Operation Barbarossa: Nazi Germany's War in the East, 1941-1945

by Christian Hartmann

The war between Nazi Germany and Stalin's Soviet Union that raged between 1941 and 1945 was unprecedented in the scale of the destruction that it wrought and the deep scars that it left behind. The invasion of the Soviet Union was the conflict that Hitler had always ultimately planned for in his dream of creating a 'Thousand Year Reich'. From the beginning it was a struggle for survival, conducted with great bitterness and savagery by opponents who knew that defeat meant the destruction of everything they stood for.
By 1945 a huge swathe of Europe between Berlin and Moscow had been reduced to a devastated wasteland in which whole societies had been erased from the face of the earth. Over 26 million Soviets and between four and five million Germans lay dead. The eventual victory of the Red Army transformed the Soviet Union into one of the world's two superpowers. It also saw the complete destruction of Hitler's megalomaniac vision for the East, the division of the German Reich, and the Soviet domination of Eastern Europe for a generation.
Enriched by a wealth of eye-witness testimony from both the Soviet and the German sides, Operation Barbarossa paints a masterly overview of these momentous four years and their human consequences - one that is both gripping and deeply moving.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, Military History, War, Military Fiction

208 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Emerson Stokes · Rating 4 out of 5]

The eastern front neatly condensed into 166 pages. Despite its brevity, the book does not fail to give readers a concise overview of Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union all while providing insight into its causes and the way it was conducted. It also does a service to the front by detailing a good reason for stout Soviet resistance and unity (contrary to the claim that “Russians do not fear death”). My only criticism is that the book loses chronological order in the middle of it. While the events of 1941 and 1945 are explained in order, Hartmann jumps between 1942, 1943 and 1944 to explain aspects of the front, which sometimes makes one ask “wait, which year are we talking about?” Other than that, it is an excellent book.

[Shane Amazon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Operation Barbarossa has many strengths to offer over its 200 plus pages. However, for the many strengths it does have there are a few weaknesses as well. After reading this book I was quite pleased with the historical data presented, it is thorough and well laid out. I also enjoyed the writing as it was easy to read and at times felt a little bit like a novel. However, the book lacks a proper linear presentation. In most stories, whether fiction or nonfiction, there is a beginning, a middle, and an end. Here in Operation Barbarossa the beginning is backed up by facts that happened years later, and events that happened near the end are mixed with events that happen in the middle. For me, I read the book with some difficulty because events were laid out as if the author needed to prove the validity of events by other events that happened later on. This telling takes away from enjoyment of learning what happened as it happened, and made the book more of an argument for the author's purpose for writing it.

Over all the book is a good historical retelling, but in the end I didn't experience the war, but rater was educated about it. Perhaps I would have rather been talked to rather than talked at.

*I received this book in ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This pace and tone of the book makes it easy to read. Easily one of the best i've seen to present so much information in so few pages. I like that it focuses on the political, cultural (mostly military), and military aspects of the eastern front campaign and the decisions that lead up to it. Its only fault might be the level of detail but again, considering its length, its very well-presented (and if you really want granular battle details, there are myriads of other books out there). It emphasized some information (especially the foreign policy of Nazi Germany) in a way that made me re-think some of what i knew about the eastern front campaign (admittedly one of my weaker areas of knowledge from WWII).

[Carl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick overview of a massive part of the war in Europe spanning 4 years of untold carnage. Hartman does a good job of covering the basic themes and mixes in individual stories of participants and victims. whets my appetite for a more in depth multi-volume study.

[Carson Frazier]

Very informative book on the Eastern front of World War II.

[Alten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Die dünnen Bücher der "C.H.Beck Wissen"-Reihe hinterlassen bei mir regelmäßig ein Gefühl der Unsattheit. Auf rund 100 Seiten wird versucht, etwas unterzubringen, dass viele Bände füllen könnte. Zwar umfasst Hartmanns Buch nicht mehrere Jahrhunderte, wie Andreas Fahrmeirs "Deutsche Geschichte" (~ 10 Seiten pro 100 Jahre), sondern nur einige Jahre - aber eben sehr ereignisreiche und dramatische.

