Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Start: 1904-30 | 1976 | William L. Shirer | Buy |
| 2 | The Nightmare Years: 1930-40 | 1984 | William L. Shirer | Buy |
| 3 | A Native’s Return: 1945-1988 | 1990 | William L. Shirer | Buy |
The 20th Century Journey series by William L. Shirer is listed below in reading order.
This three-volume autobiography traces Shirer’s life across most of the twentieth century. The Start (1976) covers his childhood in Iowa and his early career as a young reporter in Paris and India. The Nightmare Years (1984) picks up in 1930 and follows him through a decade of reporting from inside Hitler’s Germany for CBS Radio. A Native’s Return (1990) covers his postwar years back in the United States, including his blacklisting during the McCarthy era and his later success as an author.
The books should be read in order, as each picks up where the previous one ended. Together they form one of the most detailed journalist memoirs of the twentieth century.