Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege: 1942-1943
by Antony Beevor
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Book Reviews of Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege: 1942-1943
Book Review: Total war, total terror, total death, total ruin
Summary: 5 Stars
Reading this book can give you an appreciation for the mindset of a Russian, raised with the knowledge that tens of millions of his or her countryfolk died in the era of Stalin and the most memorable, pivotal period can be traced to this horrible battle beginning in late summer 1942 and ending in January 1943. Most likely it was here, not at Normandy, where the tides of war turned on the Germans. The Germans pushed too far, Hitler staked victory to his ego, and they found themselves surrounded and cut off. The Russians were willing to pay a horrible price to gain the upper hand in the dead of winter.Beevor has done an admirable job of research. To start, the language and culture of the opposing forces are foreign in every respect. And then there is the matter of fair, objective, reliable data: Given what happened here, there is no such thing as an objective view or a fair telling of the story, at least not one that will satisfy all readers. Allegiances are muddied. Allies of the Germans and Russians change sides during the battle, some more than once. Death soon becomes a welcome escape. The unraveling of humanity is unrelenting. Beevor is not squeamish or graphic. To me he has no favorites. Few candidates surface. A German priest who is also a doctor and an artist, who dies later in prison camp, is one of mine.
The capacity of the Germans to march to Hitler's tune is matched only by the ruthless, unforgiving Russian system. Advance or be shot by your own men. Say a bad word about the party -- and you're asking for a quick bullet to the head. Allow some of your men to surrender, and your fate may be sealed.
It is impossible to find a happy story here. Simple men and well-trained officers found themselves in unspeakable cold, hunger and filfth, trying to make some sense of life amidst such madness. But it is a story worth reading and remembering, if only to be thankful that you were not there. This was no "Band of Brothers", at least not as most Americans would view it.
If you prefer the video form, the recent film, "Enemy at the Gates" is a very good, if fictionalized treatment of a small part of this battle, the stand off between snipers from both sides. It shows the perilous river crossings, the brutal discipline.
Book Review: Epic history comes to life
Summary: 5 Stars
After I had read this my wife read it, then it went to work and three female staff mates read it. Then it came home to roost amongst my bookshelves. It is a book for everyone, male or female whether they have an interest in the Second World War or not, it is an incredible book about people and their experiences in the most extreme conditions.I had never before read a book like this, a documented account of a series of battles with no particular heroes and characterisations. I bought the book because it was prominent on the table in the bookstore and the reviews on the back were promising of something special.
I never understood the maps reproduced at points throughout the book and forgot which general was which, a common problem I have with names. None of the other people who read it could really get there heads around these finer points, but the overall picture slammed into me like a tsunami whilst at the same time gently touched me on the shoulder. Beevor has the ability to bring small delicate touches of humanity to the massive scale of inhuman horrors that he describes.
At the end of this book you are incredibly glad that you weren't there and in awe of the fact that people were there, stayed there and survived there. And of course died there in numbers which are hard to comprehend. I feel that I better understand the situation of the combatants and protagonists in the Second World War for having read this book.
Quoting Beevor when describing the Russians, "along with the desire for revenge, a pitiless determination not to be beaten", can best sum up the book. The German army was initially better equipped, trained and led. The Russian resistance survived because they died by the million. When the Russians regrouped and became better equipped and led the German 6th army displayed equal levels of courage and sacrifice that the Russians had previously done.
This is a colossal book that will have you reading nearly 500 pages in a couple of days. It proves history can be alive and vital in the hands of an excellent author. It is also a book that serves to illuminate the events of Stalingrad and to bring to life the events of normal human beings who endured it and died at it.
Book Review: History Comes To Life
Summary: 5 Stars
After I had read this my wife read it, then it went to work and three female staff mates read it. Then it came home to roost amongst my bookshelves. It is a book for everyone, male or female whether they have an interest in the Second World War or not, it is an incredible book about people and their experiences in the most extreme conditions.I had never before read a book like this, a documented account of a series of battles with no particular heroes and characterisations. I bought the book because it was prominent on the table in the bookstore and the reviews on the back were promising of something special.
I never understood the maps reproduced at points throughout the book and forgot which general was which, a common problem I have with names. None of the other people who read it could really get there heads around these finer points, but the overall picture slammed into me like a tsunami whilst at the same time gently touched me on the shoulder. Beevor has the ability to bring small delicate touches of humanity to the massive scale of inhuman horrors that he describes.
