The Greatest Battle: Stalin, Hitler, and the Desperate Struggle for Moscow That Changed the Course of World War II

I get it:

1. Stalingrad, as bad as it was for Paulos and the German 6th Army, is a sideshow to the Battle of Moscow and has been in a sense overhyper since Hitler's original monomania. Ditto for Leningrad.

2. Between two armies underequipped and misled by their megalomaniacal psychopath leaders, bet on the more warmly clothed defenders.

3. German tendencies to terrorize potential collaborators only works out for a little while.

Not finished yet, but already I can highly recommend this book for WWII buffs. Great narrator (audiobook). Highly detailed account of the Russian front in WWII: why Russia was an US ally and not a German ally, economic and social events going on before an during the war... the infighting between Stalin and Lenin and other Russian high level politicians and military members. Sooooo interesting because the "whys" are so complex. I highly recommend this book.

Extremely readable history of the Battle of Moscow, the tragedy fought in 1941-42 when Hitler set his sights on his hated rivals to the East. And by readable, I mean that I knocked it off in a couple of days. I think this is because at the author's inclusion of many extended quotes from participants and witnesses to the battle throughout, which adds some flavour to the narrative.

Curieux livre sur la bataille de Moscou sans quasiment parler de celle-ci ! Le livre a un intérêt d'un point de vue des relations américano-soviétiques, largement évoquées. On y apprend que Roosevelt était soviétophile et qu'il n'a jamais perçu le caractère totalitaire du régime stalinien.