In deadly Combat Gottlob Bidermann - Recommend a book to follow that!

[Anthony N]

Hi there!
After being recommended "In Deadly Combat" by Gottlob Herbert Bidermann on this forum i bought it & started reading last night.
Let's just say i couldn't put the book down & i'm nearly a quarter of the way through but it's such an impressive book i'm now worried about what i'm going to read next?
What do people who've read this book recommend next in the same style?
Thanks, Ant.

[peleliuexplorer]

Yes, I agree with you entirely. I just bought the book and find it difficult to put down. I try to "ration" my reading so I don't get through it too quick and have something to look forward to reading before bed! An excellent first-hand account of what combat was like for a front-line German soldier. A very compelling read of the horrors of the Russian front.

It's going to be difficult to find another book that compares to this one...

-eric

[Anthony N]

Too right Eric, i think finding something as good will unfortunately be near impossible!
I'm going to take your advice & start rationing it!
Ant.

[peleliuexplorer]

Too right Eric, i think finding something as good will unfortunately be near impossible!
I'm going to take your advice & start rationing it!
Ant.

Good luck...I tried with savoring this book but it doesn't seem to work! Ha, ha... My last good book was "Shadow Diver's" by Kurston. Ranks as my best read ever...although I'm not through with Bidderman's book yet.
-Eric

[Anthony N]

Good luck...I tried with savoring this book but it doesn't seem to work! Ha, ha... My last good book was "Shadow Diver's" by Kurston. Ranks as my best read ever...although I'm not through with Bidderman's book yet.
-Eric

Thanks Eric, will look that one up.
Ant.

[kompanie]

Try Sniper on the Eastern Front: The Memoirs of Sepp Allerberger.This is one of the best books i have ever read and i have lent it to others who say the same.Also Berlin Dance of Death by Helmut Altner is a bloody good read.

[Anthony N]

Try Sniper on the Eastern Front: The Memoirs of Sepp Allerberger.This is one of the best books i have ever read and i have lent it to others who say the same.Also Berlin Dance of Death by Helmut Altner is a bloody good read.

Thanks mate, that Sniper on the Eastern Front looked good when i saw it in the bookshop but i hadn't read any recommendations so i went for In Deadly Combat.
Will definitely pick it up now & look for the other one too.
Thanks
Ant.

[240stevek]

Try to find a copy of "FEUER! An Artillerymans Life on the Eastern Front" by Werner Adamczyk 1992. It really takes you back there.
Steve

[Anthony N]

Try to find a copy of "FEUER! An Artillerymans Life on the Eastern Front" by Werner Adamczyk 1992. It really takes you back there.
Steve

Thanks Steve, will do a search for that one too.
Really getting back into reading after years of not bothering, so many more recommendations welcome.
Ant.

[kompanie]

Twilight of the gods by thorolf hillbald (a sweedish waffen ss volunteers experience)isbn 1-874622-16-7

the forgotten soldier by guy sajer (easter front GD division) isbn 0-304-35240-3

blood red snow by gunter k koscorrek (machine gunner on the eastern front)
isbn 1-85367-508-3

and backs to berlin by Tony Le Tissier (a few different peoples account of the retreat to berlin) the last persons account is by a Sgt. Major Willi Rogmann this final story is amazing if true (author says it is) this guy is a 1940's version of rambo.

happy reading

[Anthony N]

Have just ordered the following books:

Sniper on the Eastern Front
Berlin Dance of Death
Twilight of the gods
The forgotten soldier

Can't get "FEUER!", even on Abebooks there's only one copy at a ridiculous price.
Don't expect any reviews for quite a while!
Any more recommendations still welcome.
Thanks to everyone who has replied so far.
Ant.

[peleliuexplorer]

Have just ordered the following books:

Sniper on the Eastern Front
Berlin Dance of Death
Twilight of the gods
The forgotten soldier

Can't get "FEUER!", even on Abebooks there's only one copy at a ridiculous price.
Don't expect any reviews for quite a while!
Any more recommendations still welcome.
Thanks to everyone who has replied so far.
Ant.

Hi Ant.

You obviously have a good taste with good reads! Let us know what you think of those above mentioned books....that's if you have time between those accounts!

Cheers, Eric

[Anthony N]

Hi Ant.

You obviously have a good taste with good reads! Let us know what you think of those above mentioned books....that's if you have time between those accounts!

Cheers, Eric

Hi Eric!
It will be quite some time before i can give any opinions!
On the bright side, my accounts book & associated paperwork is off to my accountant tomorrow evening, always like to leave it late!
Nearly finished "In deadly combat", what a book!
Ant.

[Anthony N]

Update!
Finished reading "In Deadly Combat", what a superb book, not what i was expecting from the memoir of a soldier on the Eastern Front.
here goes with my first ever book review!

Rather than trying to sensationalise the story with gruesome details the book reads more like a novel. Biderman's style is interesting, it is very well written by a man of obvious intelligence & ability to convey the feel of any given situation. The book flows in such a way with the opening skirmishes on the Eastern front that the reader is drawn in as if reading faster & faster as the Wehrmacht steam headlong into the great expanse of Russia. Infact it is a sign of Biderman's intelligence & miliatary understanding that even these swift victories worry Biderman long before they finally come to a grinding halt in the trenches of the Crimea.
An interesting style of the book is that as the Wehrmacht becomes bogged down & then ultimately turns to defence, the pace of the book changes so reflecting this change in the campaign & the soldiers lives.
Eventually the pace becomes frantic & quite broken reflecting the headlong retreat the soldiers are thrust into. This expertly reflects the fact that German soldiers were never trained in defence & you really can feel how the soldiers start to improvise & slowly learn by experience how to successfully defend against overwhelming odds. It is a testament to these soldiers that they hold out for so long with their backs against the sea. Infact the Russians cannot believe how few soldiers they have been fighting against.
A highly recommended, intelligent & thought provoking book. It would be a very good introduction to for anybody who had never actually read a German soldiers memoirs. It gives a very clear & precise snapshot of exactly how the Heer operated from the Infantryman on the front, through the artillery, supply lines & to the HQ. It does this without being a chore but rather as a fascinating insight into a well oiled war machine.

Ant.

[stgeorge64]

I have just finished reading 'In Deadly Combat' and I have to say that I enjoyed it very much indeed and would recommend to anyone with an interest on the eastern front.

As a potential follow up, I would sugest reading 'Gods Of War' by Hans-Werner Woltersdorf, primarily a former member of SS-Pz. Jager Regt 2 "Das Reich". Well worth a read.

Regards Richard.