Victims, Victors: From German Occupation to the Conquest of Berlin Through the Eyes of a Red Army Submachine Gunner

As a teenager in Nazi-occupied Ukraine the author had one aim in his life, "I had a dream: to survive until our guys got back, become a soldier myself, get a submachine gun, and head westward with them. Our forces weren't moving westward, however. They were still busy retreating, somewhere there, on the Volga, in the Caucasus. It was a vague promise I had made to myself to 'sometime, someday'. . . ." Written as a journal of his experiences while a teenager during the German occupation and later, as a memoir of his Red Army service, Victims, Victors describes the confusion and agony of the conquered, and, ultimately, the triumph over those who invaded his homeland and murdered its citizens. Victims, Victors is, however, much more than a common chronicle of wartime experiences. Victims, Victors provides inside detail and views that could not be found in Russian books printed during the Soviet era. In terms of its breadth, perspective, and candor, Kravchenko's memoir is truly unique. --David M. Glantz, from the foreword.