The War Of The Rats

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a good candidate for the thriller of the summer award... gives a compelling and graphic sense of the heroism-filled nightmare called Stalingrad...A readable, gritty adventure story." "-- The New York Times" There are four main characters, two Russians and two Germans. The Russian snipers are certainly real. Vasily Zaytsev became famous during World War 2 in the Battle of Stalingrad, the bloodiest battle of the war. He was so successful as a sniper that he eventually started his own sniper school. Tania Chernova was one of his students and lover. The two Germans, not so real. One is a corporal named Nikki Mond, who I think is pure fiction, the other, Heinz Thorvald, is mentioned in Zaytsev's diaries as a main sniper in the German army that he had a duel with. There is no other record of him existing. Yet at the same time, by the end, I found myself a little perplexed regarding what it was about - it both began long before and ended after the supposed central conflict of the novel, a sniper's duel. This off-center presentation was very appropriate, since war shouldn't be reduced to a simple high concept narrative, but it was rather noticeable by the end. For six months in 1942, Stalingrad is the center of a titanic struggle between the Russian and German armies—the bloodiest campaign in mankind's long history of warfare. The outcome is pivotal. If Hitler's forces are not stopped, Russia will fall. And with it, the world....

A frighteningly realistic patchwork depicting the long siege that changed the course of the war. Based on a true story, the novel deftly captures an extraordinary time and place in history...[in a] vivid, authentic representation of men of unusual skill and focus in the midst of a barbarous war." "-- Richmond-Times Dispatch" I remember watching Enemy at the Gates when I was knee high to a grasshopper and loving it. It was gritty, it was dirty, and it had Ed Harris and Bob Hotchkins. In the movie the romance works, it flows. In the book... it does not. In fact it's so misplaced that it distracts the reader. I get it, this is humanity in a time of turmoil, however... the personalities conflict. I can't grasp the romantic relationship of these two. One is an American with ties to Russia through heritage who loves communism but she's arrogant and impulsive to a very dangerous degree. The other is Russian, not impulsive, patient, calculating, and a cautious sniper. I just couldn't see it call me a pessimist. A frighteningly realistic patchwork depicting the long siege that changed the course of the war. Based on a true story, the novel deftly captures an extraordinary time and place in history…[in a] vivid, authentic representation of men of unusual skill and focus in the midst of a barbarous war." —Richmond-Times DispatchIn the book Thorvald describes himself as a coward who hides behind the lines and steals the lives of others. He grew up as a trap shooter and was known as one of the best shooters in the German Army. Zaitsev was a senior sergeant of the 2nd Battalion, 1047th Rifle Regiment, 284th Tomsk Rifle Division. He was interviewed by Vasili Grossman during the battle, and the account of that interview, lightly fictionalized in his novel, Life and Fate (Part One, Chapter 55), is substantially the same as that portrayed in the novel, without putting a name to the German sniper that he dueled with. On the other hand, the duel is portrayed quite differently in Zaitsev's own book, Notes of a Sniper, [1] and in William Craig's 1974 history Enemy at the Gates: The Battle for Stalingrad. If you ever seen the movie, Enemy at the Gates, this book's premise is going to sound familiar to you. Of course, there is a logical explanation for that, as it is based on a true story...or it could have just been Soviet propaganda, but it's based on something. The book just didn't keep me gripped. The storyline was a bit vague, the supporting cast of characters had little or no depth, there was far too much made of the love story between Zaytsev and Tania, and the finale had some really stupid inconsistencies. Really the only reason the German sniper, Thorvald, lost was because he suddenly became really stupid at the last minute. For a guy who was supposed to be so cowardly that he took no risks, he took a really huge risk in gambling that he could shoot at the dummy target first when he knew that Zaytsev had him in his sights. Why would he do that?

I've been trying to branch out in my reading lately, and every time I do, I get reminded why I don't. After listening to an audio version, I also enjoyed reading the print version of the Stalingrad sniper duel. The book ending interview on tape of one of the primary characters was a pleasant surprise and encouraged the print read. The reason I like science fiction and fantasy is that it tends to obey Eleanor Roosevelt's dictum - "Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people." - and chooses to discuss ideas above all else. 'War of the Rats' ought to at least succeed at the level of discussing an important event and fascinating people, but it doesn't even manage to do that well. The final chapter features Nikki Mond, Thorvald's accomplice while he was alive. Nikki is wandering about the German camps, talking with soldiers and thinking about the war. The German's are surrounded by a huge amount of Russian troops and they have almost no chance of escaping without being taken prisoner. Their resources were being depleted and some men had resorted to cannibalism. He sums it up with one good thought:The plot focuses on a 1942 battle between the Nazi Germans and the Soviets set in Stalingrad, Soviet Union. The battle is declared by Viktor Tabori to be " Rattenkrieg"; translated, War of the Rats. Wasn't sure if I would enjoy it because it is a war novel, but it is actually a love story masquerading as a war novel - kind of. Also it was about tactics, survival, humanity, good and evil, and some very good characters. This book, like the movie Stalingrad traverses every human emotion imaginable. The fortitude of the Russians to fight for the Rodina, not for political ideology but for themselves and the thousands of Russians caught in the grips of the Nazi war machine. He also paints a vivid description of the invaders. The arrogance has been left far behind. Stalingrad is a war unto itself. The once proud Wehrmacht is faced in a titanic struggle for what? Will the battle bring them victory or will is be just another conquered city along with thousands of others? Will the war end or will it continue to drag on taking with it tens of thousands other lives? The story focuses in on the lives of two expert snipers, a Russian and a German, each with the goal of killing the other. The two snipers, Army Chief Master Sergeant Vasily Zaytsev of the Red Army and SS Colonel Heinz Thorvald of the German army, are equally matched. However, the story is complicated when a female sniper, Tania Chernova, becomes one of Vasily's most talented assistants and his battlefield lover.

