Panzerwaffe At War 1:
Nuremberg to Moscow

By Robert Michulec & Thomas Anderson
Concord Publications, 1997
ISBN 962-361-618-X
72 pages, 8 with color profiles

Reviewed by Chris Banyai-Riepl

The early years of the Second World War were filled with German blitzkrieg armor attacks, and with countries falling in a matter of weeks. This book covers that era of German armor, starting with the beginnings of the Panzerwaffe and progressing up to the beginnings of the invasion of Russia. The text of the book is mainly in the first few pages, with a brief overview of each major action. The rest of the book is filled with excellent photos of the Panzerwaffe in action.

These photos are what really make this book shine, and the captions add immensely to the content. The photos are printed large, with as many crammed on the page as possible without it looking too cluttered. The first two pages cover WWI and the first German tanks, while the rest starts out in the mid-1930s and continues on until 1941. Early PzKpfw IAs are shown in several propaganda-type poses, effectively hiding its complete inadequacy as a fighting vehicle. Other vehicles that get lavish attention are the PzKpfw IIs, PzKpfw 35(t) and 38(t)s, StuG IIIs, and PzKpfw IIIs, as well as softskin AFVs and artillery.

The profile section adds color to the title, with two profiles per page, a total of 16 different vehicles depicted. These profiles start out in 1935 and progress through the years up to 1942. All the different campaigns are shown, from desert PzKpfw IVs to Russian winter StuG IIIs to Polish Front PzKpfw 38(t)s.

If you're looking for a detailed history on the Panzerwaffe in the opening stages of the Second World War, this isn't the book for you. But if you want a collection of excellent photographs of the same subject, then this is definitely a title that you won't want to pass up.