Inside the Nuremberg Trial

Rating:
Summary: Indispensable reference work about the Nuremburg Trial
Review: "Entertaining" and "fun to read" are not the usual descriptions applied to books like this heavily footnoted, two volume set. But this work is very enjoyable to read, despite its comprehensive and well-documented scope. David Irving will not be pleased. Mr. Sprecher effortlessly moves through the origins of the Military Tribunal conducting the trial, the 4 counts under which the defendants are tried, the defendant individuals, and the defendant government organizations. The prosecution cases against all of these are presented in volume I, and the defendants' cases are presented in volume II, followed by the judgement and aftermath.

Mr. Sprecher's presentation is a summary of each case presented by each prosecutor (or defense attorney), quasi-day-by-day, interspersed with personal observations, observations from other people such as psychologists who interacted with the defendants, and also provides defendant reactions to certain witnesses/documents during the trial. Highly informative, highly entertaining. Mr. Sprecher also provides pointers to follow-on sources, if you wish to do more research. An invaluable work.

One nit to pick, however: there are so many mispellings and typos in this work that one wonders if the publishers had editors go through the book prior to publishing it. Although the writing is first rate, the production work is second or third rate.

Rating:
Summary: Indispensable reference work about the Nuremburg Trial
Review: "Entertaining" and "fun to read" are not the usual descriptions applied to books like this heavily footnoted, two volume set. But this work is very enjoyable to read, despite its comprehensive and well-documented scope. David Irving will not be pleased. Mr. Sprecher effortlessly moves through the origins of the Military Tribunal conducting the trial, the 4 counts under which the defendants are tried, the defendant individuals, and the defendant government organizations. The prosecution cases against all of these are presented in volume I, and the defendants' cases are presented in volume II, followed by the judgement and aftermath.

Mr. Sprecher's presentation is a summary of each case presented by each prosecutor (or defense attorney), quasi-day-by-day, interspersed with personal observations, observations from other people such as psychologists who interacted with the defendants, and also provides defendant reactions to certain witnesses/documents during the trial. Highly informative, highly entertaining. Mr. Sprecher also provides pointers to follow-on sources, if you wish to do more research. An invaluable work.

One nit to pick, however: there are so many mispellings and typos in this work that one wonders if the publishers had editors go through the book prior to publishing it. Although the writing is first rate, the production work is second or third rate.

Rating:
Summary: Vital road map
Review: I first met the author in 1968, while I was still at Uni. Several years later I learned of his earlier life at Nuremburg. Now, I have found use in his having put down a summary of his work at Nuremburg. Mr. Sprecher has written a great reference work for anyone who might wish to pursue the evidence of Buchenwald, Treblinka, etc., rather than the dramatic stories we've often seen in film or read in novels. All human rights lawyers who are today looking for precedents to help support their arguments will find this is a thorough and excellently organised sourcebook. Non-lawyers need not worry--the language is quite readable, and while the text often refers to evidence, it nonetheless contains enough detail for the gruesome-minded.

Rating:
Summary: Vital road map
Review: I first met the author in 1968, while I was still at Uni. Several years later I learned of his earlier life at Nuremburg. Now, I have found use in his having put down a summary of his work at Nuremburg. Mr. Sprecher has written a great reference work for anyone who might wish to pursue the evidence of Buchenwald, Treblinka, etc., rather than the dramatic stories we've often seen in film or read in novels. All human rights lawyers who are today looking for precedents to help support their arguments will find this is a thorough and excellently organised sourcebook. Non-lawyers need not worry--the language is quite readable, and while the text often refers to evidence, it nonetheless contains enough detail for the gruesome-minded.

Rating:
Summary: Comprehensive coverage of war crimes trial & holocaust
Review: This book discusses in considerable detail the trial before the first International Military Trial in Nuremberg in 1945 and 1946. From contemporaneous documents, Drexel Sprecher discloses the planning of aggressive wars by Nazi Germany which eventually resulted in the deaths of nearly 30 million people. Sprecher describes the evolution of the numerous concentration camps and the genocide of more than six million Jews and one-half million Gypsies. Though he was a prosecutor, Sprecher presents the first complete account of the defenses made on behalf of the 22 defendants at the trial. He also sets forth the findings of the International Military Tribunal concerning the guilt and innocence of the defendants. The book is an important source for reference by the several international tribunals which have been established by the United Nations to deal with recent war crimes and civil crimes involving the murder of large numbers of civilians. Inside the Nuremberg Trial is well organized into 122 chapters, each with many subsections. This organization makes it possible to find virtually any topic concerning the Nazi regime and the holocaust and how the Nazi leaders were brought to justice at Nuremberg.