The Missing Years 1941-1945
Military History Political Biography World War II History Historical Revisionism Intelligence & Espionage History Primary Source Analysis Adult Nonfiction
The Missing Years 1941-1945 is David Irving’s controversial, out-of-print 603-page investigation into the hidden wartime diaries, letters and telephone logs that were quietly removed from public view after 1945. First released in 1989 by Grafton Books, this vintage paperback pieces together what happened to those crucial documents—and, by extension, to the full story of Hitler’s headquarters, Allied diplomacy and the secret campaigns that never made the official record. For readers who want primary-source detective work rather than recycled textbook history, the book is a rare doorway into the intelligence vaults that mainstream narratives still skip over.
Collectors prize this edition because it is the original uncensored 1989 text, printed on high-opacity paper that has stayed bright and supple for thirty-five years. The copy offered here is clean inside: no previous owner’s markings, no dog-eared corners, just light shelf dust on the closed page edges that keeps it in the very-good range without bumping the price into the “fine” stratosphere. At 603 pages it is a hefty volume, yet the glued binding remains tight, making it comfortable to read or shelve upright.
Why hunt for this specific printing? Later reprints were trimmed and, in some territories, quietly edited; only the 1989 Grafton run carries every map, footnote and facsimile photograph exactly as Irving submitted them. For researchers, war-history buffs or young adults building a serious WWII shelf, owning an unmolested first-issue paperback is the safest way to cite page numbers that still match the original pagination. Demand for intact copies has risen steadily as archives tighten access, turning “The Missing Years” into a tangible hedge against digital disappearance.
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