I just finished reading the book A Writer At War, by Vasily Grossman.  Mr. Grossman was a front line correspondent during World War II for the Soviet Union, and this book is based upon the notebooks he used while interviewing and observing.  The book was compiled and translated by Antony Beevor and Luba Vinogradova.

Grossman was a Soviet Jew who was able to create vivid images with words.  His ability get even the most hardened Soviet Officers to speak was remarkable.  His articles were candid and vivid and did not cater to Soviet censorship or politics (Though when printed, some of his articles were altered by his editor).

He covered firsthand the battle for Stalingrad, and the Soviet pushback through the Ukraine, Poland, Kursk, Berdichev, Treblinka, and finally Berlin.  The chapter on Treblinka was the highlight of the book for me.  It is absolutely sickening to know what kind of animals the Nazis were.  While Grossman’s death toll estimates are not accurate, the bottom line is if you kill 6,000,000 or 4,000,000 or 2,000,000 people, you’re still a monster.  This article, known as “The Hell of Treblinka,” was presented as evidence during the Nuremburg trial.

Grossman is more famous for is other novel, Life and Fate.  Life and Fate describes the siege of Stalingrad.  The novel was finished in 1960, but it was declared subversive by the then Soviet government and banned.  Twenty years later, it was smuggled out of the Soviet Union and published with critical acclaim.  I have yet to read this book, but it is now on my list.