Odd question, but I've been thinking about it-is Hitler really the world conquering, misanthropic asshole history paints him as, or is there anything that could be viewed in a sympathetic light? We spend so much time in history class focusing on what he did, but we never consider the why. And my own history teacher once said that "why" is the most important question, so I'm asking it now!
Adolph Hitler wrote a book, while serving time for his role in the Beer Hall putsch of 1923, called "Mein Kampf". English translations are available, and it is the primary historical source for Hitler's goals, motivations and ambitions. Warning: Mussolini thought the book was boring and admitted to not being able to finish reading it, in a New York Times interview, published July 28 1934, in the wake of a failed Nazi coup in Austria.