Product Description

An international bestseller, this is a German soldier's first-hand account of life on Russian front during the second half of World War II. When Guy Sajer joins the infantry full of ideals in the summer of 1942 the German army is enjoying unparalleled success in Russia. However, he quickly finds that for the foot soldier the glory of military success hides a much harsher reality of hunger, fatigue and constant deprivation. Posted to the crack Grosse Deutchland division, with its sadistic instructors who shoot down those who fail to make the grade, he enters a violent and remorseless world where all youthful hope is gradually ground down, and all that matters is the brute will to survive. As the biting cold of the Russian winter sets in, and the tide begins to turn against the Germans, life becomes an endless round of pounding artillery attacks and vicious combat against a relentless and merciless Red Army. A book of stunning force, this is and unforgettable reminder of the horrors of war.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7174 in Books
• Published on: 1999-07-15
• Binding: Paperback
• 560 pages

Synopsis
An international bestseller, this is a German soldier's first-hand account of life on Russian front during the second half of World War II. When Guy Sajer joins the infantry full of ideals in the summer of 1942 the German army is enjoying unparalleled success in Russia. However, he quickly finds that for the foot soldier the glory of military success hides a much harsher reality of hunger, fatigue and constant deprivation. Posted to the crack Grosse Deutchland division, with its sadistic instructors who shoot down those who fail to make the grade, he enters a violent and remorseless world where all youthful hope is gradually ground down, and all that matters is the brute will to survive. As the biting cold of the Russian winter sets in, and the tide begins to turn against the Germans, life becomes an endless round of pounding artillery attacks and vicious combat against a relentless and merciless Red Army. A book of stunning force, this is and unforgettable reminder of the horrors of war.

About the Author
See opposite. '...there was a war, and I married it because there was nothing else when I reached the age of falling in love...Suddenly there were two flags for me to honour...I entered the service, dreamed and hoped. I also knew cold and fear in places never seen by Lili Marlene. A day came when I should have died, and after that nothing seemed very important. So I have stayed as I am, without regret, separated from the normal human condition.' - Guy Sajer

Customer Reviews

Forgotten - not any more!
Finally I got my hands on this book. But I can't help feeling slightly disappointed, which is quite unfair, since Guy Sajer have every right not to live up to my huge expectations.
The small unit tactics and "how on earth did they do the actual fighting" surfaces occasionally and the memories of skirmishes, engagements and battles are blurred by confusion, fear, hunger, cold and sometimes darkness. Sajer probably writes straight from memory and definitely from the heart, and the 90% of the time out of action apparently provides a lot better opportunity to observe and reflect than the 10% in action.
This is an account of survival through the vastness of Russia against overwhelming enemies: Hunger, physical and mental exhaustion, extreme cold, illness and of course the Russians every now and then. Just the thought of being wounded out there in the howling blizzard is scary. Very few of today's soldiers would stand a chance under such conditions - I know I would have succumbed and been truly forgotten.
I applaud Guy Sajer - an ordinary German soldier among millions - for sharing his interesting and at times shocking experiences from WWII.
War is chaos! Guy Sajer proves it ... again.

A history of war written with love
What moves me more in Guy Sayer's writing is that in spite of what is described in this book he never used a word of hatred towards anyone.
I don't want to add anything to the previoust reviews. The story is just shocking, is a work of art no one could depict better, one who didn't live it could never ever imagine a reality like this. Shocking because it is not fiction but the reality of the enormous criminal stupidity as the fenomenon of war is. And it keeps happening today... Why we human beings didn't evolve yet?!

Authentic - disregard the critics
Read this harrowing account of life on the Eastern Front for a genuine soldier's view of the terrible conditions that ordinary soldiers had to live through. There are many popular histories of the Eastern campaign leading to Nazi Germany's eventual destruction (Alan Clark's 'Barbarossa', Antony Beavers's 'Stalingrad' and 'Berlin the downfall', and the admirable Max Hastings 'Armageddon: The Battle for Germany 1944-45' to name a few. But terrific though these histories are, none of them have the human touch that Guy Sajer offers.

Some have doubted his account as fiction or even plagiarism. My own research suggests that Sajer not only lived and survived one of the most terrible conflicts ever to inflict humanity, but his humanity and innate sense of comradeship and gentility shine through. His story is personal and genuine. This book is a gripping read for anyone interested in the period, a memorial to the brave soldiers on both sides who lived and died during the war - and a salutary lesson to those who might think that war has any glamour.