This book is in the typical "then and now" format, showing pictures from the past (i.e. before, during and after WWII), and juxtaposing that with current (i.e. 1990's) pictures of the same area/buildings. The author is an authority on the battle of Berlin and the final battles of the Third Reich, so he was an ideal person to write this book. The book has 100's of beautiful pictures, both before and after. The majority of the pictures are from the Battle of Berlin, but there are a few from before WWII, and there is an extensive amount of text and pictures post WWII as well. In fact, the author takes the reader all of the way up to the reunification in the early 1990's. What is truly fascinating is how devastated Berlin was, and how much it has changed from the end of WWII. The majority of Berlin was laid to waste during the war, and it was extensively rebuilt after the war, but using the so-called Modern (i.e. tasteless) buildings so popular during the 50's, 60's and 70's. One thing in particular that lest a bad taste in my mouth from reading through this book, was the authors reliance on the musings of William L. Shirer. This individual was a "journalist" during WWII, and he spent much of his time in Berlin. Needless to say, he has nothing good to say about the Nazi's (obviously, few people do), but every time he mentions one of the Nazi "big wigs", he has to use a derogatory adjective. It almost becomes childish after a while. This man had a lot of hatred in is heart, not sure if it didn't stem from some early child trauma, but needless to say, he should never have become a journalist. That being said, the author of the book would have been better to have left out this individuals insane ramblings. One other issue I had with the book, was that the book literally fell apart while I was reading it. The interior of the book became detached from the book cover. I have since had to glue it carefully back together. It might be because the book is somewhat old (1992), and it is HEAVY. It is made with thick acid free paper. Overall, this is a fascinating book on the battle of Berlin. Recommended if you are into the "before and after" aspect of WWII. ( )