At the end of this book you are incredibly glad that you weren?t there and in awe of the fact that people were there, stayed there and survived there. And of course died there in numbers which are hard to comprehend. I feel that I better understand the situation of the combatants and protagonists in the Second World War for having read this book.
Quoting Beevor when describing the Russians, ?along with the desire for revenge, a pitiless determination not to be beaten?, can best sum up the book. The German army was initially better equipped, trained and led. The Russian resistance survived because they died by the million. When the Russians regrouped and became better equipped and led the German 6th army displayed equal levels of courage and sacrifice that the Russians had previously done.
This is a colossal book that will have you reading nearly 500 pages in a couple of days. It proves history can be alive and vital in the hands of an excellent author. It is also a book that serves to illuminate the events of Stalingrad and to bring to life the events of normal human beings who endured it and died at it.
Book Review: A Window onto a War Torn City
Summary: 5 Stars
Stalingrad by Anthony Beevor is a fantastic read for a person itnerested in a very specific battle in World War II which, without question, was as major a turning point in World War II as El Alamein and D-Day.
The book opens with the beginning of Operation Barbarrosa, Hitler's ill-fated decision to break the non-agression pact of 1939 with Russia. What commences for the next 1/2 of the book is a detailed analysis of the events which transpired to bring the Germany army to Stalingrad and the banks of the Volga. The failed attempt against Moscow, the major tank battle of Kursk, and the siege of Stalingrad are explained thoroughly with all the major players (military and political) given their time in the sun.
The 3rd quarter of the book deals mainly with explaining the environment of the war torn city, how the basic soldier and civilian was able to survive, and the lengths to which the Soviet Army would go to maintain the pressure on the German Army. While the major events surrounding Stalingrad were interesting, I found these brief chapters to be the most interesting and gritty of the book.
The last fourth of the book deals with the conclusion of the battle and the subsequent counterattack and complete encirclement of the German 6th Army. Again, while the sequences which lead to these events are interesting, I found Beevor's explanation of how the basic German soldier found a way to survive (or didn't) on the cold steppes of the Russian plain completely surrounded in the tight Soviet Kessel to be quite unique. I especially enjoyed all of the soldier diary entries and personal accounts that Beevor draws on to paint as close a picture as he can.
Overall, I am very pleased with this book and feel it does deserve the 5 star rating. One note of caution: this is not a book for someone wishing to get an introduction into World War II. For that I would recommend Shirer's The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich or, if you prefer something more recent, Rich Atkinsons' Dawn of War. Both will give you great introductions on the conflict, what shaped it into being, and the major players involved.
Book Review: Readable, precise, and informative
Summary: 5 Stars
An event as pinnacle as the battle of Stalingrad deserves a book like this. This prose is easy to read and contains the relevant facts to introduce and to grasp the immensity of this event on the Volga! Beevor's text is not as comprehensive of a review as the work by Erickson but it is also much easier to read because of that fact. A comprehensive understanding of the Ost Front is not necessary to understand this text. It does contain a rich amount of military fact (units, dates, casualty estimates, etc) without burying the reader in lists of division, regiment, and company types of designations. Beevor also helps to illuminate the many personalities that are inexorably linked to the event from Hitler, Paulus, Manstein, to Zhukov, Krushchev and Stalin. In spite of this, the telling of the story of the common soldier (from both sides) and the immense suffering of all those involved is not shirked. Beevor doesn't delve into too many "what ifs" except for a brief discussion regarding the potential fates of 6th Army and 4th Panzer Army if they had been allowed to retire much earlier in the battle. The best part of this text is the understanding of the effect on the Wehrmacht and on the Red Army during and after this battle. This showed the Soviets that the Germans could be dealt a tremendous blow and it showed the Germans (except for Hitler) the tenacity and dedication that the Red Army could force from its soldiers. This (in my opinion) was the first time the Germans suffered a major defeat due to the loss of control from the Prussian officers to an Austrian Corporal, it would not be the last.
Some of the amazing facts are included in this text - more Russian "Hiwis" were with 6th army than Italians and Romanians combined. The German bread ration was reduced to 100 grams a day near the end. Etc. If you saw "Enemy at the Gates", read this book for the real story of the battle. The spirit of this battle is summarized well in the "remains of a Russian and German soldier discovered buried together after they had bayoneted one another to death". Remains are still found with each excavation project in this city.