German World War II Memoires and Diaries

Book discussion and reviews related to the German military.

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Helmut Von Moltke

Post by Helmut Von Moltke »

that book is available at Amazon, can't wait to get it

Image

the link for those who want it

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/184415 ... oding=UTF8

cheers,

Kevin
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Post by maschinengewehr42 »

It will be worth the wait. One of the best accounts I've read for a long time.

Incidentally, the Moisin Nagant sniper rifle on the cover of the original German version of this book is correct to the memoirs, as Allerberger used such a captured rifle until summer 1944, when he was finally issued a scoped K98.

Another recent addition to my library has been "Messerscmitts Over Sicily" by Johannes Steinhoff, Stackpole books 2004. Originally published in German as "Die Strasse von Mesina: Tagebuch des Kommodore".

This is that famous ace's account of the defence of Sicily before and during the Allied invasion of summer 1943. Even by that relatively early stage of the war, Steinhoff had no illusions about the eventual outcome, being already outnumbered massively, outclassed in aircraft and skill of the average pilot, and facing the new B17s for the first time, having to work out tactics to combat them. It gives a sharp picture of how the Germans managed to continue operating with all the odds stacked against them, flying missions that they knew could be nothing more than ineffectual, while being castigated by Goering, of whom the author seems to hold an understandably rather low opinion.

There is a lot of the day to day routine of life on the base, with tactical overviews of the theatre and operations, mixed with plenty of first hand accounts of air combat, including a few reminiscences of fights over the Channel in 1940, and Russia during and after Barbarossa. But Sicily wasn't like that; there, the Luftwaffe forces were just struggling to stay alive and hoping desperately to be pulled back before destruction.

Another good read.
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Post by Jan-Hendrik »

Absolutly outstanding :

Johann Huber "So war es wirklich"

Image

One of the best memoirs I have ever read ! 8)


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Post by Marko »

Jan-Hendrik wrote:One of the best memoirs I have ever read ! 8)
Hmm, the last time I've checked this was supposed to have been written be in a diary format or did the long travel turn it into a memoir :wink: :D .

Marko

[Sorry Klemen, for polluting the topic]
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Post by Jan-Hendrik »

Old Nitpicker :D

Enjoyed it really , as much as Manteuffels Divisional History of the 7thPD is rather "geizig" for 1945 :wink:

:[]

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WWII Books

Post by Rudi S. »

Below is a list of the WWII books I own:

Books Pertaining to WWII (Personal Library R. Salvermoser) as of 3/25/2005:

