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This book hit home with my Dad who lived through these times. He is currently reading it. Some areas are a little difficult to read because of the translation.
The book describes how collectivization was instituted to eliminate the small family farms which supported the guerillas and everything in Estonia was turned into an economic support system for Moscow. Many who went to hide in the woods were just waiting for the west to intervene as everyone thought that the Americans and British would not allow the Communists to stay in formerly independent territories.
Most books covering this period gloss over the Baltic States and their history. The book covers a short history of the Estonians centuries of struggle for independence then leads into it's main focus, of the Estonian's struggle for survival and hope for western intervention after the Russians returned following a brief Nazi occupation.
I found this to an interesting book. This spurred the guerilla movement.
During the first occupation brought about by the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact many Estonians including the President and his cabinet were deported and later died in gulags if they weren't murdered outright. In fall of 1944, the Russians returned and recommenced their Russification policy, mass deportations and executions ensued while Russians were sent to fill in the lands where Estonians had been deported from.
Unfortunately, the Russian occupation lasted until 1991. A great read, well worth the money.
This book gives only one side of the story. While fighting with Soviets, "Brothers" also killed innocent citizens just to inflict the horror on them. Another side of it that most of these rebels were former Nazi soldgiers or served in German police forces. As such they were actively involved in Holocaust (Estonian officials still deny Holocaust existence on the territory of Estonia). Not to mention that the author, prime minister, came to power on the wave of nationalism and ruined an Estonian economy. It was under his leadership that political parties were able to use slogan "Estonia for Estonians".The bottom line, this book as much politically twisted as books printed earlier by the Soviets about the guerrela movement.
Written by the current Estonian Prime Minister Mart Laar, this book gives many first-hand accounts of the Forset Brothers doomed struggle against the occupying Soviet forces in Estonia after WW2.(The Forset Brothers were groups of armed resistance fighters based in the woods of Estonia).While some stories tell of heroic and unbelievable battles against the KGB, most are unfortunately tragic and sad stories of Soviets killing and raping innocent civilians. However these stories must be told to preserve Estonian history and to account for Stalins Holocost in the East.Necessary reading for anyone of Estonian descent.
"War in the Woods" is a well-written and fascinating exploration of the topic of Baltic nationalist resistance to the Soviet annexation. While the book focuses on Estonia, the Latvian and Lithuanian Forest Brothers (the nickname for the Baltic rebels) are not neglected. The history, organization and tactics of the Forest Brothers are all addressed in some detail.(btw, those interested in the ill-fated British and American attempts to aid the Forest Brothers should look at "Operation Rollback", which details the sorry history of the American anti-Soviet program of the late 1940s and early 1950s)
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