The author provides the face and humanity of the Soviet people at war. The Red Army was a critical component of Allied victory in Europe. There have been many attempts by historians to present a convincing review of human cost, but this book achieves the objective – Very Highly Recommended
NAME: Red Star At War, Victory At All Costs FILE: R3253 AUTHOR: Colin Turbett PUBLISHER: Pen & Sword BINDING: hard back PRICE: £19.99 GENRE: Non Fiction SUBJECT: WWII, World War II, World War 2, Second World War, Great Patriotic War, soldiers, Red Army, civilians, partisans, POWs, tactics, strategy, Eastern Front, Germans, Wehrmacht, Waffen-SS, Luftwaffe, motivation ISBN: 1-47385-563-2 PAGES: 218 IMAGE: B325.jpg BUYNOW: tinyurl.com/y6d9fbpp LINKS: DESCRIPTION: The author provides the face and humanity of the Soviet people at war. The Red Army was a critical component of Allied victory in Europe. There have been many attempts by historians to present a convincing review of human cost, but this book achieves the objective – Very Highly Recommended
The Soviet rulers of the Russias were remarkably similar to the Nazis. To them the Party came first and the Party was them. They cared little about the horrendous losses suffered by their citizens. They held many prejudices and Stalin was responsible for more than a hundred million deaths during his blood-soaked reign. He was in power longer than Hitler but, even so, he did more damage per year.
When German swept over the border and began a rapid advance on Moscow and other important cities, many Soviet losses were due to poor equipment, training and leadership. The leadership was poor because Stalin had executed or sent to the Gulag all the capable officers to protect his hold on power. The Germans were equally destructive as they advanced and it was not only the SS death squads that accounted for the brutality. It was a matter of two similar but opposing ideologies in conflict under the most brutal of leaders.
Stalin was helped by the obedience of the Soviet people and their execution of his orders what ever the cost. We may never know exactly how many soviet citizens died, the cost was unimaginable. When the tide turned, the Germans suffered the same harsh treatment they had dealt out in their advance. Those that were captured were worked, hard with little food and virtually no medical treatment, which produced the same terrible death rate that had faced soviet prisoners of the Germans.
The Author has provided a balanced view with fresh insights and some sympathy, correcting some of the distortions produced by the soviets and their Western Allies. The text reads well and is supported by many illustrations through the body of the book.