Overview
The original version of the classic novel of the epic World War II battle, confiscated by the Russian secret services in 1949, and now rediscovered in the Russian archives. Stalingrad, November 1942. Lieutenant Breuer dreams of returning home for Christmas. But he and his fellow German soldiers will spend winter in a frozen hell – as snow, ice and relentless Soviet assaults reduce the once-mighty Sixth Army to a diseased and starving rabble. Breakout at Stalingrad is a stark and terrifying portrait of the horrors of war, and a profoundly humane depiction of comradeship in adversity. The book itself has an extraordinary story behind it. Its author fought at Stalingrad and was imprisoned by the Soviets. In captivity, he wrote a novel based on his experiences, which the Soviets confiscated before releasing him. Gerlach resorted to hypnosis to remember his narrative, and in 1957 it was published as The Forsaken Army. Fifty-five years later Carsten Gansel, an academic, came across the original manuscript of Gerlach's novel in a Moscow archive. This first translation into English of Breakout at Stalingrad includes the story of Gansel's sensational discovery. Praise for Breakout at Stalingrad: 'One of the greatest novels of the Second World War' The Times 'So deftly handled and well constructed... It is astonishing that [this] is Gerlach's first attempt at fiction' Sunday Times
Full Product Details
Author: Heinrich Gerlach ,
Carsten Gansel ,
Dr Peter Lewis
Publisher: Head of Zeus
Imprint: Head of Zeus
Edition: Reissue
ISBN: 9781804542767
ISBN 10: 1804542768
Pages: 720
Publication Date: 11 May 2023
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Not yet available
This item is yet to be released. You can pre-order this item and we will dispatch it to you upon its release.
Language: English
Reviews
'One of the greatest novels of the Second World War' * The Times * 'Gerlach's truly magnificent novel [...] is a devastating account of the appalling privations suffered by the German army, left to their fate by the foundering, over-stretched Fatherland. A masterpiece' * Mail on Sunday * 'So deftly handled and well constructed... It is astonishing that [this] is Gerlach's first attempt at fiction' * Sunday Times * 'A remarkable find' -- Antony Beevor This excellent book will shine a light on the horrors of the Eastern Front for a new generation of English-speaking readers... An absolute gem of a book' * Soldier magazine * [Written with] raw, vivid immediacy, which piles up compelling images and episodes... It is an exceptional, powerful and moving work' * Sunday Times * Anyone who wants an idea of what Stalingrad was really like should read this book... Gerlach records the lives and feelings of soldiers of all ranks' * Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung *
Author Information
Heinrich Gerlach (1908–1991) served as a lieutenant in the 14th Panzer Division at Stalingrad. Wounded and then captured by the Soviets, he wrote Breakout at Stalingrad while being held in captivity in the USSR. He died in 1991.
