Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Book Learning #21



'The Fall of Berlin 1945' by Anthony Beevor.

Phew, Maybe it was the intensive ammount of reading I undertook this summer or perhaps the deeply disturbing content but this one took a while.
I found parts hardgoing, "Company X moved 12 km to the west, outflanking the remnants of Waffen SS division 'Unabrow' and thus dividing the leftovers of Wehrmacht companies J, Q, Z, 1, 2, and 3 to surrender to the massed ranks of Red Army divisions 34, 56, 765 and the elite 'Stalinfire' brigade.

Eh?

That and the immensly harrowing tales of rape and revenge killings.
Still, it was very well researched and written and I pretty well enjoyed it.

2 comments:

Wisdom Weasel said...

This is one of the best books ever; it sorts the men form the boys, is cracking popular history masquerading as scholarship, and it makes the work of Max Hastings look like abridged notes.

Now watch Downfall again. It will seem much richer in detail.

Mondale said...

It's very good I agree, Just an awful lot of military manouveres. Also, it's a wee bit like watching 'Titanic'.
I wonder, Will Hitler escape to Argentina?