TITLE AUTHOR LANGUAGE

48 HOURS TO HAMMELBURG Charles Whiting English
ALS ICH 9 JAHRE ALT WAR, KAM DER KRIEG Hannes Heer German
AMERICA (TO) E. Dunnigan, Albert A. Nofi - English
ANMERKUNGEN ZU HITLER Sebastian Haffner German
ARDENNES, THE SECRET WAR Charles Whiting English
ATLAS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR Harper Collins English
ATLAS OF WORLD HISTORY Vol. 1 Kinder, Hilgemann English -T
BAND OF BROTHERS Stephen E Ambrose English
BARBAROSSA Alan Clark English
BATTLE FOR MOSCOW (THE) Albert Seaton English
BATTLE OF THE BULGE John Pimlot English
BATTLE, THE STORY OF THE BULGE John Toland English BATTLE OF THE HÜRTGEN FOREST Charles B. McDonald English BATTLES HITLER LOST Russian Commanders Engl.-T
BERLIN DIARY William L. Shirer English
BIS ZUR LETZTEN STUNDE Traudl Junge German
BLOOD, TEARS, AND FOLLIES Len Deighton English
BRAZEN CHARIOTS Robert Crisp English
CHAIN DOGS *** Robert Witter English
CITIZEN SOLDIERS Stephan Ambrose English
COMMANDO EXTRAORDINARY Charles Foley English
DAY WE BOMBED SWITZERLAND (THE) Jackson Granholm English
DEATH OF A DIVISION Charles Whiting English
DEUTSCHE GESCHICHTE 1919-1945 Golo Mann German
DEUTSCHEN IN AMERIKA (DIE)* Erich Kuby German
DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS OF WWII JE Dunnigen, A.A. Nofi English
DREI JAHRE IN DER NACHRICHTENZENTRALE
DES FUEHRERHAUPTQUARTIERS Alfons Schulz German
DRITTE REICH (DAS) 1933-1939 Weltbild Verlag German
DRITTE REICH (DAS) 1939-1945 Weltbild Verlag German
FIELD UNIFORMS OF GERMAN PANZER FORCES
IN WORLD WAR II Pruett and Edwards English
FINAL ENTRIES 1945 (DIARIES OF JOSEPH GÖBBELS) English-T FORGOTTEN SOLDIER (THE) Guy Sajer English -T FÜHRERHAUPTQUARTIER 1939-1945 (DAS) Gerhard Buck German GERMAN MILITARY DICTIONARY Lancer Militaria G.& E.
GERMAN GENERALS TALK (THE) B.H. Liddell Hart English
GERMAN RESISTANCE TO HITLER Peter Hoffmann English -T
GOOD SOLDIER (THE) Alfred Novotny English
GROSSDEUTSCHLAN, GUIDERIAN’S
EASTER FRONT ELITE M. Sharpe, B. Davis English
GROSSDEUTSCHLAND VOL. III Helmuth Spaeter English - T
GRUNDLEGENDE REDE Robert H. Jackson German
GULAG ARCHIPELAGO Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn English
HANDY HISTORY ANSWER BOOK (THE) Rebecca Nelson English
HISTORY OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR B. H. Liddell Hart English
HITLER Harald Steffahn German
HITLER, A STUDY IN TYRANNY Alan Bullock English
HITLER CLOSEUP Jochen von Lang English HITLER, ADOLF John Toland English
HITLER, ADOLF Werner Maser German
HITLER AND STALIN Alan Bullok English
HITLER’S ENFORCERS James Lukas English
HITLER’S HELFER (4 volumes) Guido Knopp German
HITLER’S PERSONAL SECURITY Peter Hoffmann English
HITLER’S TRAITOR Louis Kilzner English
HITLER'S WAR David Irving English
HITLER'S GENERALS AND THEIR BATTLES Shelford Bidwell English
HITLER'S GERMANY (IN) Bernt Engelmann English -T
ICH KÄMPFE (I Fight) NSDAP; Translation by Ray R. Cowdery - German & English
ICH WAR DABEI Franz Schönhuber German
ILLUSTRIERTE GESCHICHTE DES WIDER-
STANDES IN DEUTSCHLAND UND EUROPA Kurt Zentner German
INSIDE NAZI GERMANY Detlev J.K. Peukert English -T
INSIDE THE THIRD REICH Albert Speer English -T INTREPID'S LAST CASE William Stevenson English
INVASION-THEY ARE COMING Paul Carell English-T
JUSTICE AT NUREMBERG Robert E. Conot English
LAST 100 DAYS (THE)* John Toland English
LEHRPLAN (THE) - (SS and Police) Carl Hottelet English-T
LIFE AND DEATH OF NAZI GERMANY (THE) Robert Goldston English
LIFE IN THE THIRD REICH Richard Bessel English
MALTA TO BERLIN (FROM) William R. Smyser English
MAN CALLED INTREPID (A) William Stevenson English
MIND OF ADOLF HITLER (THE) Walter C. Langer English
MIT MAECHTIGEN ZWISCHEN HIMMEL UND
ERDE Flugkapitän Hans Baur German
MOST EVIL MEN AND WOMEN IN HISTORY Miranda Twiss English
NAZI GOLD Tom Bower English
NAZI YEARS (THE) Joachim Remak English
NUREMBERG INFAMY OR TRIAL Joseph E. Persico English
NÜRNBERGER PROZESS (DER) Carl Haensel German
OPERATION VALKYRIE Pierre Galante English -T
ORIGINS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR (THE) A.J.P. Taylor English
PANZER Roger Edwards English
PANZER BATTLES F.W. von Mellenthin English -T
PANZER COMMANDER Hans von Luck English
PANZERKORPS GD - BILDDOKUMENTATION Helmuth Spaeter German
PANZER GRENADIER DIV. GROSSDEUTSCH. Horst Scheibert English-T
PANZER LEADER Heinz Guderian English
PANZER REGIMENT GROSSDEUTSCHLAND
(HISTORY OF) Hans Joachim Jung English - T
PATH OF HITLER’S THIRD REICH Ian Westwell English
PzKpfw IV IN ACTION Bruce Culver English
PITY OF WAR (THE) Niall Ferguson English
RED STORM ON THE REICH Christopher Duffy English
QUEST (coauthor: Frank Brandenburg) IB Melchior English
RISE AND FALL OF ADOLF HITLER William L. Shirer English
RISE AND FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL (THE) R. G. Grant English
RISE AND FALL OF THE THIRD REICH(THE) William L. Shirer English
ROMMEL'S DESERT WAR Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr English
ROMMEL'S LAST BATTLE Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr English
SECOND WORLD WAR (THE) John Keagon English
SECRET BETRAYAL 1944-1947 (THE) William Casey English
SECRET WAR AGAINST HITLER (THE) William Casey English
SOLDAT, REFLECTION OF A GERMAN SOLDIER Siegfried Knappe English-T
STORY OF WWII (THE) Donald L. Miller English
THINK- THINK’s MAGAZINE DIARY OF US
PARTICIPATION IN WWII Business, Mach., Coop. English
TIGERS IN THE MUD Otto Carius English
TIME FOR TRUMPETS (A) Charles B. MacDonald English
TOTAL WAR-VOL I (The Western Hemisph) . Calvocoressi et al English
ULTRA SECRET (THE) . W. Winterbotham English
UNIFORMS OF GERMAN PANZER ELITE Edwards and Pruett English
UNKNOWN HITLER (THE) Wulf Schwarzwäller English -T
VICTORS (THE) Stephen E. Ambrose English
WAR AND REMEMBRANCE Herman Wook English
WAR THAT HITLER WON (THE) Robert Edwin Herzstein English
WEIMAR CHRONICLE (THE) Alex de Jonge English
WOODEN WOLF (THE)* John Kelly English
WORLD’S GREAT TANKS Roger Ford English
WORLD WAR II (ENCYCLOPEDIA) Rand McNally English
WORLD WAR II TANKS Eric Grove German


