recommended reading for HOI2 inspiration

[Chaplain]

You can pick up Churchill's five-volume WW2 memoirs for around $30 in the paperback edition. It starts in the early 30's and runs right through. Great reading as it deals with tech developments, politics, economics and military strategy. Very nice "HOI2-player-level" perspective.

John Ray authored a brand-new, excellent broadview of the war called "The Illustrated History of WW2". This has the best campaign maps and photo collections I've seen in a one-volume history, as well as very nice prose.

Finally, Collins' "Atlas of the Second World War" is a great "coffee table" style collection of maps of every significant campaign - the kind of thing grognard can lovingly pore over as he visits the loo ... er, sits in the easy chair - wink-wink, nudge-nudge, SAY NO MORE! :rofl:

As a light-hearted alternative, you can watch the classic Fawlty Towers episode 'The Germans' ... but DON'T MENTION THE WAR! :rofl:

 

[aelbric]

You can download a PDF of the Erwin Rommel biography 'Rommel:The Trail of the Fox' by David Irving
http://www.fpp.co.uk/books/Rommel/

It is the full work and completely free. An amazing read.

 

[Duritz]

You can download a PDF of the Erwin Rommel biography 'Rommel:The Trail of the Fox' by David Irving
http://www.fpp.co.uk/books/Rommel/

It is the full work and completely free. An amazing read.

Yes, A very good read...... despite the authors later controversial works. I'd add the following to the list:

Panzer Commander by Hans von Luck

Panzer Leader by Heinz Guderian

and for those trying to change the course of history:

Hitler's War by Heinz Magenheimer (a bit of a Hitler apology but a good analysis of alternative Strategic options)

The Hitler Options Edited by Kenneth Macksey (or indeed anything by Macksey. A little right wing for my political tastes but his books on the what-ifs of a German invasion of Britain by Germany are unbelievably detailed and researched).

Of course you'll have to pay for these..... or use a well stocked library.

Cheers,
Duritz.

 

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Panzer Commander is a wonderful book.
I highly reccomend it to anyone interested in WWII.
It's not just a war-story, but it's also the story
of Lt. Col. Hans von Luck, and his rise through the ranks,
personal tragedy during the war, and his time in Soviet captivity.

---Ank

 

[Brasidas]

With some prompting to the gift-giver, I scored a copy of Margaret
MacMillan's "Paris 1919". Awesome book! Sets the stage for a hell of
a lot. It presents conflicting accounts of the characters attending
the Paris Peace Conference, their delusions and machinations, and
throws in some funky curveballs.

I'm still getting into it, haven't had much time with family stuff and
going back to school again, but it is sweet.

 

[bshirt]

For great, great reading regarding the 1st SS Panzer Corp at Normandy, nothing I've seen comes within a country mile of Michael Reynold's superb "Steel Inferno".

In fact, for a combination of detail and downright fun reading, I'd say it's best wwII stuff that I'm aware of, period.

 

[GrimReaper]

For a deep insight into the history of Germany leading up to and including WWII, I recommend The Third Reich by Time Life Books.

It has the broad picture of things as well as the interesting details of the most famous events.

21 books all in all.

 

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Recommended for HOI2 Inspiration

• The Second World War, by Martin Gilbert
• D-Day, by Stephen Ambrose
• "Atlas of the Second World War", Collins
• "The World At War: 1935-1945", Reader Digest

 

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Von Mannstein: Lost Victories (not sure about the english name)

 

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I recommend The Oxford Companion to World War II. This is a one-volume encyclopaedia which is good for looking up just about any topic that you might find in HoI.

Andrew

 

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I just bought Churchills six books about world war 2 and it is indeed a very exciting story he tells. I recommend it to all you interested in world war 2.

Panzer leader by Heinz Guderian is also a good book although Guderian got a tendency to blame his own faults on others and not recall incidents well not so favorable to himself

Mansteins lost victories is also a gem although it suffers from the same problem as Guderian's book, Manstein covers up some of his msitakes and as usual Hitler is to blame.

Furthermore I wanna make 2 recommendations;

"On the other side of the hill" by Lidell-Hart. A very interesting book about german commanders in world war 2 and how they viewed the war.

"Iron Coffins" by Herbert Werner. One of the best books I've ever read, it's the story of Werner's own memories of serving in the german submarine fleet during world war 2.

