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In Deadly Combat: A German Soldier's Memoir of the Eastern Front (Modern War Studies (Paper))
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 940
EAN: 9780700611225
ISBN: 0700611223
Label: University Press of Kansas
Manufacturer: University Press of Kansas
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 344
Publication Date: 2001-09
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
Studio: University Press of Kansas
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Editorial Review:
In the hell that was World War II, the Eastern Front was its heart of fire and ice. Gottlob Bidermann served in that lethal theater from 1941 to 1945, and his memoir of those years vividly recaptures his grueling experiences with an army marching on the road to ruin.
A riveting and reflective account by one of the millions of anonymous soldiers who fought and died in that cruel terrain, In Deadly Combat conveys the brutality and horrors of the Eastern Front in detail never before available in English.
Wounded five times and awarded numerous decorations for valor, Bidermann saw action in the Crimea and siege of Sebastopol, participated in the vicious battles in the forests south of Leningrad, and ended the war trapped in the Courland Pocket. He shares his impressions of countless Russian POWs seen at the outset of his service, of peasants struggling to survive the hostilities while caught between two ruthless antagonists, and of corpses littering the landscape. He recalls a Christmas gift of gingerbread from home that overcame the stench of battle, an Easter celebrated with a basket of Russian hand grenades for eggs, and his miraculous survival of machine gun fire at close range. In closing he relives the humiliation of surrender to an enemy whom the Germans had once derided and offers a sobering glimpse into life in the Soviet gulags.
Bidermann's account also debunks the myth of a highly mechanized German army that rolled over weaker opponents with impunity. Despite the vast expanses of territory captured by the Germans during the early months of Operation Barbarossa, the war with Russia remained tenuous and unforgiving.
Translator Derek Zumbro has rendered Bidermann's memoir into a compelling narrative that retains the author's powerful style. This English-language edition of Bidermann's dynamic story is based upon a privately published memoir entitled Krim-Kurland Mit Der 132 Infanterie Division. Zumbro has also added important events derived from numerous interviews with Bidermann to provide additional context for American readers.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Best Account of The Otherside
If the narrative ended with the fall of Sevastopol, I would have given this book a 5. However, the last third of this memior had several problems. During the final agonizing 2 years fighting around Lenningrad and the Courland, Biederman attemps a few narrative gimmicks that I found confusing if not distracting. He jumps to the omnipresent mode for a chapter and gives the account of the Soviet fighters engaged in combat against his unit. At other times (mainly during the Courland fighting), he jumps ... Read More
Rating:  - Excellent account of hardship, interesting perspective
I loved reading this book. It is full of great stories of near misses and high adventure in the face of certain doom. This book was given to me by someone who thought it looked "boring" and it had been left to them when the former tenant moved and was not bothered to take it with them. Their losses were my gain. I will read it again. Personal accounts are always subject to mistaken remembrances, fantasizing, over-indulgences, etc., but this story still rings true. As the son of a WWII US army ... Read More
Rating: - Very realistic, moving and, at times, hard hitting!
The book was originally written for the survivors of Bidermann's regiment and division, not for the general public. Bearing this in mind you will have a better understanding and feeling for the author's account of his experience of fighting on the Eastern Front during WW2. At times you might find the narrative old fashioned and even cliched but this is definitely not the case, it has to be taken in context of when and why this book was first written. This is a combination of a combat history of the ... Read More
Rating:  - Excellent Read - With One Exception
There's not much more I can add to all of the glowing reviews for this book. I'm fascinated by WWII history and have read many accounts, and this is a rare and excellent look from the German soldier's point of view.
I would have given it 5 stars but for one thing: the publishers have included only one map. This book needs many more maps to illustrate the remote locations and battles described by the author.
Unfortunately, this is often the failing of too many historical ... Read More
Rating: - Page turner
A few things stood out in this book,
1. Bidermann was envious of how well the Russian soldiers were outfitted from boots, jackets, to weapons and trucks.
2. By late 1941 the fighting was already tenacious in Russia.
3. By late 1942 - early 1943 it seemed that the Russian air force was unopposed.
4. On the eve of invading Russia, there divisions main source of mobility was either by foot or horse, and from the very beginning if they could acquire the enemies equipment they ... Read More
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