Lobend hervorheben muss ich den Schreibstil des Autors. Er kann schreiben und fasst komplizierte Sachverhalte sehr gelungen und eindringlich zusammen. Der geschärfte Blick auf die Ideologien der gegeneinander kämpfenden Seiten, hat das Buch stark aufgewertet und lässt die Radikalität und den Fanatismus verstehen, mit dem Nazi-Deutschland und die Sowjetunion diesen Kampf austrugen. Dass er den Gräueln und Leiden dieses Krieges mit der bloßen Wiedergabe der historischen Ereignisse nicht gerecht wird, erkennt der Autor schon in seinem Einleitungszitat: "The real war will never get in the books". Hartmann versucht jedoch auch, die psychologische Komponente des Krieges zu beleuchten. Ein ausgezeichnet formulierter Satz bringt den wohl wichtigsten Film zum deutschen Krieg im Osten ins Spiel, um die Situation der sowjetischen Zivilbevölkerung in Hitlers Machtbereich zu beschreiben: "...verwandelten sich die deutschen Besatzungsbiete nun in apokalyptische Landschaften, deren Bewohner auf sich selbst zurückgeworfen waren, ohne jeden Schutz von Gesetzen oder Behörden. Selten wurde dies so eindringlich dargestellt, wie in dem Spielfilm 'Komm und sieh', wo der Held Fljora wie einst im Dreißigjährigen Krieg Simplicius Simplicissmus durch eine Welt taumelt, die völlig aus den Fugen geraten ist."

Was das Buch nicht leistet, ist es, denn konkreten Verlauf des Krieges nachzuzeichnen. Aber das ist dem begrenzten Raum geschuldet und der Intention des Autors, den Fokus auf andere Bereiche zu setzen.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was expecting a narrative history of the German invasion of the Soviet Union but instead got a thoughtful and concise analysis of it. It made for an interesting read.

I learned a ton of cool things reading this, such as:
* The Nazi plan for the Soviet Union was to drive out or murder all the "undesirable" inhabitants and import "desirable" Germans to live there
* Stalin's purge of virtually all the experienced Red Army officers was a huge detriment to the Red Army's cause.
* The Red Army's equipment was shoddy but it had plenty of it. The Germans had top-notch equipment but not enough of it. In this case, quantity won out over quality.
* The initial 1941 German invasion saw success as the German armies drove deep into Russia. But those armies felt like defeats due to heavy losses and supply issues. The invasion was doomed to fail from the start.
* All the organizations within the German government - the Army, the SS, civilian departments - played a role in exterminating Jewish folks in their conquered territory
* German POW camps were much different than Hogan's Heroes. Three million Soviet soldiers died in these hellholes, out of a total of 5.7 million overall.
* Soviet partisan forces were very effective in disrupting German supply lines. The Army responded by murdering civilians by the thousands and destroying entire villages.

What I liked best about this book was the last two lines. Won't give them away, but they were great and struck just the right sentiment.

[Andrés García · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Operación Barbarroja" de Christian Hartmann, doctor e investigador alemán de historia contemporánea, es un relato bien documentado e imparcial sobre uno de los episodios más brutales dentro de la misma Segunda Guerra Mundial (1939-1945): El frente oriental.

El libro, nos muestra no solo cifras en donde vemos los números de aquellos que callaron en este conflicto. Si no que nos muestra las decisiones políticas, militares y en último las consecuencias y represalias de este suceso.

La Guerra del Este, como la llamaban los nazis o "Gran Guerra Patria" (1941-1945) según la historiografía soviética, fue una auténtica masacre sin precedentes. Este libro así lo demuestra,a lo igual que nos recuerda que no debemos de olvidar este suceso. Y menos dejarlo que se pierda en los anales de la historia.

[Bill V · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this to be a mediocre book. First of all, the author should not have titled this Operation Barbarossa. The operation itself lasted from mid June 1941 to early January 1942. The book offers very little about the actual military campaigns. Instead, it focuses on other aspects of the war such as the respective populations, military strategies, goals and objectives, etc. I was hoping this would be the definitive book on the period of the initial Axis invasion. Unfortunately, this book is not it.

[Steve Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredibly informative and compact treatment of the war on the Eastern Front during WWII. Hartmann is able to squeeze 20 pounds of information into a five pound bag. The work is clearly written and with an engaging prose style that makes it a pure pleasure to work through.

What's more, I learned more from this than I had from other (and longer) books on the same topic. I thought myself fairly well read on the topic...and came away much better informed.

[Renard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great book if you want to deep dive into the origin of Barbarossa, its chain of events, and its failure (up to the first winter).
It really well documented and the reasoning sounds fair. I really learnt a lot of things, from the geopolitical situation to the description of the state of the red army and many others.
It is hard to always follow all the tactical descriptions of army movements, but even so, you get a good understanding of the situation.
Careful, the book is big: 1600 pages

[Roberto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un ensayo que se lee del tirón, un pequeño libro en páginas pero muy grande en cuanto a la manera que resume y afronta esta gran operación alemana en tierras soviéticas. Una obra magníficamente escrita, en tan solo 144 páginas resume de una manera concisa lo que fue y supuso esta operación sobre todo a nivel logístico y humano.

[Tomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book explores the reasons for the Eastern Front and for the Soviet victory. The author does a good job of making things understandable - although I will note that just because you know a lot of big words, you don’t have to use all of them in one book!

[Wilde Sky · Rating 3 out of 5]

An analysis of the WWII German invasion of Soviet Union.

Some of this book was interesting but it was a bit repetitive and had a poor structure / lacked detail.

Reading time around two hours.

[Duncan Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptionally written book. Not too much information to become boring, but enough to give you a clear image of what this war really entailed.

[Nicolas Petri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ct cool.

[Joe Haden · Rating 3 out of 5]

No tiene ningún interés especial su lectura, solo un neófito en el tema encontrá valor en su contenido.

[Erin (Historical Fiction Reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Find this and other reviews at: http://flashlightcommentary.blogspot....

I'm not going to waste time beating round the bush on this one. Those who follow my reviews know that WWII is a period with which I am endlessly fascinated, but that said, I found Christian Hartmann's Operation Barbarossa more than a little challenging.

To be clear, I feel the book is an informative nonfiction, but I personally found it terribly dry and had difficulty remaining engaged during my reading. The nonlinear structure of Hartmann's analysis was not to my liking and while I appreciate political assessment as much as the next person, I often found myself following tangent ideas and concepts to other titles.

A relatively modest text, Operation Barbarossa is one of the most condensed accounts on the market and I think it certainly benefits from the author's background, but I can't say I'd have an easy time recommending it, even to those with intense interest in the campaign.

[Dumitru Moraru · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un rezumat al operațiunii Barbarossa, dar multe lucruri sunt trecute cu vederea, pentru că a fost o operațiune vastă! Menționează asediul Leningradului, câte ceva despre Moscova și Stalingrad, operațiuni pe teritoriul actual al Ucrainei. Autorul vorbește despre ideologiile Germaniei și URSS, deși mai mult se axează pe Germania. Trece în revistă aliații germanilor și crimele lor împotriva evreilor, localnicilor din URSS, dar și cauzele eșecului operațiunii Barbarossa. Teritoriul dușmanului era vast, logistica proastă, subaprecierea dușmanului, inferioritate numerică și erori de strategie sunt unele din acele cauze. Nu neglijează nici crimele sovieticilor, deși am impresia că mai mult condamnă nazismul decât comunismul. Poate pentru că autorul e german și vinovăția colectivă, cine știe! Nu recomand cartea dacă vrei să aprofundezi cunoștințele despre operațiunea dată.

[Keith McGowan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written by a German, the book gives a balanced view of the atrocities committed by both the Nazis and the Soviets. I was looking for a more in depth exploration of this part of World War II, but this work provides a succinct summary of the conflict grouped by topic, rather than a blow by blow account.

[Jim Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good, short introduction to the subject written by a German historian. The author devotes about equal space to the military aspects of the campaign and subjects that have not often been covered in more traditional accounts such as the war's diplomatic background and the German occupation.

[Umberto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short and to the point

learned that soviets were not a coehesive force until the fight for survival made them so

Both sides under supplied

both sides commit awful attrocities

Germans tried to do too much

[Kieran Healy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great summation and argument about how Germany came to initiate Operation Barbarossa, a war between 2 gigantic totalitarian states, and why it failed. 4 stars because to take such a massive topic and boil it down to under 200 pages is incredible.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a primer on the entire German/Soviet conflict, it is concise & informative, and moves along at a brisk clip. But after a while, you crave even more detail...detail a short book like this can only tantalize, but never deliver.

[Timothy McNeil · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hartmann condenses half of the European theatre of World War II by not addressing the war itself or actually concentrating on the Nazi forces. Not without useful or worthwhile information, but not a great read or one that is particularly insightful.

[Steven Raszewski · Rating 4 out of 5]

For it shortness, 170 pages it is one of the best I've read and I've read lots of books on the Eastern front. Very well written and succinct points.

[Ron Nurmi · Rating 4 out of 5]

a brief view of Operation Barbarossa from both sides

[José Aburto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro que explica rapida y detalladamente sucedido en la guerra nazi-sovietica. Muy bueno para conocer este terrible episodio de la humanidad.

[Xolrax · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.3

[Hans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Boa analise de um specialista militar alemão