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A review by binstonbirchill
Stalingrad by Vasily Grossman
5.0
The Germans are advancing on Stalingrad and every report from the front announces another defeat. Through the eyes of dozens of characters we follow many different civilian and military threads of the war. Grossman emphasizes the heroic efforts of the Russian people, and partially (possibly mostly) due to the politics of the time he praises the economic system. A careful reading and knowledge of both Grossman’s and WWII history will greatly benefit the reader, but I also feel like this would serve as a good introduction to WWII for the uninitiated.
As a war novel Stalingrad is absolutely fantastic and possibly the best I’ve ever read. The other standout feature of the novel is on the civilian side. You see the struggles of everyday people caught up in a war that they cannot escape. For an in depth exploration of the politics and a much increased complexity of characters see volume II, Life and Fate.
There is so much one could write about in a review of Stalingrad and Life and Fate. The scope of the work, accuracy to the historical record, the characters and their plight, the internal politics of the book in relation to the realities Grossman faced in a post war Soviet Union. Needless to say, I recommend this book as a vital contribution to wwii literature.
As a war novel Stalingrad is absolutely fantastic and possibly the best I’ve ever read. The other standout feature of the novel is on the civilian side. You see the struggles of everyday people caught up in a war that they cannot escape. For an in depth exploration of the politics and a much increased complexity of characters see volume II, Life and Fate.
There is so much one could write about in a review of Stalingrad and Life and Fate. The scope of the work, accuracy to the historical record, the characters and their plight, the internal politics of the book in relation to the realities Grossman faced in a post war Soviet Union. Needless to say, I recommend this book as a vital contribution to wwii literature.