The War Of The Rats

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For six months in 1942, Stalingrad is the center of a titanic struggle between the Russian and German armies—the bloodiest campaign in mankind's long history of warfare. The outcome is pivotal. If Hitler's forces are not stopped, Russia will fall. And with it, the world.... I've been trying to branch out in my reading lately, and every time I do, I get reminded why I don't. Zaitsev was a senior sergeant of the 2nd Battalion, 1047th Rifle Regiment, 284th Tomsk Rifle Division. He was interviewed by Vasili Grossman during the battle, and the account of that interview, lightly fictionalized in his novel, Life and Fate (Part One, Chapter 55), is substantially the same as that portrayed in the novel, without putting a name to the German sniper that he dueled with. On the other hand, the duel is portrayed quite differently in Zaitsev's own book, Notes of a Sniper, [1] and in William Craig's 1974 history Enemy at the Gates: The Battle for Stalingrad. There are other memorable characters like Nikki, the young German soldier, a dairy farmer from Westphalia ; Tania Chernova, a partisan fighter from Belarus and Danilov, a Russian commisar.

The writing was beautiful and poignant, the plot hooked me, the characters moved me, the well-researched historical details fascinated me. None of the characters is a wanton, laughing killer, as I think I'd feared I'd find in a war novel; in their own ways, they all recognize the gravity, terror, and tragedy of the war, but without being whiny or unrealistically philosophical. The relationship between Tania and Vasily is genuinely romantic - and it's the historical real deal, not something the author threw in, Hollywood-style. (Indeed, I've read that the movie added a love triangle - as if, "we're in the middle of wartime Stalingrad being hunted by a Nazi supersniper" isn't enough tension for the relationship.) Also, I felt like Zaitsev, one of the main characters, didn't become really complex until about halfway through - would've been nice to get to know him earlier. Colonel Heinz Thorvald, also known as Erwin Konig, may or may not even be a real person in the Battle of Stalingrad. Both were popular German names at the time and there is much debate on whether Thorvald's "character" was a fabrication or if he was actually real. After listening to an audio version, I also enjoyed reading the print version of the Stalingrad sniper duel. The book ending interview on tape of one of the primary characters was a pleasant surprise and encouraged the print read. German soldiers call the battle Rattenkrieg, War of the Rats . The combat is horrific, as soldiers die in the smoking cellars and trenches of a ruined city. Through this twisted carnage stalk two men—one Russian, one German—each the top sniper in his respective army. These two marksmen are equally matched in both skill and tenacity. Each man has his own to find his counterpart—and kill him.David L. Robbins was born in Richmond, Virginia, on March 10, 1954. He grew up in Sandston, a small town east of Richmond out by the airport; his father was among the first to sit behind the new radar scope in the air traffic control tower. Both his parents, Sam and Carol, were veterans of WWII. Sam saw action in the Pacific, especially at Pearl Harbor.

A frighteningly realistic patchwork depicting the long siege that changed the course of the war. Based on a true story, the novel deftly captures an extraordinary time and place in history…[in a] vivid, authentic representation of men of unusual skill and focus in the midst of a barbarous war." —Richmond-Times Dispatch The final chapter features Nikki Mond, Thorvald's accomplice while he was alive. Nikki is wandering about the German camps, talking with soldiers and thinking about the war. The German's are surrounded by a huge amount of Russian troops and they have almost no chance of escaping without being taken prisoner. Their resources were being depleted and some men had resorted to cannibalism. He sums it up with one good thought: I remember watching Enemy at the Gates when I was knee high to a grasshopper and loving it. It was gritty, it was dirty, and it had Ed Harris and Bob Hotchkins. In the movie the romance works, it flows. In the book... it does not. In fact it's so misplaced that it distracts the reader. I get it, this is humanity in a time of turmoil, however... the personalities conflict. I can't grasp the romantic relationship of these two. One is an American with ties to Russia through heritage who loves communism but she's arrogant and impulsive to a very dangerous degree. The other is Russian, not impulsive, patient, calculating, and a cautious sniper. I just couldn't see it call me a pessimist. If you ever seen the movie, Enemy at the Gates, this book's premise is going to sound familiar to you. Of course, there is a logical explanation for that, as it is based on a true story...or it could have just been Soviet propaganda, but it's based on something.In the book Thorvald describes himself as a coward who hides behind the lines and steals the lives of others. He grew up as a trap shooter and was known as one of the best shooters in the German Army. A frighteningly realistic patchwork depicting the long siege that changed the course of the war. Based on a true story, the novel deftly captures an extraordinary time and place in history...[in a] vivid, authentic representation of men of unusual skill and focus in the midst of a barbarous war." --Richmond-Times Dispatch A supporting character siding with the Red Army is Captain Igor Semyonovich Danilov, a reporter for the Red Star, a Russian newspaper. He joins Zaitsev at the school and on a few of his missions to report Zaitsev's heroic events and ingenious tactics as a sniper. Danilov eventually is shot down by Thorvald when he spots Thorvald through a periscope and jumps up to yell. The story focuses in on the lives of two expert snipers, a Russian and a German, each with the goal of killing the other. The two snipers, Army Chief Master Sergeant Vasily Zaytsev of the Red Army and SS Colonel Heinz Thorvald of the German army, are equally matched. However, the story is complicated when a female sniper, Tania Chernova, becomes one of Vasily's most talented assistants and his battlefield lover. A frighteningly realistic patchwork depicting the long siege that changed the course of the war. Based on a true story, the novel deftly captures an extraordinary time and place in history...[in a] vivid, authentic representation of men of unusual skill and focus in the midst of a barbarous war." "-- Richmond-Times Dispatch"