solution that would be vaguely possible -- kill Adolf Hitler.

Count Claus Schenk von Stauffenberg is presented as a man of great conviction, drive, and charisma -- the man who managed to bring all the other conspirators together in a drama that would ultimately demand the sacrifice of his own life. But it also presented him as a man torn between his love for his country, and his hatred for a man he felt was a cataclysmic mistake. He never hesitated in his desire to rid Germany of the man that caused so much pain and suffering, and in his eyes brought shame to the German people, and the German nation.

One other quote that I found particularly insightful in this book is an answer to the question of how did those that survived manage such a feat? The response came from one of the surviving conspirarists -- after all the torture, and all the pain, degradation, and suffering, he responded, "We all made the discovery that we could endure far more than we had ever believed possible. The two great polar forces of human emotions, love and hate, together formed a supporting structure on which we could rely when things became unbearable. . ." What a profound insight, into not only human nature, but into the ability of the human spirit to rise above the impossible, and overcome true horror.

This book is one that I would strongly recommend. It is very well written, and is beautiful in the depth that it presents a very different side of the German perception of the Hitler era. Profoundly thought provoking, it asks the question of each reader -- what would you have done? And as Mr. Stauffenberg learned -- only one person can truly answer that question -- for each of us.