World War II books

[jumpy]

As already mentioned:

The forgotten Soldier - Guy Sajer ISBN 1-57488-285-6

Guy Sajer's perspective as a German foot soldier makes the The Forgotten Soldier a unique war memoir. This is the horror of WW2 on the Eastern Front, as seen through the eyes of a teenage German soldier. At first an exiting adventure, young Sajer's war becomes, as the German invasion falters in the icy vastness of the Ukraine, a simple, desperate struggle for survival against cold, hunger and above all the terrifying Soviet artillery. As a member of the Gross Deutschland Division, he fought in all the great battles, from Kursk to Kharkov.
Lauded by critics as a statement not only on war, but also on the human condition, The Forgotten Soldier will continue to capture the minds of readers for years to come.

Despite certain questions as to the veracity of the account, it certainly gives a very engaging account of the war on the eastern front, which if not entirely factual in its retelling is most certainly derived from very real experience of the ordinary footsoldier. The hardback copy I have has some rather good photos too.

Also:

Sniper on the Eastern Front - The memoires of Sepp Allerberger Knights Cross - Albrecht Wacker ISBN 1-84415-317-7

This book is a rare first hand account by a ruthlessly efficient German sniper of life and death during the bitter conflict that followed the Nazi invasion of Russia. Josef 'Sepp' Allerberger, was an Austrian conscript who qualified as a Wermacht machine-gunner and was drafted to the Southern sector of the front in July 1942. Wounded at Voroshilovsk, he experimented so successfully with a captured Russian sniper rifle while convalescing and returned to his unit as his regiment's only sniper specialist. In the gruelling months that followed, as the German Army was forced to withdraw under almost constant pressure from the Russians, Allerberger became the second most successful German sniper and one of the very few private soldiers to be awarded with the coveted Knights Cross.
This harrowing and graphic memoir provides a vivid insight to the atrocious conditions and brutal cruelty of this campaign. There was , we learn, no place for chivalry and few prisoners survived long after capture. Allerberger relates the cunning, discipline and fieldcraft that not only saw him survive during the near constant action but made him such a relentless assassin.

A very good read, this one. Again in hardback with some photographs. It is as gripping and exciting as it is brutal. Little time is spent on the politics and ideology of the era, more that it concerns life as a soldier and the things that were experienced.

Stalingrad - Antony Beevor ISBN 978-0-141-03240-5

The classic international bestseller recounting the epic turning point of the second world war.
'The colossal scale of Stalingrad, the megalomania, the utter absurdity, the sheer magnitude of the carnage, are marvellously captured in Beevor's history.' - Richard Bernstein NYT
'Brilliant' - The Times.

'Russia', observed the poet Tyuchev, 'cannot be understood with the mind.' The Battle of Stalingrad cannot be adequately understood through a standard examination. A purely military study of such a titanic struggle fails to convey its reality on the ground, rather as Hitler's maps in his Rastenburg Wolfsschanze isolated in a fantasy-world, far from the suffering of his soldiers.
The idea behind this book is to show, within the framework of a conventional historical narrative, the experience of troops on both sides, using a wide range of new material, especially from archives in Russia. The variety of sources is important to convey the unprecedented nature of the fighting and its effects on those caught up in it with little hope of escape.
The sources include war diaries, chaplain's reports, personal accounts, letters, NKVD (security police) interrogations of German and other prisoners, personal diaries and interviews with participants.

Paperback with quite a few photographs. This one is all encompassing in its scope of the battle of Stalingrad; the preceding events, the battle itself and the encirclement and eventual destruction of 6th army group. Includes maps and many diverse accounts from all sides and ranks. Despite its very factual nature it is a good read, with insight into commanders and men alike and the truly awful conditions to which so many were forced to suffer and die.

Lastly a bit of fiction-ish:

War of The Rats - David L. Robbins ISBN 0-75283-403-7

Stalingrad in 1942 is a city in ruins, its Russian defenders fighting to the last man to repel the invading German Army. One of their most potent weapons is the crack sniper school developed by Vasily Zaitsev. Its members can pick off the enemy at long range, and their daring tactics mean that no German can ever feel safe.
The battle is as much psychological as military, and to counter the threat Nazi command bring in their own top marksman, Heinz Thorvald. His skill is legendary, his accuracy astonishing. His mission is simple: to identify and kill Zaitsev
Based on a true story, War of The Rats is a brilliantly compelling thriller which combines the suspense of The Day Of The Jackal with the realism of Cross Of Iron

Paperback novel with all you'd expect as the basis for an Enemy at the Gates type story. Based around historical fact and artistic license, it's a gripping yarn and one I have read several times already. Good stuff.


I can thoroughly recommend all of these titles for anyone who has an interest in WW2. Hopefully some of what is quoted here will give a taste for the books themselves I found it hard to put any of them down for very long.

 

[BogEyes]

As has been said, I thoroughly recomnmend The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer. Absoloutley brilliant book.

Also highly recommend 'With the old breed:at peleliu and okinawa'. Which is Eugene B. Sledge's account of life and fighting in the pacific as a marine.

 

[iamdjdz]

It's not the 2nd WW but the 1st, 'All quiet on the Western Front' is an amazing book, well worth a read, didn't think I'd be interested in it but it's really really good, read it.

 

[SiHH]

Cheers guys you have given me lots of choice there... cant wait to get started !

 

[Von Smallhausen]

Try a book called Forgotten Voices by Max Arthur.

It has letters from frontline troops from all aspects and theatres of conflict during World War II. It is such a good read.

 

[philstanbridge]

As has been said, I thoroughly recomnmend The Forgotten Soldier by Guy Sajer. Absoloutley brilliant book.

Also highly recommend 'With the old breed:at peleliu and okinawa'. Which is Eugene B. Sledge's account of life and fighting in the pacific as a marine.

Two great books there. Digressing slightly, let's not forget that The Pacific must be due on our screens later this year, which follows E. Sledge through the battles that made him famous.

Digressing part two, if you want to see some dramatic WWII photographs to inspire you, check out http://www.ww2incolor.com/dramatic/

 

[Wolf11]

The Forgotten Soldier.

Told from the point of view of a 'german' soldier on the eastern front. Some questions over whether it's 100% true, but by the time you are finished you won't care.

Yup one of the best books I have ever read-a must read !!