Road To Stalingrad [Paperback]

Benno Zieser's "The Road to Stalingrad" is an absorbing read of one German soldier's experiences on the Eastern Front in World War II. The period covered is brief, from just before the invasion of the Soviet Union ("Operation Barbarossa") in June 1941 to just prior to the surrender of the Sixth Army at Stalingrad in February 1943. (The author escapes the slaughter of the battle of Stalingrad, an event considered to be one of the largest battles in history that resulted in over 1.5 million casualties to both sides and a turning point in the Second World War, because he is injured shortly after the Soviets close the pincers around the Sixth Army and airlifted out as too feeble to continue to fight.)

The story is an excellent first-hand account, is very specific on the life of a German soldier (a machine-gunner), and done in a fluid, engaging style (one reason excerpts from this book are often found in generalized accounts of the Eastern Front). You get to meet and know not only the author but many of the author's comrades along the way, who are killed off one by one.

There are a few minor drawbacks, though. First, the writer never discloses which division of the German Army he was in, although there are probably enough clues (e.g., towns in which he was fighting and the approximate period he was in the town) that it could be narrowed down. Second, no pictures are provided, not even of the author. Third, no foreward or afterword is included regarding the writer's personal history, pre- or post-war. This lack of provenance for the work perhaps renders its authenticity a bit suspect, but overall it does contain the ring of truth in its tone, feeling, and content.

In addition, sometimes the translation from the German is too literal so that the meaning is lost. (E.g., the German "Nebelwerfer" is described as a smoke projector [a literal translation of its name] and not as a rocket launcher [its real use].)

(A cautionary note: This book was published in English in 1956. A paperback copy that aged (i.e., now over 50 years old) is going to be pretty fragile. My copy arrived in excellent shape but even after careful reading the pages are becoming separated from the binding, not to mention the fading and discoloration of the pages themselves.)

I found this book to be very interesting read, it's fast paced, albeit a bit too short. Benno Zieser captures the feel of what it must of been like for a grunt in the heat of battle. He witnesses the death of one after another of his German comrades while battling the onslaught of superior Russian forces and his feelings to come out pretty strong.

He does his best to show a human side of the enemy, and starts to get discouraged after witnessing the horrible waste of human lives dying on the battlefront

As much as I liked reading this book, it also came across as a well a novel, even though it's publishers say it's fact. Also, there is'nt all that much about Stalingrad, rather the battles Benno engaged in which leading towards the tragic city. Bnno got injured and was flown out before the noose was permently hooked around the cauldron.

Overall, I would recommned it for fans of the Eastern Front genre. Too many war books these days seem to read like they're at a distance, but The Road to Stalingrad feels like your right in their in the trenches in the mist of the action

Benno Zieser has left us a great book on his experiences as a German front-line soldier in the year or two leading up to the seige of Stalingrad. The book is not a history of the war on the eastern front but a description of the author's personal experiences, especially of the close comradeship between him and his fellow foot-sloggers. The book is extremely well-written and those we meet in it come through in an authentic, touching and at times heartbreaking way. Some have suggested the book is fiction. If it's true that this is a novel, the book can still take its place among the greatest German military autobiographies coming out of the Second World War.