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800 Days on the Eastern Front: A Russian Soldier Remembers World War II (Modern War Studies)
 
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800 Days on the Eastern Front: A Russian Soldier Remembers World War II (Modern War Studies) (Hardcover)

by Nikolai Litvin (Author), Stuart Britton (Editor, Translator)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
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Product details

  • Hardcover: 159 pages
  • Publisher: University Press of Kansas; annotated edition edition (28 April 2007)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0700615172
  • ISBN-13: 978-0700615179
  • Product Dimensions: 23.1 x 15.2 x 2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 343,558 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #52 in  Books > History > World History > World War II 1939-1945 > Eastern Front

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Product Description

Review

"The best memoir to date of a Red Army soldier in World War II. It's also rare in terms of the amount of detail it contains, the accuracy of that detail, and its unabashed candor. Britton skillfully complements Litvin's account by providing essential context and additional valuable information." David M. Glantz, author of Colossus Reborn: The Red Army at War, 1941-1943 "Absorbing and thought-provoking, Litvin's story reveals the perseverance, resourcefulness, and astonishing toughness of the typical Red Army soldier, and is a must-read for anyone interested in the Eastern Front or soldiers' experiences in World War II." Reina Pennington, author of Wings, Women, and War: Soviet Airwomen in World War II Combat"


Product Description

During his 800 days of war, Nikolai Litvin fought at the front lines in the ferocious tank battles at Kursk, was wounded three times, and witnessed unspeakable brutalities against prisoners and civilians. But he survived to pen this brief but powerful memoir of his wartime experiences. Barely out of his teens, Litvin served for three years in the Red Army on the killing fields of the Eastern Front. His memoir presents an unadorned, candid narrative of the common soldier's lot in Stalin's army. Unlike the memoirs of Russian officers - usually preoccupied with large military operations and political concerns - this narrative offers a true ground-level view of World War II's deadliest theater. It puts a begrimed human face on the enormous toll of casualties and provides a rare perspective on battles that were instrumental in the defeat of the German army. Litvin's varied roles, ranging from antitank gunner at Kursk to heavy machine gunner in a penal battalion to staff driver for the 352nd Rifle Division, offer unique perspectives on the Red Army in World War II as it fought from the Ukraine deep into the German heartland. Litvin documents such significant battles as Operation Kutuzov, Operation Bagration, and the German counterattack on the Narev, while also providing unique personal observations on fording the Dnepr River under enemy fire, the rape of German women by Russian troops, and literally seeing his life pass before his eyes as he watched a Stuka's bomb fall directly on his position. Originally written in 1962, with events still fresh in his mind, Litvin's memoir lay unpublished and unseen until translator Stuart Britton and a Russian colleague approached him about publishing it in English. Britton interviewed Litvin to flesh out the details of his original recollection and annotated the resulting work to provide historical context for the campaigns and battles in which he participated. Remarkably free of Soviet-era propaganda, this gem of a memoir provides a view of the war never seen by western readers, including photographs from Litvin's personal collection. An invaluable historical document, as well as a remarkable testament of survival, Litvin's memoir offers unique and penetrating insights into the Soviet wartime experience unavailable in any other source.
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Customer Reviews

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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A Russian soldiers tale., 31 Jan 2008
By Gisli Jokull Gislason "Jokull" (Iceland) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)      
Considering the amount of memoirs available form WW2 it is amazing how few are from a Soviet perspective, at least in English. So in this context the book is a gem and in content it shines.

Nikolai Litvin's memoir is very low key and honest. For the most part he is a driver, either as a commanders chauffeur or with a transport battalion and you get interesting small details as how dirty his one uniform becomes when he served as a mechanic. Don't worry there are hair raising parts as well and sad stories. Litvin comes across as a man doing his duty for his country and never tries to claim credit for extraordinary deeds even if he did a few.

Starting out as an anti tank gunner in a Airborne Division he is wounded early during the battle of Kursk, from there he is transfered to a transportation battalion and is bombed by artillery and planes, he lives when others, even his friends die. At one point he has difficulties in disposing of a friends body. Then he is sentanced to a penal company for desertion when all he does is following a command that turns out to be a suggestion and not a proper command. His time with the penal company is very interesting. Then he gets reassigned to his transport unit and gets drafted from the rear units to the front replace combat losses. All through the story there are accounts of Litvin's personal experience and some very horrible incidents.

Many readers will also find interesting how Litvin is fighting the infantry mans war, very few tanks are metioned at all. In fact with 2/3 of all Germans fighting on the Eastern Front and the majority of both Germans and Russians fighting as infantry this tells how the war was for most, even if it isn't the most glamorous part.

Special mention should also go to Stuart Britton who completes the memoir by adding introductions or adds explanations to fit Litvin's experience into contex and big picture. They summarise the unfolding events and explain strategic and tactical events and I found these parts very useful and informative without casting a shade on Litvin's story. In many occasions Litvin would have been blissfully ignorant of what was really going on but as a reader it is good to be helped along by Britton.

Through Litvin one gets a very diverse view of the Soviet Army and not always its most glamorous side but the toil of the every day soldier. I heartly recommend it for anyone interested in WW2 memoirs and would like read about the experience from the Russian side.
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