Review: A Better Comrade You Will Never Find

[sniper1shot]

Title: A Better Comrade You Will Never Find
Authour: Helmut Schiebel
Publisher: J.J. Fedorowicz Inc.
ISBN: 978-0-921991-97-7
Stars: 5 (out of 5)

Been awhile since I posted a review though I have finished a few books....so I guess here goes on one of them. This book is about a soldier that fought with the 43rd motorcycle infantry battalion of the 13 Pz Div, before transfering to the Anti-tank units and fighting with Marders before being issued the Hornisse. The unit he fought with was Panzerjager Abteilung 88. Most of the book is about his time with the Hornisse (Nashorn).
The descriptions of the fighting while with the Motorcycle battalion in Russia are very sobering as the authour paints a picture that makes you fully understand what he saw and felt. The fighting up to and incl in Dnjepropetrowsk had me both laughing and sitting there wide eyed.
The fighting with the Hornisse is also extremely well described and the authour also describes the crews that fought with him and those that fell during the many battles. He goes on to describe the vehicles and how they were disabled or destroyed or abandonded. The fighting goes on through all the withdrawls and utimatly the surrender to American forces at the end of the war.
I found this book at Aberdeen Bookstore (online) and it is 250 pages in length with a few photos (not seen) spread though out. The very last pages are some colour plate drawings of the vehicle the authour fought in.
I found I couldn't stop reading this book and finished it in quick time...HIGHLY recommended.

[John W. Howard]

Thanks for the review Dan. It sounds like a great book.

[nord]

hi
read the book 4 times
one of the best i have read
i wish there was more like this to read

[Michael Dorosh]

I picked up this book last year, but have only flipped through it. I liked the painting on the cover...

As I started reading through it, the one thing that struck me was some of the attention to little details - nicknames for things, stuff of that nature. It seemed quite "authentic" in that way and gave some good insights that not all books of this type do. Another reason I didn't like "Forgotten Soldier", which just seemed forced to me. I won't get into the whole debate about whether or not it's real - I'll stipulate that it is - but, for me, authors like Schiebel do much more to create a genuine connection to the material.