Red Army Tank Commander: At War in a T-34 on the Eastern Front

by Vasiliy Bryukhov

What was it like to command a T-34 tank on the Eastern Front during the Second World War? How were tank operations organized and carried out, what was the actual experience of combat, and what were the qualities that made the difference between success and failure - and what were the chances of survival? Vasiliy Pavlovich Bryukhovs vivid, detailed and gripping memoir of his wartime service gives a fascinating and authentic insight into these questions. Also it provides an accurate, unsentimental record of the day-to-day life of a tankman whose unit fought in the forefront of the Red Army throughout the conflict across the western Soviet Union and into eastern Europe. His first-hand eyewitness account is a memorable personal story, and it gives a powerful insight into the reality of tank warfare seventy years ago.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography Memoir, Military History

323 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 8, 2013

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bryukhov's book is an interesting perspective and memoir. It is interesting as the view of the war on the Eastern Front from a perspective of a member of the Red Army is rare in Western publishing. But as a memoir, it is largely Bryukhov's reminiscences of the path he and his units took west from the battle of Kursk to the final defeat of Germany. Only rarely does Bryukhov's personality come through to show the human side of the war. The book would have been greatly aided by the inclusion of maps showing the journey west. An interesting book, but limited.

[Laurance · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good look into the life of a Soviet tankman. However it is very long winded and sometimes the reader can get lost with the story.
Also the lack of maps seems to make the battles more detached from the reader.
However still a good look into the Red Army of WW II.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book. The only reason it didn't get five stars was that as the author rose in rank, it became more of a narrative about the unit activity and less personal narrative. I especially enjoy personal experiences during the war more than this company did this and that company did that.

[Spencer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not easy to read

TL;DR
This memoir reads like a report Vasiliy is sending to his superior. It makes for an extremely tough read.

I'll start with the title "At War in a T-34." When I picked this book to read, I thought I was going to get a first-hand account of life in a T34 with all that entails. No. Hell, he doesn't even mention that it's an 85 until like the 10th chapter. What was it like in there, Vasiliy? Were there any interesting quirks about the tank? Did you hit your head on a specific place often? How long were you in there on average? I think he mentions specific things regarding maintenance about 3 times in this book. You think I'd know the name of his driver and Gunner, but he never really mentions them at all minus the one time he spots an enemy tank, his Gunner couldn't find it so he shoved his Gunner to the side in a cramped turret looked through the Gunner sight himself found the tank again and shot it. Now, I've operated in armored vehicles before, and that story seems pretty unlikely. Unfortunately, he never really explains what it's like in the turret of the tank in the title of the book, so maybe I can revisit this when I read a better T34 book.

He spends most of the time just telling you what his unit is doing with short tales in between. The ones he's not present for tend to be the ones with the most detail. His first-hand stories seem to be safe inoffensive tales designed not to throw shade on any of his former colleagues or to glow them up in other ones. This is typical of Memoirs and I half expected, then fully when I found out he retired as like a general, but the rest of the book is just an overview of battles with scant details to hold on too. I never really got an idea of where they were, even when I Google mapped their location. It felt as if he hadn't been in those locations because he never gave HIS memory of what HE was doing. It's just a lot of "The Combat had the regiment doing X," and it's a drag. He never says what he was doing during these battles in any detail whatsoever. He probably didn't actually see a whole lot if he was in a TC seat listening to a radio, but you can't write your memoir like a report to your commander and have it be interesting.

[Themistocles · Rating 3 out of 5]

On one hand, this book is quite interesting because it's not often that you read about the Soviet side, and the author gives quite a few non battle-relater tidbits that give you a better understanding of the Red army.

On the other hand, though, it's a very, very dry book. You really don't get the human element, while the battles are described in the most basic terms, and the book soon devolves into a series of "the Germans attacked, we destroyed two tanks and three SPGs, they retreated, then they attacked again with more resolve but they still couldn't break our line" descriptions, so it gets pretty "meh".

Lack of any maps also makes it hard to understand and appreciate the road travelled.

[Danie Steyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tank Commander

It is a rather uninspiring account of the life of a Russian army officer. Much detail is given about the dates and places of battles fought, but it becomes tedious after a while.

[Goody · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, nice to have a Soviet viewpoint and the pre and post war chapters I found particularly interesting. The action described in the bulk of the book was okay but badly needed situation maps to add to the context. It felt as though most of the numerous engagements were similar and it felt a little repetitive at times.

[Richard Cahn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The early chapters about his life before the war, and his training for the war, are very rewarding. But the actual war itself is boring as there is little in the way of explanation or self reflection.

[Michal Wojtowicz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pozycja po prostu nudna oprócz kilku ciekawszych fragmentów. Zawiera przede wszystkim podany w usypiający sposób przebieg działań wojennych. Zajęliśmy wieś taką i taką niszcząc tyle i tyle czołgów przeciwnika samemu ponosząc takie i takie straty. I tak do bólu. Najciekawszy jest ostatni rozdział w którym autor relacjonuje swoją karierę wojskową od zakończenia 2 WŚ do chwili odejścia na emeryturę. We wcześniejszych rozdziałach jest tylko i wyłącznie kilka ciekawszych momentów, gdzie pojawiają się osobiste przemyślenia lub opis ciekawych sytuacji.

[Wayne Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Alexandre · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was good but read very much the same as other similar biography of tank commander on the eastern front.