Nicholas Stargardt draws on personal diaries and private letters to understand how ordinary Germans experienced World War II and what motivated them to keep fighting for a cause that became increasingly hopeless. Rather than imposing external judgment, Stargardt reconstructs from primary sources what Germans actually thought and felt as their armies conquered Europe and then retreated toward defeat. He traces how Nazi propaganda shaped perceptions of the war, convincing Germans they were defending civilization against barbaric enemies. The diaries reveal how individuals processed the regime's crimes, with some expressing guilt or horror while others embraced or rationalized atrocities. Stargardt examines how family bonds, fear of Soviet revenge, and belief in ultimate victory sustained morale even as cities burned and casualties mounted. He shows how the home front and battlefield experiences intertwined through correspondence that maintained connections while navigating censorship. The book challenges simple narratives about German guilt or victimhood by revealing the complexity of individual experiences within a criminal state. Some diarists were fervent Nazis, others reluctant participants, and most fell somewhere in between, struggling to make sense of circumstances they could not control. Stargardt's approach respects his sources while never losing sight of the regime's crimes, creating a nuanced portrait of a nation at war with itself and the world.