Two Sides. Diaries of Latvian Soldiers in WWII

This book is about Latvians who fought on both sides of the front during World War II. The main heroes are Alberts Dāboliņš, Ēriks Jaunkalnietis, Alfons Kaunass, Mārtiņš Strazdiņš, Nikolajs Šķute and Juris Zīverts, all of them soldiers who entrusted their war stories to diaries. This book offers what they wrote as the “voice of war” recorded in writing more than 50 years ago. Readers will encounter three Latvians who fought for the Soviet Union and three who fought for Germany, in diaries that have survived to the present day. The texts from these daily journals are enriched with information about the authors and commentary that allows readers to learn more about the described events. “(Two) Sides provides invaluable insight into the daily lives and struggles of soldiers under two ideologically opposed regimes that enriches our understanding both of the complexity of Latvia’s World War II history and the continued challenges this complexity presents to historical narratives and memory. Richly documented and compellingly written, (Two) Sides is essential reading for both scholars and non-scholars, a key text for courses on World War II, European, and World history.” — Mara Lazda, Associate Professor, Department of History, Bronx Community College, The City University of New York Visiting Scholar, Center for European and Mediterranean Studies, New York University “This book is undoubtedly important for our society as a whole [..] Such a publication promotes understanding among people, once forced to stand on opposite fronts.” — ILZE JERMACĀNE, historian of the Latvian War Museum, Department of World War II History Edited by Vita Zelče and Uldis Neiburgs Translated from Latvian by Kārlis Streips English language editor Andrejs Plakans Grāmata piedāvā ielūkoties Otrā pasaules kara frontēs tapušās sešās latviešu karavīru dienasgrāmatās. Trīs to autori karoja Padomju Savienības karaspēkā un trīs – Vācijas bruņotajos spēkos. Viņi visi kopā mums rada stāstu pa latviešu karalaika ikdienu Otrā pasaules kara frontes abās pusēs. Tā ir dzīve kara izraisītajā sociālajā katastrofā, kad daudzi civilizācijas likumi vairs nepastāv, bet cilvēcība, dzīves alkas, māju un Latvijas vērtība iegūst īpaši spilgtu veidolu. Šis ir grāmatas 3. laidiens, kas papildināts ar Mārtiņa Strazdiņa fotogrāfiju, dažiem biogrāfijas faktiem un tajā ir precizēti dati gan par viņa, gan Alberta Dāboliņa ģimeni. Tāpat šajā laidienā nākušas klāt fotogrāfijas no Gunāra Dāboliņa personiskā arhīva.