Robbins uses as touch points a number of known Stalingrad events, including Pavlov's House, the Grain Elevator, Goebbels's Stalingrad "choir," and the Cauldron offensives. Although the figures Tonia (more specifically Tania Chernova, often mentioned in books about the time period but never historically verified) and Thorvald (mentioned in Vasily Zaytsev's book, but again not historically verified) are in doubt, it's known that Russian women were snipers, and there is no doubt that Zaytsev was a sniper of great renown. This book thoroughly expresses the tension edured, physical effort, and mental acuity required of snipers. Zaitsev's rate of success, and his known proficiency at training others, prompt the Germans to bring in their own "super" sniper and teacher, Heinz Thorvald. Thorvald's only assignment in Stalingrad is to kill Zaitsev. We follow Thorvald's efforts, and get more of an overview of the horror of Stalingrad from Nikki, the German Corporal who is charged with guiding and supporting him.I read this when it first came out in 2000. It was an excellent read then and has lost nothing. Many of us have read the historical accounts of the massive Soviet counter-offensive on November 19,1942 and the encirclement of the 6th Army. There are other memorable characters like Nikki, the young German soldier, a dairy farmer from Westphalia ; Tania Chernova, a partisan fighter from Belarus and Danilov, a Russian commisar. I loved this book. That's quite something, coming from a person of notoriously squishy sensibilities whose last encounter with what you might call a war novel was a required reading of The Killer Angels in tenth grade.

a good candidate for the thriller of the summer award… gives a compelling and graphic sense of the heroism-filled nightmare called Stalingrad…A readable, gritty adventure story." —The New York Times Also, I felt like Zaitsev, one of the main characters, didn't become really complex until about halfway through - would've been nice to get to know him earlier. Mr. Robbins doe an excellent job in describing not only the supposed duel between Zaitsez and Thorvald (which is still being debated by historians) but his ability to paint the picture of a city ravaged by the opposing forces is phenomenal. He puts you in the heart of the dieing city. Can you imagine the closets metropolitan town in your vicinity being decimated to hulks of sagging I-beams, burning timbers and crumbled concrete structures. Yes, it is worse than the current destruction we witnessed in Joplin, Mi and Tuscaloosa,Ala (all weather related). Colonel Heinz Thorvald was joined by Corporal Nikki Mond in his search to find and kill Vasily Zaytsev. Nikki acted as a spotter and general accomplice to Thorvald. Finally I have read a novel by my former creative writing professor! I can stop feeling guilty now.

Success!

German soldiers call the battle Rattenkrieg, War of the Rats. The combat is horrific, as soldiers die in the smoking cellars and trenches of a ruined city. Through this twisted carnage stalk two men—one Russian, one German—each the top sniper in his respective army. These two marksmen are equally matched in both skill and tenacity. Each man has his own mission: to find his counterpart—and kill him. Interesting historical fiction on the Battle of Stalingrad during World War II. We don't get a full view of the battle; we get thumbnail sketches through the eyes of Russian snipers - including Hero of the Soviet Union Vasily "Zaitsev" and "Tonia Chernova" - and their counterparts. Stalingrad was hell and a huge turning point in the second world war. In only 6 months, 1.9 million people died. All that was left of Stalingrad was rubble. The germans called it Rattenkrieg, War of The Rats. This book with the same name uses all true history mixed in with a little fiction to make it better story wise. The war of Stalingrad was fought with alot of Snipers, the urban environment was perfect for them. This is the story of Vasily Zaytsev, a master sniper who killed 32 people with a standard rifle and a whopping 225 with a sniper rifle. I hate guns personally, but am always fascinated by Snipers for some reason, and to read this book was a blast. Germany sends their own master Sniper to catch Zaytsev, a man who is a bit of a coward but an excellent marksman. The sort of cat and Mouse game they play with eachother is brilliant, and makes this book a very fast paced read. Recommended for history buffs and everyone that enjoys a thrilling story between two master Snipers. The book did give a fairly good description of the type of warfare that was conducted in Stalingrad, and the author made a good attempt at describing the psychology of the two main characters and how they interacted with each other and their environment. A frighteningly realistic patchwork depicting the long siege that changed the course of the war. Based on a true story, the novel deftly captures an extraordinary time and place in history...[in a] vivid, authentic representation of men of unusual skill and focus in the midst of a barbarous war." --Richmond-Times Dispatch