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Summary: Pro-German (Nazi) , but if you can get past that....
Review: Another great book by Paul Carell. He has certain German-favored point of view but if you can ignore this, the book is excellent. Previous reviews are right about text being taken from "Hitler Moves East" and photographic section can be found from Carell's book "Operation Barbarossa In photographs".
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Summary: Stalingrad - The Defeat of the German 6th Army
Review: As opposed to many of the reviewers of this book, I found it to be a wonderful read about the turning point in the war. To be honest, the book is quite slanted toward the German point of view, but I do not find this objectionable. The book was originally written in german, by a german, for a german audience. Also, because of this, the text seems a bit odd at times, but simply it is how it would translate to english. The title of the book is a bit of a misnomer, as what is really covered is Plan Blau, the German summer offensive in Russia in '42. What many readers complain about I find as its' greatest treasure - the description of early portions of the offensive around Voronezh, the description of the Crimean campaign including the breaking of the siege of Sevastopol and the reconquest of the Kerch peninsula by General Manstein and his forces, and the 17th Army's campaign in the Caucasus where they nearly reached the Caucasian oilfields -the real strategic objective of Plan Blau. The maps included are numerous and of high quality, but are in German. Many photos are included, several in color - many of these are from his previous picture book on Operation Barbarossa. The actual description of the battle of Stalingrad receives perhaps no more than a third of the length of the book, but seems fairly in proportion to the whole Plan Blau campaign. Moderately good detail of this phase of the campaign is described, especially the units involved, their commanders, and the major stages of the Stalingrad battle. Hitlers' unreasonable desire to possess Stalingrad, mainly for prestige value was the main reason for German defeat, with logistics running a close second. Keeping such a long salient with the flanks protected by Axis allies of questionable quality was a recipe for disaster, and Hitler was told this by number of his Generals. In the long run, germans feel that the 6th Army was sacrificed to buy time for the forces in the Caucasus to retreat and avoid an even greater and disastrous encirclement of german forces. This, at least in part, is probably true. However, had General v. Paulus ( the commander of 6th Army )had the cajones to go against Hitlers demand for holding at all cost, I believe a large portion of the 6th Army could have been saved by a breakout attempt in December of '42. General Hausser did this at Kharkov in 1943, and though Hitler was furious, Gen. Hausser was not even relieved of command! In conclusion, I would recommend this book to serious students of military history for its comprehensive coverage of Plan Blau despite its' decidedly proGerman slant.
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Summary: outstanding - as usual from Carell
Review: Excellent book putting one on the front line with those fighting. Extensive photograph section makes this a book to be purchased in hardback. Other reviewers are correct, however, that most of this work is covered in 'Hitler Moves East'. If you already have that book, this one should be purchased only if the photograph section (1/3 of the volume) is of interest to you. A solid, balanced, account of the battle.
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Summary: Wonderful Book
Review: Finally, a book about Cace Blue that isn't loaded with tons of Soviet propaganda, and apologetic writing by a pro allied author. This book was easy to read, thought provoking, and deeply interesting. This would be the perfect book for someone wanting to read about Case Blue, rather than just about the fighting inside Stalingrad.
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Summary: Stalingrad - The Defeat of the German 6th Army
Review: Paul Carell has done a wonderful job with this book. Both well written and interesting, this book looks at this battle primarily from the German point of view. Although this hard-covered edition is somewhat 'pricey,' this book is appears to be cheaply bound and prone to falling apart; something that a prospective purchaser will definately want to consider before purchasing. After contacting Schiffer Publishing Company concerning their cheaply bound book, I was further disappointed by their response, or rather, lack there-of. Excellent reading if you can keep the pages from falling out.
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Summary: The best writer about the Wehrmacht in WWII.
Review: The real story of World War Two occured on the Russian Front from 1941-1944. The German Army lost 90% of their men and equipment during WWII on the Russian Front, 90%!! By the time the Allies finally got around to invading Europe in June '44, the Red Army had pushed the Wehrmacht back 1,000 miles, from the Volga River at Stalingrad, to and across the Bug River in Poland. This book tells the great story of the German 6th Army. The Army that captured Warsaw in 1939, then Paris in '40, crushed the Russians at Kiev (capturing 600,000 Men) in the summer of 1941, now, this great Army was on the move again------ towards Stalingrad. Why was it destroyed, why was it so poorly led, what happened to this magnificent army. How could it have happened. What did the Soldiers think. This is the secret to Paul Carell. He writes of the men, the 'soldats,' the Grunts. If you want to know what really happened to the great 6th Army. This is the only book you'll ever need to read.
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Summary: Less than 1/3 of book is actually about the battle.
Review: This glowing account of the Wermacht glorifies their campaign. No mention of the atrocities commited by the Germans is made. Russians are all portrayed as either lucky or fanatical, Germans are all brave and competent. There are no descriptions of tactics within the city and there is only a small chapter after the encirclement. There is some photos at the back that could be straight out of Goebbels. These are complete with fake inscriptions such as "We'll do it this way, you to the right, you to the left" showing german soldiers in very "soldierly" poses. Hitler would have been proud. For a much better account read "Enemy At The Gates". Eduard Kagan
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Summary: Fine book of a disasterous battle...
Review: This is an old book under a new title. The author took the section on Stalingrad from his old book, published in the sixties under the title "Hitler moves East", and added a couple of new paragraphs. I have both books, which are identical, and I consider this book an attempt to sell the old stuff under a new title.
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Summary: Use this book as a supplement to others about Stalingrad
Review: This is not the book to read if you will be reading only one book about Stalingrad. This book is definately slanted into the German's favor- i.e, it is always only the Germans that are brave and heroic, and it is the Germans that are unlucky and the Russians lucky. Much attention is spent on the German victories in mini-battles but nothing on the Russian successes. The bibliography consists almost entirely of German resources, which only demonstrates the unobjective German bias of this author. The largest part of this book is about the approach to Stalingrad, with extremely little about the battle within the city itself. It almost seemed as if the battle in the city ended before it even started. There is nothing written about what happened to the German 6th Army after it's surrender. There is a huge selection of photos in this book, many in rare color. However, most of them are not about the actual battle of Stalingrad, but still they are interesting. Maps in the book use the German language, which might be hard for some people to understand. If you will be reading only one book about the battle of Stalingrad, I would recommend reading Willim Craig's 'Enemy at the Gates' or Anthony Beevor's "Stalingrad:Fateful Siege', both of which tend to be more objective, showing the Russian and German viewpoints, as well as covering the battle within the city in much more depth. However, if you must read 'everything' about the battle of Stalingrad, then read this book to satisfy your urge.
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