Note: T = Translation

Rudi S.
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WWII books

Post by Rudi S. »

One more book I discovered in my library:
Title: THE RUSSIANS
Author: Hedrick Smith
Copyright: 1976
ISBN 0-345-31746-7
Language: English (22nd printing April 1989)

Gruesse,
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Post by Luftman129 »

Memoirs I have listed by nationalities:

American
Baa Baa Black Sheep by Colonel Gregory 'Pappy' Boyington
War Journal by Major Damon 'Rocky' Gause
Memoirs by Harry S. Truman Vol.1:Year of Decisions
" " " " " " 2:Years of Trial and Hope

British
History of the English Speaking Peoples Vols.1 & 2 by Winston S. Churchill
Second World War Vols. 1-6 by Churchill also

German
In Deadly Combat by Gottlob Herbert Bidermann
Tigers In the Mud by Otto Carius
Five Years, Four Fronts by Georg Grossjohann
Memoirs by Wilhelm Keitel
Lost Victories by Erich von Manstein
Panzer Battles by F.W. von Mellenthin
Inside the Third Reich by Albert Speer
Messerschmitts over Sicily by Johannes Steinhoff
Black Edelweiss by Johann Voss
Iron Coffins by Herbert A. Werner

Italian
No Picnic on Mount Kenya by Felice Benuzzi

Japanese
Requiem for Battleship Yamato by Yoshida Mitsuru
No Surrender by Hiroo Onoda

Out of the list, I have read the Italian,Japanese,and German soldiers accounts though I am in the process of reading Albert Speer's memoirs and I have read Col. Boyington's memoirs. While I'm reading Speer's book, I am also reading Major Gause's memoirs.

Edited today to show 2 new books in the German field. And an update on the books that I listed earlier that I was in the process of reading. The trials and tribulations of Major Gause made me realize how difficult the battle in the Philippines was and Albert Speer really gave me a pretty good insight on the Nazi hierarchy.

Thanks,
Chris
Last edited by Luftman129 on Sun Apr 08, 2007 2:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Jan-Hendrik »

Had we already Hajo Herrmann's

"Bewegtes Leben"

and

"Als die Jagd zu Ende war"

:?:

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Post by Spandau »

Avete,

I just found a new one,

The Road to Stalingrad by Benno Zeiser

Valete,

-Spandau
If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss will gaze into you.
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Black Edelweiss

Post by Das Rikki »

I just finished Black Edelweiss by Johann Voss. I enjoyed this book very much. It is well written and easy to understand. I recommend it to anyone reading about WWII, especially those interested in the German plight.
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Black Edelweiss

Post by haen2 »

I have read it also, and as an old W.SS Vet, I recommend it for everybody to read. It is well written and historically verifyable.
Too bad it had to be shortened to fit the publishers format; it would even have been better, and some "vague" lose ends would be clearer.

With all those books around and already published, why do I actually bother to get mine on the market, other than an 'ego trip ?"

Oh well.
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Post by chambers »

I just bought this one too, but I haven't started reading it yet.

HaEn, I'm really interested in your story because it's yours and unique to your experiences. It may be about the same general subject, but I'll bet it won't be the same at all.

All the best to you,
Brooke
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Post by Jan-Hendrik »

Review on the 3 Vols. of Max Georg Bose, Leutnant and KC-Holder of the Sturmartillerie :up:

Jan-Hendrik
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