I’ve read many history books. Some written by Generals, others by politicians or modern historians. But I always go back to, and prefer the anecdotal books. The ones written by the people on the ground. Now I know serious historians generally dismiss the stories of soldiers as they’re usually partisan and ill informed. But to me thats the point.  My interest in the war revolves mainly around the individuals. War itself is abhorrent and the phrase that says something along the lines of ‘Wars are waged by old men and paid for by the young’ sums up why I’m interested in them. Its the life of the individual that interests me because his life is important. His experience is important and its the dismissal of these that allows us to go to war time and time again.

Anyway .. I strayed. But the point is, Heinz Schroter, while he wasn’t a regular infantry man, he was a communications officer at Army HQ and as such was party to all the radio messages going back and forth between the front-line, the HQ and Berlin. He had to fend for himself as HQ was over run and then later was tasked with the job of writing the report to Hitler outlining the events. This book is pretty much an expanded version of that report.

And I suppose I should just go through the usual stuff of having to explain that just because I’m interested in the German Army during the war and am a wargamer does not make me pro Nazi. In fact I think you’ll find most people like me are also horrified by war and abhor the Nazis. You don’t have to learn much about the subject for that to become ingrained. There’s nothing nice or heroic or noble about any of it. But it IS fascinating.

Anyway, you’ll find the book is full of incredible background information and stories about individual actions. It really is the most interesting book on Stalingrad I’ve ever read. Maybe academically not the best , but certainly the most, for me, informative and enlightening.