Christmas at Stalingrad (Pocket Penguins) [Import] [Paperback]

Antony Beevor (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd (June 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0141022256
• ISBN-13: 978-0141022253
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (286 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,197,865 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

A regular in the 11th Hussars, Antony Beevor served in Germany and England. He has had a number of books published and his book Stalingrad was awarded the Samuel Johnson Prize, the Wolfson History Prize and the Hawthornden Prize. Among the many prestigious posts he holds, he is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

107 of 109 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the four best works on Stalingrad ever written, June 28, 2004

By 

Mr Craig Meech (Oxford) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege: 1942-1943 (Paperback)

This book by noted writer Antony Beevor joins three others that are essential English language "classics" on Stalingrad. These important books are John Erickson's "The Road to Stalingrad: Stalin's War with Germany" and Joel Hayward's "Stopped at Stalingrad: The Luftwaffe and Hitler's Defeat in the East 1942-1943" and Earl Ziemke and Magna Bauer's "Moscow to Stalingrad: Decision in the East".

Beevor has used all three and produced a work that is the least academic but arguably most exciting of all. He has also used Manfred Kehrig's "Stalingrad: Analyse und Dokumentation einer Schlacht"which is not available in English --- sadly.

Beevor also uses the latest research on the Soviets, including the books by David Glantz. He paid researchers to translate unpublished Soviet documents, which also enrich his text.

The book is clearly an excellent overview of the efforts put into winning at Stalingrad by both sides. As scholars have noted in learned articles, Beevor ignores airpower and only deals sketchily with strategy, but his narrative of the human experience of warfare is more than compensatory.

126 of 134 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars World Class History., June 12, 2004

By 

Bernard Chapin "Ora Et Labora!" (CHICAGO! USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Stalingrad (Paperback)

I first read this book during the summer of 1999 and had never heard of the author beforehand. I took to him immediately and experienced considerable difficulty putting Stalingrad down. I usually read three or four books at a time but could not with Stalingrad as it became my sole concern until it was finished. Beevor makes use of outstanding primary source materials and his narrative technique makes one feel as if you have secret access to the innermost recesses of the minds of Chuikov, Paulus, Zhukov, von Manstein, and, of course, Hitler and Stalin. It reminded me of the old PBS documentary,
"Battleground" for the way in which it flowed. Buy it,I guarantee you won't regret it.

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent One Volume History, June 28, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Stalingrad: The Fateful Siege, 1942-1943 (Hardcover)

This subject has inspired a good deal of writing, including several one volume works. Beevor's is probably the best. Based on an extensive review of the prior literature, original archival research, and interviews, Beevor has produced a very readable overview of the battle of Stalingrad. Beevor is a very good writer who integrates telling anecdotes seamlessly into narrative giving the gist of situations. He sets the stage well with astute chapters on the Eastern Front conflict up to Stalingrad and does an excellent job of describing both the command level decisions and the essential horrors of combat in Stalingrad. Many aspects covered well in this volume, such as the roles of the NKVD and Soviet deserters, are not dealt with well in other volumes. This is not a blow by blow account of the campaign and may disappoint some readers who expect highly traditional detailed military history. Beevor's judgements are dispassionate, humane, and backed by careful consideration of the evidence. My only criticism is that the book would have benefited from more maps with better detail.