THE FALL OF OSTWALL

World War II. Autumn of 1943. After the defeat at Stalingrad and the Battle of Kursk, the army of the Third Reich retreats rapidly to the territory of Ukraine, reaching the western bank of the Dnieper. Hitler is harbouring plans to turn the broad and tempestuous river into part of the so-called Ostwall (“Eastern Wall”), which would separate Germany from the “red hordes” and give the Wehrmacht a chance to muster up strength for a new offensive. “The Dnieper is impassable!” German generals reassure their troops. “Pillage, burn and hang them high!” urge the SS. Ukraine groans, engulfed in blood and fire. Red Army troops rush to the rescue. On homemade pontoons, flimsy rafts, and fishing boats, under a barrage of machine-gun and mortar fire, Soviet soldiers cross the great Dnieper...