I spent most of today doing this not only for me but for other fans of the Eastern Front.

Hi Martin, SkyW/ and E,

Martin, thanks much for the additional titles. I have heard of some like: Scorched Earth-and heard it was a terriffic read. I'll definately be looking into the titles you suggested ;-))

SkyW/ I don't know if you ever go to Ebay or not? but, I found a seller or two there -when specifying E/Front books, that had some excellent books for sale at their stores. I don't remember who the dealers were but-you will find them easily enough when looking for E/Front books. Anyway, the reason why I mention this is because there were many many titles listed that were printed in German-and I think a few printed in Russian. The lists i saw were impressive and I looked through around 1,200 or so titles last week. Since mt German is veri schlecht-I didn't write down the names of those titles-but in hindsight-I should have.

E, thank you for the additional titles too. I recognize a couple of them.

 

Apart from Kurowski's book there's nothing in English on the Kurland pocket specifically. The good news is that my friend Kamen is writing a history as we speak. Oddly, there's not much in German either (a few Bildbands and a bit in divisional histories). I can't recommend Kurowski's book because I can't recommend pretty much anything by Kurowski... There's an outstanding German language website, Kurland Kessel, with loads of material. One of the best WW2 German sites out there.

For first hand accounts, Kempowski's Das Echolot: Fuga Furiosa is outstanding, a day-by-day account of people's experiences in Jan and Feb 1945. Four volumes, all in German, an absolute must.

For East Prussia, there is a wealth of material in German. There's a smattering of Russian memoirs beginning to emerge, however, in English. Denny's book is disappointing, chiefly because it was mis-sold by the publishers. It is not a history of the battle for Konigsberg. It is a history of Konigsberg under the Nazis, however.

I am slowly gathering published and unpublished material on Danzig, Konigsberg, Kolberg and other locations in Pomerania/East Prussia in 1945 for a future book.

Before that comes out, I've the small matter of the history of the siege of Breslau to finish. Should be published in 2011.

 

I second this recommendation as well as any works by Glantz.

Although Glantz is a bit dry, and many times publishes little more than an outright translation of a Soviet General Staff study, by making such work available to the English speaking world he is performing an invaluable service.

If anybody knows of any other works in English they would recommend on the Battle of Budapest, Courland Pocket and the 1944/45 battles in Poland/EastPrussia/Czechoslovakia I would be happy to hear of them.

 

i myself am a fan of the eastern front and i love to read books and see movies about it

 

I meant to update the list with a few more titles I found but haven't had time. However, I do appreciate the thumbs up about that Budapest book.

I will probably get that one after I get Island of Fire.Im intrigued about the whole book being about one German Division facing off against one Russian Division.

 

Operation Citadel: A Text and Photo Album, Vol.1. The South. By: J. Restayn & N. Moller Contains 702 pics and is 460 pages

This is a great book I recently purchased with the best photo collection I've ever seen of the war. It's not cheap but it's worth it.

 

I just recently received Island of Fire. I purchased it direct from the author Jason Mark at Leaping Horseman Books That saved me some extra US dollars. It took about ten days via airmail from Australia to get here after ordering.

Anywho, this book is brilliant! It is day-by-day, blow-by-blow account of the battle for the Barrikady Gun Factory in Stalingrad. Exceptional and masterful work. Great photos and lots and lots of maps (individual building detail) to clearly illustrate the actions described in the text.

I have to finish Robert Kershaw's War without Garlands: Operation Barbarossa 1941-1942 before I plunge into IoF. Once I received it, it was moved to the top of my "to read" list.

 

Sometimes I use the old Amazon.com search function. Here's what was brought up...

with the eastern front 1941-1945:

Amazon.com: the eastern front 1941-1945: Books

 

Carl

are you familiar with German author Sascha Weber ? he has been involved with several high end and extremely informative books on German combat badges. His site has many Ost front titles

and I know you are going to pm me for his web info, which I cannot find at present .....

 

Hi Ivan, thanks for this as well as a link to order it at. I plan on making it my first new book purchase-after I finish buying some 20 odd German photos. This is the kind of book I would love to see many more of. I wonder if there is a book about the brillient Russian defense of "Pavlovs House?. I'd love to see something done on that series of fights.

