This review has been submitted to War History Online.
Title: The 64th
Army at Stalingrad 1942-43
Author: Dann Falk
ISBN: 978-1-732-60741-5
Publisher: Falken
Books
Year: 2019
Softcover
Pages: 289
Photos/Maps: 21/32
Much has been written
from the German perspective on the lead up to and the subsequent titanic struggle
for the city of Stalingrad; however, Falk’s work has provided a perspective
rarely presented, that of one of the Soviet Armies that faced the German
onslaught. Fighting to the point of annihilation, the 64th held the
key territory south of the city and west of the Volga River, thereby ensuring
that the flow of resources via that key waterway continued to get through.
The author has taken a
holistic approach in his rendition of the creation and operations of the 64th.
He commences with an introduction that provides a ‘big hand/small map’ synopsis
of the conduct of the Great Patriotic War; providing the reader with a
comprehensive background to the environment and nature of the conflict into
which the 64th was deployed. Each following chapter commences on the
first of the month and is broken into a narrative that relates key dates/events
during that period. Starting on 1 December, 1941 and concluding with the month
of February, 1943, they all follow the same format: a synopsis outlining its
assigned Command, the Commander, Units (by element) and Strength (broken into
listed combat strength and actual ration strength). This is very helpful as it
enables the reader to appreciate at a glance, the real time effect of
operations upon the 64th. Following that synopsis, key events by
date within the month are discussed in chronological order.
Another element of the
work that is not readily found in many of the narratives of the Eastern Front
is the emphasis that the author places on the logistics aspects of supporting
the 64th. He goes into great detail outlining not only the nature
and scope of the daily demands required by an Army on operations but also the
challenges associated with stockpiling and delivering these resources. This,
while concurrently suffering from the effects of air and land interdiction by
the Germans and the requirement to continuously fall back in the face of
Wehrmacht offense. This approach allows those not well versed in the conduct of
large scale operations to better appreciate the complexities of warfare on a
scale heretofore unheard of in the annals of war.
Also included in the
work are a series of unique maps created by the author. Clear and concise, they
are free of much of the clag that cause many of the maps in books to be of
limited or no value. The bibliography is also worthy of note as it includes
extensive primary and secondary source material not only in English but also
from Russian and German sources. Additionally, a broad set of endnotes adds
noteworthy depth and scope to the narrative.
Overall, this is a
very interesting work shedding light upon an element of Eastern Front
operations rarely covered in conventional literature. Well laid out, concise
and informative, it retains its interest for the reader despite the breadth of
statistical information provided. It is strongly recommended both as an
informative source of Soviet operations but also as an excellent counterpoint
to the myriad of German work on the Eastern Front.
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