The history I started with when I first tried to understand Germany was "A Concise History of Germany," by Mary Fuylbrook, published by Cambridge Unversity Press, first published in 1990. It's available in paperback. I found it on the shelf at a Barnes & Noble store and it seemed to give me a once over to sort of set the stage for how Germany came to be. It's easy to read. Won't give a lot of detail abt. specific areas, but it did help me grasp the overall history. pat smith brooklyn, ny