 

[Doggie3]

Marshal Vasili Chuikov's The End of the 3rd Reich (published in the US as the Fall of Berlin I believe) is an excellent read from the Russian perspective. Follows Chuikov and his 8th Guards from Stalingrad to Berlin.

Field Marshal Slim's Defeat into Victory.

Any of Cornelius Ryan's works - The Longest Day, Bridge Too Far or the Last Battle

Cheers

 

[nwinther]

Von Mannstein: Lost Victories (not sure about the english name)

I second that. Lost Victories is a terrific book - especially the parts on the crimean campaign and the discussions with - and the decisions by - Hitler are of interest. Especially in regards to the invasion of Soviet in HOI2

I can also reccomend "The Rommel Papers" by Rommel, edited by Lidell Hart and General Bayerlein (Rommels CoS) and Manfred Rommel.

In "papers" you get an exellent view of the importance om air-superiority, supplies and the need for boldness - simulated very well in HOI2.

 

[aelbric]

Surprised it hasn't been mentioned yet.

Rise and Fall of the Third Reich - William L. Shirer.

Very long, parts are a bit disturbing. If you focus on the pieces that revolve around the pre-war years through Barbarsossa, it provides an incredibly detailed look into the German war economy and diplomacy through WWII as well as some peeks into German grand strategy.

 

[Exterous]

Panzer Commander by Hans von Luck

Awesome book.

I would also recomment
"Tigers in the Mud" story of Otto Carius, Geramny's premier panzer ace in WWII

"Panzer Aces" stories of the next five leading panzer aces

Amazing descriptions of their feats. Its also amazing to read about those who fought on both fronts and see their disdain for the american and british ground forces (although a healthy respect for the air forces)

"Medal of Honor winners of WWII" speaks for itself

 

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Hmm...

I have already re-read "Lost Battles" by Hans Friesner and "Lost Victories" by Manstein. Both books in Russian translation and fully commented to let the reader compare the story from both sides... a great reading.

Probably will re-read Pereslegin's "Pacific Prime-Show" - one of the very-very few Russian books about Pacific War (and the only one published after USSR crumbled to dust). But probably I will again want to play Japan or US after reading it, instead of Germany or USSR (my favourites)...

Gonna get back Popel's trilogy ("In Hard Times", "Tanks Turned West", "Berlin in Sight!") and re-read it as well as Katukov's "On the Spearhead of the Main Offensive". Again an excellent reading: Katukov was the commander and Popel was the comissar of the First Soviet tank army... Rzhev, Kharkov, Kursk, Sandomir, Oder, Zeelov Heights and finally Berlin (and it were troops of 1st Tank Army who took Hitler's bunker). Again a great reading, and fully commented.

Have read just a few weeks ago: Pyltsyn A. V. "Penal Offensive, or How the Penal Battalion Had Reached Berlin". A book written and published a few years ago by an ex-officer of a penal officer battallion. Lots of information about Soviet penal battalions "modus operandi".

As for alternatives, that depends on what country I will start playing once I get the game. If Germany, then will re-read Macksey (in Russian edition they have added several alternatives by Russian authors as well). If USSR, then "Variant 'Bis'" by S. Anisimov rules supreme.

 

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The second world war by Martin Gilbert is amazingly thrilling since it gives a day to day account of the war.

 

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Rise And Fall Of The Third Reich by William Shirer.

 

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No one has mentioned any of David Glantz's books! Eastern Front specialist:
When Titans Clashed, Stumbling Colossus, Kursk

WTC is his overview of the Eastern Front.
SC is about how unprepared the Red Army was just before and early in the war (coverage thru about August 1)

The Breaking Point: Sedan and the Fall of France, 1940 by Robert A. Doughty is a wonderfully detailed account of the breakthru. It alternates German then French chapters. It has some details about platoon level fighting by Balck's inf in Sedan while observing that the French high command thought everything was just as they expected less than 12 hours before the Germans go to the Meuse River in three places. I actually borrowed this book from the West Point Library on interlibrary loan one summer. Doughty was a West Point instructor then.

 

[Paul Roberts]

Considering the economic, political, and infrastructure focus of HOI2, I would recommend Richard Overy's Why the Allies Won. It treats WW2 as a clash of industrial and technological might in addition to manpower and strategy, while avoiding the simple "Allied steamroller" thesis.

Since HOI2 treats the war from the same point of view, this book might be more inspiring than histories of particular battles.