Good book for Info and OOB`s

[tiger111]

Picked up "To the Gates of Stalingrad" by Glantz 2008.

Very detailed on units and combat actions.Perhaps a good source for 1942 OOB`s.

It is first in a trilogy covering early 1942 to autumn 1942.
The second volume covers the battle itself and the third,later to released, the Soviet counter-attack.

It`s big it`s 655 pages long.

Really great, but the diagrams/maps are not very good though.

[demyansk]

Hi Augie,

I just finished the first volume and I am working on the second volume right now. I also bought a 2009 edition of Paul Carell's Hitler's War on Russia by Aberdeen publishing. The maps are lousy on the Glantz book but the book has so much info it will make your head spin. Well worth the cost on Amazon

[Captain B]

Is the 2009 book a reprint of Hilter Move's East 1941-1943. Wish I could find my original copy of that, but methinks it was thrown out by my baby brother.

Thanks.

[demyansk]

Hi Captain,

It looks like a reprint of the original book by Aberdeen Publishing and I purchased from Federowicz Publishing since its a limited edition. Go to this website and you will find great stuff and the link to order the book

http://www.jjfpub.mb.ca/ground%20combat ... d%20Combat

This special limited edition of an all time classic on the war on the Eastern Front is based off the original British first edition. The dust jacket, photos and fold out map are reproduced exactly here as the original. The only small changes are upgrades on the binding, paper and overall production in which no expense was spared. Launched with an immense invasion force of three million men, Germany's surprise attack against Russia in 1941 was planned by Hitler to crush the Soviets within eight weeks. Instead, hampered by major strategic errors, fanatical Soviet resistance, and the severity of Russian winters, "Operation Barbarossa" lingered on until, in 1943, The German fighting machine finally broke down at Stalingrad in one of the most shattering defeats of the century. Rarely has this war of attrition be reconstructed in such authentic detail and with such starkly dramatic effects as it is in this account. Paul Carell, basing his story on official military records, the memoirs of commanders in both German and Russian armies, and extensive conversations with survivors of all ranks, has drawn an objective, extraordinary vivid pictures of a struggle which, in the size of the forces involved and the ferocity of the fighting, was unparalleled in the history of the war. Along "the greatest front in world history" three armoured spearheads advanced simultaneously in a Blitzkrieg aimed at the vital centers of Russia. Their superior direction of operations, the daring mobility of the Panzer Corps, and the toughness of the troops swept the Germans to within 60 miles of Moscow. But in 1942, while his generals were urging a direct attack upon the capital, Hitler ordered them to concentrate upon a drive south into the Ukraine and towards the oil of the Caucasus. The Germans rapidly penetrated as far as Stalingrad on the River Volga, and Hitler became obsessed with the necessity of capturing the city. By September his troops were fighting in its streets. But the Russians resisted heroically, and after breaking out from the city, encircled and captured a number of German divisions and high-ranking officers. It was this sudden collapse at Stalingrad which turned the tide of the war in Russia. Paul Carell demonstrates clearly in this definitive account the strategic issues of the Campaign, its origins and significance, Hitler's tactical blunders and his generals' achievements in spite of them. Includes stunning color and black and white photographs, that have easily stood the test of time in their dramatic appeal.

[AZKGungHo]

Carell's books are interesting and fun, but given that he worked for the Nazi's you have to remember he's completely pro-German in his accounts.  Interestingly enough he's also strongly anti-Hitler, blaming almost all the German's woe's on either Hitler, weather or "just one more battalion!"I've got most of his stuff in paperback.

[MengCiao]

If you want to see what actually happened, the Glantz books are about as close as you can get. In to the Gates of Stalingrad, for example, you can see
one simple answer to the question of how the Russians avoided getting all of 40, 21 and 28 armies pocketed and destroyed...which in all accounts of
Blau I is always a mystery. The supposed way the Russians started making operational retreats in mid-summer 1942 is that they started withdrawing sooner, which may be true in part, but they also had big tank forces to commit and cover their withdrawals. In Glantz's book you can even see Badanov and his 24th Tank Corps make its debue and rescue parts of 40 and 28 armies from 6th Army and 4th panzer army during Blau I -- something that is not mentioned in accounts based only on German Sources.

[kfmiller41]

Just finished that volume, and it does seem that the russians fought tooth and nail to stop the germans from ever reaching Stalingrad, and lost a ton of armor in the process. Never read that in other accounts. Will be starting the 2nd volume this weekend[X(]

[paullus99]

Not surprised, but trying to go one-on-one with German armored formations, in open country, in 1942 was just a bad idea all-around.

[tiger111]

I`m glad people like this book/trilogy as I do.

But arn`t the diagrams absolutely rubbish.You can`t read many of the place names and often there is no scale so making it all rather pointell.

Looks as if they`ve been lifted wholesale of contempory maps which were a lot larger.

Shame as I makes following the battle harder.Darn good book otherwise.

[kfmiller41]

Yeh, you have to wonder what they were thinking when they looked at this before they said ok to the publisher "Jeez with a 10x magnifier I can maybe make out the units" just seems wrong somehow[:-]

[USSLockwood]

In anticipation of WitE I've been reading up on the Eastern Front. I came across one of the Stackpole series at Barnes and Noble, "Zhukov on the Oder". It is one of many books that Stackpole has on the Eastern Front. It is chock full of maps, photographs, and OOB's. Other titles include, "Soviet Blitzkrieg", "Kursk", and
"German Defeat in the East".

[kfmiller41]

Here are 2 great books if you can find them "Death of a Leaping Horseman" and "Island of Fire" Both by the same author Jason Mark. They cover the brutal battles in Stalingrad of the 24 Panzer Div and the battle for the Barrikady Gun factory. Many pictures, maps and aerial photos along with day by day stories and events. Excellent book that are about as well researched as you can find. Reading them almost feels like your there. Publisher is Leaping Horseman Books. http://www.leapinghorseman.com/