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veronicascarsi's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
madfil's review against another edition
5.0
(14 March, 2024)
Grossman gives the reader one hell of a prelude to the greatest battle ever: The Battle Of Stalingrad. Ignoring numbers and stats, he brings everything down to the human level, to individuals, and he does so in a profoundly poignant way.
During WWII, Hitler does the stupidest thing ever, he invades Soviet Russia (joining Napoleon as the dumbest military 'genius' of all time). Attacking Stalin's namesake city could only ever have one, and only one, response...
'Stalingrad' has Nazi military meetings, Soviet propaganda, devastation and... love. Love of country, of colleagues, of friends, of family and of self. Interestingly, as diametrically opposed to war, Grossman elevates love of others as the highest ideal. He then proceeds to describe all these kinds of love in beautiful prose* through tender moments, forced separations, difficult conversations and devastating deaths. Words fail me here...
I will definitely read Part II: '[b:Life and Fate|13642029|Life and Fate|Vasily Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1411338198l/13642029._SY75_.jpg|2435598]'.
__________
* A note on the translation: this is my 3rd book from Vasily Grossman ('[b:Everything Flows|6646257|Everything Flows|Vasily Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1558705822l/6646257._SY75_.jpg|728857]' in 2012 and '[b:An Armenian Sketchbook|15796750|An Armenian Sketchbook|Vasily Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1350605673l/15796750._SY75_.jpg|19257558]' in 2013), all three translated by the same team: Robert Chandler and Elizabeth Chandler. Their work is impressive.
Grossman gives the reader one hell of a prelude to the greatest battle ever: The Battle Of Stalingrad. Ignoring numbers and stats, he brings everything down to the human level, to individuals, and he does so in a profoundly poignant way.
During WWII, Hitler does the stupidest thing ever, he invades Soviet Russia (joining Napoleon as the dumbest military 'genius' of all time). Attacking Stalin's namesake city could only ever have one, and only one, response...
'Stalingrad' has Nazi military meetings, Soviet propaganda, devastation and... love. Love of country, of colleagues, of friends, of family and of self. Interestingly, as diametrically opposed to war, Grossman elevates love of others as the highest ideal. He then proceeds to describe all these kinds of love in beautiful prose* through tender moments, forced separations, difficult conversations and devastating deaths. Words fail me here...
I will definitely read Part II: '[b:Life and Fate|13642029|Life and Fate|Vasily Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1411338198l/13642029._SY75_.jpg|2435598]'.
__________
* A note on the translation: this is my 3rd book from Vasily Grossman ('[b:Everything Flows|6646257|Everything Flows|Vasily Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1558705822l/6646257._SY75_.jpg|728857]' in 2012 and '[b:An Armenian Sketchbook|15796750|An Armenian Sketchbook|Vasily Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1350605673l/15796750._SY75_.jpg|19257558]' in 2013), all three translated by the same team: Robert Chandler and Elizabeth Chandler. Their work is impressive.
cody240fc's review
4.0
As noted by the translator in the afterword, Grossman envisioned 'Stalingrad' and 'Life and Fate' as one work, so a proper evaluation cannot be given until both books have been read. That being said, there's no denying that 'Stalingrad' in and of itself is a major accomplishment. It starts off with Vavilov's beautiful but sad departure from his family as he trudges off to war, and then Grossman proceeds to give us scene after scene of vivid imagery: Krymov's river crossing with Semyonov stands out, as does the fighting at the Railway Station.
This is far from a perfect work, however. Many reviewers have noted the distracting propaganda for the Soviet regime, and I couldn't help but notice it as well. 'Stalingrad' was initially published while Stalin was still around and was thus heavily edited, so it is difficult to determine how much of this propaganda Grossman actually wanted in his novel. The translator does a wonderful job of discussing the different versions of 'Stalingrad' and the role those editors played in constructing the novel as it is today. It blew my mind that Tolya's chapter was added almost as a throw-in during the editing process; it's an amazing chapter.
As a standalone work, I would argue that the cast of characters in 'Stalingrad' is far too large. Without the list of characters at the back of the book, I would have been hard pressed to keep track of who is who. Grossman devotes over 600 pages to their introduction and backstories before we even really dive in to the battle of Stalingrad. Despite the page count dedicated to building these characters, the book would have been better served with a smaller cast that would allow the reader to be more emotionally invested in their story. When soldier XYZ was killed in a beautifully rendered scene, I had to pause and flip to the character list to remind myself why I should be so distraught at his death.
Many of Grossman's characters simply disappear without resolution, almost as if the many pages we spent with them were nothing more than a long-winded tangent to the main story. I am sure many of these characters will resurface in 'Life and Fate', but it is a little frustrating to have so many memorable characters disappear like an afterthought.
Having said all of that, I am sure 'Life and Fate' will bring all these characters back into the fold, throw my complaints back in my face and make this review look stupid. I look forward to looking stupid.
A high four stars. Excellent, but not the masterpiece it is claimed to be. At least not until I read 'Life and Fate' anyway.
This is far from a perfect work, however. Many reviewers have noted the distracting propaganda for the Soviet regime, and I couldn't help but notice it as well. 'Stalingrad' was initially published while Stalin was still around and was thus heavily edited, so it is difficult to determine how much of this propaganda Grossman actually wanted in his novel. The translator does a wonderful job of discussing the different versions of 'Stalingrad' and the role those editors played in constructing the novel as it is today. It blew my mind that Tolya's chapter was added almost as a throw-in during the editing process; it's an amazing chapter.
As a standalone work, I would argue that the cast of characters in 'Stalingrad' is far too large. Without the list of characters at the back of the book, I would have been hard pressed to keep track of who is who. Grossman devotes over 600 pages to their introduction and backstories before we even really dive in to the battle of Stalingrad. Despite the page count dedicated to building these characters, the book would have been better served with a smaller cast that would allow the reader to be more emotionally invested in their story. When soldier XYZ was killed in a beautifully rendered scene, I had to pause and flip to the character list to remind myself why I should be so distraught at his death.
Many of Grossman's characters simply disappear without resolution, almost as if the many pages we spent with them were nothing more than a long-winded tangent to the main story. I am sure many of these characters will resurface in 'Life and Fate', but it is a little frustrating to have so many memorable characters disappear like an afterthought.
Having said all of that, I am sure 'Life and Fate' will bring all these characters back into the fold, throw my complaints back in my face and make this review look stupid. I look forward to looking stupid.
A high four stars. Excellent, but not the masterpiece it is claimed to be. At least not until I read 'Life and Fate' anyway.
giuliamrll's review against another edition
dark
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
“Sotto i suoi piedi, adesso, c’era la terra di Stalingrado.”
Un lungo, ma emozionante e talvolta divertente, resoconto romanzato dei antefatti e dei primi momenti dell’assedio di Stalingrado. Un’analisi molto acuta del perché il nazifascismo prende piede e come.
Un lungo, ma emozionante e talvolta divertente, resoconto romanzato dei antefatti e dei primi momenti dell’assedio di Stalingrado. Un’analisi molto acuta del perché il nazifascismo prende piede e come.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, and Deportation
nonlinearpaolo's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
alyosha57's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
bridgeman98's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
ericbdevil's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
srm's review
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I set out to get this finished in a year, but thanks to life, it took a couple months longer. Still, I finally managed it. And I'm more glad than not that I read it, but I can't say I loved it. I can see what Grossman is doing with the cast of thousands and showing every corner of the war as it relates to Stalingrad, but I couldn't actually enjoy it. I'm entirely willing to admit this is more a matter of it not being my cup of tea than any genuine flaw with that writing, though. I can see why others would really love this, just not me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and War