The Soviet-Afghan War: How a Superpower Fought and Lost

Rating:
Summary: Not An Easy Read
Review: Definitely a manual/lessons learned for Soviet leaders or those who have to read it for a class, etc... I couldn't get past page 84. The book couldn't keep my attention. I recommend reading "The Other Side of The Mountain." Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War. This book is a testimonial of how the Mujahideen fought and defeated the Soviets. Much more engaging......

Rating:
Summary: A sometimes boring book but VERY informative and useful
Review: Let me first start off that this is not a quick easy read. It goes into VERY small detail about practically everything in the Soviet-Afghan War. However, some of the small things that the author goes over gets very boring very quick. When you read this book, it almost feels like a battle manual for the Soviet-Afghan War. However, when you get done reading the book, its probably the closest one person can come to understanding the war without actually being there. The drawings in the book are also very useful to help spell out what the author is saying. All in all, the book does not give an action/adventure story of the war, but when you comprehend it, you will have a firm understanding of what the war was like from an operational point of view

Rating:
Summary: A sometimes boring book but VERY informative and useful
Review: Let me first start off that this is not a quick easy read. It goes into VERY small detail about practically everything in the Soviet-Afghan War. However, some of the small things that the author goes over gets very boring very quick. When you read this book, it almost feels like a battle manual for the Soviet-Afghan War. However, when you get done reading the book, its probably the closest one person can come to understanding the war without actually being there. The drawings in the book are also very useful to help spell out what the author is saying. All in all, the book does not give an action/adventure story of the war, but when you comprehend it, you will have a firm understanding of what the war was like from an operational point of view

Rating:
Summary: An Excellent nuts and bolts primer
Review: On many occasions during my reading of this book, I was filled with questions. Eventually, each and every question was answered in full. It covers everything from footwear of the Airborne forces to the pay of senior officers. It's filled with hard won knowledge of a largely misunderstood (by both Russia and the west) war. I was constantly struck by some comparisons with U.S. Army, Vietnam experience. We see an army, known for it's operational and technical excellence, finding its strengths of little or no use in a hostile and underdeveloped country. Although the 40th Army made some adaptations to their environment, they suffered from, "an ideological blind spot in the Marxist-Leninist tenets." Let's hope that the U.S. Mandarins who are running the present war in Afghanistan read this book. It would be great tragedy to see ideological blind spots cause a repeat of the Soviet experience.

The organization of this book is worth noting. Each chapter covers a given subject, written by a different Russian officer who we can assume is a subject matter expert. As I alluded to earlier, I would be filled with questions at the end of some of these chapters. The editors always came to my rescue by adding their own comments in the end of each chapter and subject that neatly answered all questions.

This is one of those books that should be read by every serving officer and enlisted man in the armed forces. It not only gives a clear and understandable view of how combat maneuver units work, but also logistics, combat support and all the other services that make war possible and impossible, or were used and misused. While I'm on the subject of who should read this book, it might be even more important for politicians and Foreign Service officers to study it thoroughly. This book showcases the disconnect between policy that's easily created and the effort it takes to enact that policy.

Rating:
Summary: Talk about wooden prose!
Review: Soviet General Staff studies are generally interesting, but difficult to read. They're intended for Soviet officers, and intend to convey lessons that can be used in future conflicts. I've read a couple that deal with World War II, and if they'd been carved into trees they couldn't have been more wooden. This book suffers from that: lifeless technical prose with no attempt to keep the reader's attention. What the book contains, though, is a wealth of information and knowledge of how the war in Afghanistan was fought, from the weapons and tactics that were used to the method by which Soviet soldiers in Afghanistan received their mail.

This is at times very interesting. There's a great deal about tactics and weaponry, and much about the technical aspects of soldiering, everything from aviation to engineering to supply and construction. Though there's a lot of information in the book, it's not sorted chronologically: there's no central narrative history of events. Instead, there's a brief prologue telling of the beginning of the war, and an even briefer epilogue recounting the Soviet withdrawal. I'm still waiting for a narrative of the war that's reasonably accessible, with detail and a reasonable narrative that I can follow, so that I have a better background into what's going on there now.

Rating:
Summary: Superb analysis and an excellent translation
Review: The Russian/Soviet General Staff is well known and highly esteemed for its comprehensive studies of past Wars and Campaigns. Following the Afghan War, a small group of Senior Officers gathered together to publish a history of the Soviet War experience in Afghanistan. They hoped to pass on the hard won lessons of their war onto a new generation of Russian officers who are currently engaged in guerilla wars in the Caucusus and Central Asia. Unfortunately, there has been little interest in publishing their book in Russia. In an effort to get their book published they turned to Lt. Col Grau, an American soldier/scholar of the Russian Army.

"The Soviet Afghan War" is an attempt to distill lessons from a bitter experience. The Soviet Army that rolled into Afghanistan in 1979 was a formidable force trained to do battle with NATO in Western Europe. They were unprepared for a guerilla war waged in the high mountains and deserts of Afghanistan. However, as the war progressed, the Soviets learned and adpopted new tactics. The Army that left Afghanistan was radically transformed. This learning process is at the core of the book.

This is the third book in Lt. Col Grau's trilogy on the Soviet Afghan War. "The Bear Went Over the Mountain" is about combat as seen through the eyes of Platoon and Company Leaders. "The Other Side of the Mountain" is war and all its tactical permutations as seen by the Muhajadeen. "The Soviet Afghan War" is the big picture as seen by colonels and generals. Of the three books, "The Soviet Afghan War" is the most intellectually satisfying.

Rating:
Summary: very informative,but very cold
Review: This book is a must to read from informational point of view.If you need to find information on tactics, uniforms, weapons,etc-this is the one.But,this not the one,if you want to understand what this war was about.About real soldiers,who actually had to fight in Afghanistan:18-20 years old kids,who was drafted. And without any choice was thrown to a forien contry to play a strange game of survival : the one , who kill first, will win another chance to play this game again...and again.All we wanted was simple- just to go home ... alive.I was lucky to see my home.But many of my friends didn,t.
If you want to reed that kind of story,you need to find another book!

Rating:
Summary: Not for everyone
Review: This book is very interesting and filled with tactical detail. However, it is neither a strong history of the Soviet war in Afghanistan nor a strong analysis of Soviet performance in the war. Rather, it is a collection of studies of various engagements and operations during the war. These studies are very useful for those who already have a good knowledge of the war but are confusing for those who do not.