Even the sworn enemies of the Third Reich admitted that at least until 1944, the German soldier was superior to the enemy both in the level of combat training and in the organization and meaningfulness of combat operations. The victorious Wehrmacht crushed all its opponents - until it collided with the soldiers of the Red Army on the battlefields. However, the Victory also cost us huge losses, many times higher than the German ones - the “Krauts” were too strong, too experienced, proactive, courageous, too well armed and trained. This unique book is the first comprehensive study of the combat service and everyday life of the German infantry on the fronts of the Second world, especially valuable because it not only illuminates the course of hostilities, but also allows you to look at the war “from the inside”, through the eyes of a simple Landser (“countryman”, as the Wehrmacht soldiers called each other) - how they dressed and ate, what they drank and smoked, what signs they believed in, what jargon they used, what weapons they preferred, how they assessed the enemy and their own command, what they hoped for, what they laughed at, what they hated and what they were especially afraid of. This is “trench truth” in German, a real encyclopedia life and death on the Eastern Front, tracing the entire path of the German soldier from junger Dachs ("badger", i.e., recruit, "new guy") to alter Fronthase (veteran - literally: "old front-line hare").