Unfortunately, not many songs are composed about this, there are almost no films and books «in the bull’s eye». About exploits and losses speak little, except for, say, speeches, such, it turns out, an intelligent historian on the «Echo of Moscow», accompanied by the giggles of his interlocutors. It corresponds to the spirit of the times «Leningradskaya zastolnaya», verses of the front-line correspondent P. Shubin:
…Let’s drink to those who commanded the companies,
Who was dying in the snow,
Who in Leningrad made his way through the swamps,
Throat breaking enemy
Of the relatively modern songs, you can recall, perhaps, only the works of the folk singer V. Vysotsky. Total war is a mixture of smells, sounds, memories; feelings, which can hardly be expressed in a logical order of words:
Kolos in the color of amber – will we have time?
No, it turns out that we sow
What is the color of amber shone there?
It’s in the field the fire is rushing
Dispersed all of the troubles in the parties
Songbirds are no more – crows
(Storks, Аисты)
It should be noted that the author of this book tries to distance himself from those fans of discussions at historical forums that emanate saliva, evil snickers-spit and bile, when it comes to the losses of the USSR in the first years of the war. For them, everything is initially bad – tanks, planes, people, in the humiliation of heroes or simply confused soldiers, they seem to see the greatness of their own personality. No arguments on them do not work, and you do not want to spend mental energy on those who can not be corrected. This text is intended for those who are able to deeply experience History, possesses the mind and heart, and wants to make a better future by breaking the past into small details.
…Simultaneously, on January 7, 1942, on the northern front, the offensive of Soviet troops begins in the vicinity of the city of Demyansk. On February 8, a cauldron with 6 German divisions, including Tottenkopf, with a total strength of 100,000 people, is being formed. The German Air Force is organizing an air bridge, which delivers up to 265 tons of cargo per day. (Approximately the same number in the air was received by the Second Shock Army in three weeks.) Here, in particular, they shoot down the Yak-1 with the legendary man Alexei Maresiev, the one who will later destroy 7 Luftwaffe aircraft flying with foot prostheses. On May 5, the blockade was lifted. Losses of the parties – the Red Army – 245,000, including 9,000 people who participated in the whole, failed Demian landing operation. Wehrmacht – 55 000 troops.