Knowing how much of a history geek I am, my parents bought me a copy of Ian Kershaw's The End: Germany, 1944-45. I read it over the course of a week, and cannot recommend it enough. As with his biographies of Hitler, which are both scholarly and fascinating, Kershaw writes with an authoritative and rather commanding voice. His research is impeccable.

The End is an admirable and far-reaching study indeed; in his preface, Kershaw writes: 'I have tried to take into account the mentalities of rulers and ruled, of Nazi leaders and lowly members of the civilian population, of generals and ordinary soldiers, and of both the eastern and the western fronts. It is a wide canvas and I have to paint it with a broad brush.' The End is intelligent, informative, and most of all accessible.