Today I finished 'Battleground Prussia' by Prit Buttar. This book is a fascinating yet somber account of the Soviet assault on Germany's eastern frontier during 1944-45, and also details the immediate post-war years within this region. I highly recommend reading this book after finishing Mr. Buttar's 'Between Giants' which describes the fighting in the Baltic states just prior to this campaign. As with his previous book on the Baltics, Battleground Prussia covers events from the grand strategic level, down to the actions and experiences of individual soldiers and civilians. I was especially intrigued by the descriptions of the significant involvement of the Kriegsmarine during this campaign, both in the realms of naval gunfire support and the evacuation of military personnel and civilian refugees. The terrible ordeal of the civilian population described in nearly all of the chapters is especially tragic, and appears to be comparable to that of the citizens of Manila during the liberation of that city. I was shocked to read about the sinking of the liner Goya by a Soviet submarine, the resulting loss of over 6000 military and civilian evacuee lives was the greatest loss of life at sea in history.
Overall, Battleground Prussia is a compelling, epic account of the absolute destruction of the German military on the Eastern Front, and an illustration of the factors which laid the groundwork for the inevitable Cold War which was to follow. I have been thoroughly fascinated and enlightened by both of the books which I have read by this author, and I am looking forward to reading many of his other books on Eastern Europe, especially his volumes regarding the Eastern Front during the First World War.
A specific ASL side note... Battleground Prussia also includes a detailed account of the battle involving an outnumbered and elite Jagdpanther crew as depicted in the scenario YASL #11, 'Ja, Bix'. Just one example of the many exciting small unit actions described within this book.