Radio Operator on the Eastern Front: An Illustrated Memoir, 1940-1949 by Erhard Steiniger

I always like to think that every first-hand account is worth reading as there will inevitably be interesting scenes/scenarios/eye-witness accounts worth familiarizing oneself with. It's rare that memoirs are a hit or miss in that respect because if someone didn't have something worthwhile to say, they wouldn't sit down to write a book. In this case, readers are presented with the memoirs of a radio operator who found himself mostly confined to Army Group North's area of operations until the final year/months of the war. 

The text is interspersed by a plethora of photographs, which tell a story in and of themselves. The photographs are mostly centered on the first year or two of the war so there is some disconnect as readers move beyond 1941/1942 yet continue to see photos of that initial victorious advance by the Wehrmacht. Yet, if readers pay attention, they'll see a large number of photos dedicated to German graves and burial ceremonies, reinforcing the idea that while on the whole the invasion of the Soviet Union is viewed as an unmitigated success, it came with a heavy cost. 

While, as mentioned, there are a few interesting scenarios recounted, the life of this radio operator mostly took place away from the frontline, thus recollections centered on frontline action are limited. This becomes a minor issue in that the author is mostly concerned (and to some extent rightfully so) about writing what he experienced and what he saw immediately in front of him. This translates into some questionable thinking when it comes to his recounting of the treatment Sudeten Germans received before the Munich Conference and in the last months of the war. He views them and himself as victims, again, to some extent rightfully so, but there is little to no self-reflection on the fact that he is an accomplice to one of the largest crimes in recorded history - that merits practically no mention aside from a tangential sentence or two to say what the Wehrmacht and Nazi Germany were accused of he did not see or participate in. Thus, while there are some thought-provoking scenarios recalled here, I think in the end it's a mediocre memoir, due to the aforementioned limitations, and a minor addition to our knowledge of the Eastern Front and the war as a whole.