 

Hi E, i've not heard of him before but will send you a PM about it. Sorry to sound choppy.I'm trying to type one-handed and pettingmy Cat Shasta-w/ the other hand ;-))

 

Another general history which is worth considering is Chris Bellamy's 'Absolute War - Soviet Russia In The Second World War' ( 2007 ) which is readily available in paperback.

Bellamy is a 'serious' Russian scholar rather in the style of Erickson - this book was supposed to be a definitive single-volume history of the Eastern Front and Bellamy had access to much Russian material.

Unfortunately, the book misses its mark rather by giving too little coverage to the German side - nonetheless it's an important addition to the subject.

 

I apologise if i have missed this title in the previous threads, but STALINGRAD - HOW THE RED ARMY TRIUMPHED by Michael K Jones (ISBN: 184415543-9) is a very good book with the book concentrating on the battle from the Soviet side, and dispelling many myths/legends that have grown up around the battle - Pavlov's House being just one of them. I would recommend this book.
Again, sorry if I have missed them in previous threads but Jason D Mark's other books on Stalingrad, DEATH OF THE LEAPING HORSEMAN (ISBN: 0-646-41034-2) & ANGRIFF (ISBN: 978-0-97510-767-6), are must haves as well.

The Fall of Hitlers Fortress City: The Battle For Konigsburg, 1945. By: Isabel Denny.L - I found this to be a disappointing read really. It doesn't really delve into the military operations, but I don't think that was the intention.

 

Here are some more...

Panzerschlacht - Armoured Operations On The Hungarian Plains Sept - Nov 1944 by Perry Moore (ISBN: 978-1-906033-16-3)

Hells Gate (Cherkassy) by Douglas Nash (ISBN: 0-9657584-3-5)

Last Laurels - The German Defence Of Upper Silesia Jan-May 1945 by Georg Gunter (ISBN: 1-874622-65-5)

Rising '44 - The Battle For Warsaw by Norman Franks (ISBN: 0-333-90568-7)

Hitler's Greatest Defeat - The Defeat Of AG Centre, June 1944 by Paul Adair (ISBN: 1-85409-232-4)

Army Group North (ISBN: 0-7643-0182-9)
Army Group Center (ISBN: 0-7643-0266-3)
Army Group South (ISBN: 0-7643-0385-6) - All three volumes by Werner Haupt (published by Schiffer)

 

Mike Jones' sequel to Stalingrad is excellent too, Leningrad: State of Siege. I guess I'm slightly biased as Mike writes history as I do, with the emphasis on the person rather than regiments, corps and armies. Some of the scenes at Leningrad railway station are truly heart-wrenching.

I was disappointed too by Denny's book, but I think we were sold a pup by the publisher rather than by the author. The title is misleading. It's a history of the city under the Nazis rather than a history of the battle. It's not a bad read, just not the read I was expecting.

I get the impression Christopher Bellamy's volume was cut short either by the author or by the publisher; it's half a book, focusing very much on the early months of the war and then dismissing the final year or so in one chapter - very unlike Erickson...

 

Ivan's War: The Red Army, 1939-45
By Catherine Merridale

Hitler's War on Russia
By Charles D. Winchester

Masters of Death: The SS-Einsatzgruppen and the Invention of the Holocaust
By Richard Rhodes

Red Army Tank Commanders: The Armored Guards
By Richard N. Armstrong

Deadlock Before Moscow: Army Group Center 1942-1943
By Franz Kurowski

Retreat from Leningrad: Army Group North 1944/1945
By Steven H. Newton

From Leningrad to Berlin: Dutch Volunteers in The German Waffen SS 1941-1945
By Perry Pierik

Red Storm on the Reich: The Soviet March on Germany 1945
By Christopher Duffy

Barbarossa: The Russian-German Conflict, 1941-45
By Alan Clark

World War II: Behind Closed Doors - Stalin, the Nazis and the West
By Laurence Rees

 

Stalin's Generals
By Harold Shukman

 

the famous French/German series by Heimdall publications offer several titles

also how about the big book "Berlin then and now" from the After the Battle series, I believe several of our forum members own this large work ?

E ~

 

Hi Hucks,I don't think its been listed-and thanks for the title.

 

Hi Gents, thanks for the additional titles. We have a nice list here and growing.