Soldier X

Ryan Ebert

Rating: really liked it
After reading this book both in eighth grade and recently, I consider this book to be my favorite book of all time. Being a World War II buff and fanatic, I picked up this book to pass the time. The story is epic and the character development is one of the greatest I've ever found in literature. I don't think this book gets enough publicity or credit. It is a historical book with real historical battles from World War II, and it gives a Fictional first-person outlook on the trials of a young boy enrolled in the German Army, or Wehrmacht. Being a Russian boy raised in Germany, he is used as an interrogator in his division for all captured Russian Soldiers. He is then found on the front lines of battle, fighting against Russian Infantry and Artillery. After he is knocked unconscious by a rolling tank, he wakes up behind enemy lines. He must either lay there and die, or embrace the Russian that he used to be.
Erik, the main character, is a teenage boy who was brought up by Hitler's Youth. After being enrolled in the Wehrmacht at only age 15, he must learn quickly how to survive in the bloody War. He learns to react quickly in close situations and knows exactly what to do in order to survive across the Russian border. He meets Tamara, a young Russian nurse, and falls in love with her after she takes care of him in a make-shift hospital. They face many trials in this book, running from the War and their own past. I would recommend this book to all ages, as it is very interesting and historical, but would especially recommend it to young adults who are very interested in history. This is a book worth reading over and over.

Dominic

Rating: really liked it
This probably one of my all time favorite books lots of action and packed with history. It provides a detailed acount of of life trapt behind enemy lines in the Eastern Front. It is baded on a true story

Rebecca L

Rating: really liked it
Awesome book that tells what war is really like and what people go through in it. Reminded me of All Quiet on the Western Front. Very moving.

Matthew Sysak

Rating: really liked it
The book is about a fifteen year old boy named Erik Brandt that likes to be named X. Before Erik was sent to war he was complainig that he was mistaken for a sixteen year old. Erik was not a Russian he was a German but he was supposed to kill his own people (not the Russians, the Germans). When Erik was on the battlefield he got barbed wires stuck below his knee and he got shot. in the emergency room Erik say a beutiful 15 year old girl named Tamara and was a nurse helping alot of other wounded men. Erik had a crush on Tamara. The whole time that Erik was in the emergency rom alot of wounded men died. when Erik could walk again he helped do chores, do opreations and helped make food. One day when he was handeling a pot of boiling water, Erik accidentally screamed ow in German and Tamara got scared becaused all this time she's been taking care of a person from Germany. The next day the fight was getting closer and closer to the hospital so the nurses had to evacuate and tried to find a safer location. during this process alot of wounded people and alot of nurses got killed by getting shot. Tamara, Erik, zoya ( another nurse), and Sergo ( another patient) were the only survivors. Later that day they went to get to saftey but Zoya died by a tree falling ontop of her while the tree was on fire. then Tamara, Erik, and Sergo went ahead to saftey but they got surrounded by Germans but Sergo dies. The next day Erik could not find Tamara. When Erik found her they started talking and Tamara got mad and asked Erik to tell her everything.

Julia

Rating: really liked it
Very well written and interesting book. I do wish they talked more about his life after the war. But other than that very good. The only other I gave it four stars is because the beginning was very dry, but it all ties in with the story eventually. Overall a very good WW2 novel. I'm going o ask for more novels like this for Christmas!

Elias Hayda

Rating: really liked it
Soldier X was one of my favorite books I have read all year. Even though its a completely different time from now. he is relatable and you can compare with him. I like that in the story he develops and changes. From a naive boy to a wise, strong, and smart man. Soldier X is always interesting and filling your mind with imagery details. It is never boring, and it never stops being intresting.

Noah Koh

Rating: really liked it
The book was a topic of my interest. It was very exciting and fun. The book had many parts where I really felt scared, happy, and sad. The best thing about Soldier X, was that there was no 'real happy ending'. The book was realistic, and made total sense. There are no miracles that help the main characters along the way. Anyways, it's a great book.

Roberto

Rating: really liked it
I really enjoyed this book. The author describes very well the setting and what is going on. Sometimes it may be confusing, because the author gives too much information at once, like for example in the beggining, I did not understand very well the story, but as you keep on reading you will understand everything and you will find out how amazing this book is. If you like action, war, and love stories, this is a book that you will definetly like, and I would recomend it to everyone. Really good book. The best part? This book is based on real events!

Alex Cooper

Rating: really liked it
Soldier X:

The book is about a 16 year old kid named Erik that is fighting for the Germans. During the middle of a battle that he is in he finds himself in a ditch wounded. The only way for him not to get captured by the Russians is to switch clothes with one of the dead Russians in the ditch. After passing out in the ditch Erik wakes up in a Russian hospital. He doesn't know anyone but he is half Russain and can speak some too. When in the hospital he fakes memory lose and pretentends to forget his name and family.Erik has no one but the nurse Tamara that takes care of him. As days go by he finds himself in love with Tamara.Tamara becomes a closer friend to Erik and names him X. Later down the road X finds himself taking care of Russain sodiers. One day Erik spills hot water on himself and swears in German. Tamara hears it but doesn't know what to think but as Erik keeps helping around the hospital Tamara puts it behind her. At the time the Germans are bombing the Russains. The Hospital soon becomes under attack X and Tamara are the only ones that survive. Later down the road X and Tamara run into difficult times against the Germans but manage to pull through. In The end Erick (X) becomes a Socail Studies teacher and later retires in the U.S. to marry Tamara. One thing leads to another soon enough Tamara and Erik have to kids and name them after the people that they lost on the day of the bombing and attck by the Germans. They named them Nikolai after Eriks friend in the hospital, and Katerina Elen.

TIMOFEY BESSONOV

Rating: really liked it
The book, Soldier X, by Don Wulffson, takes place during WWII. The book is about a half-German and a half-Russian boy named Erik Brandt who joins the Wehrmacht, Hitler's army, during World War II. The book tells about the war from the perspective of Erik Brandt as he leads a life as both a German and a Russian. He lives with his mother and his grandparents in an apartment above a restaurant they owned. After his first battle against the Russians, they take over the area he is forced to switch into a Russian uniform and later on gets set to a military hospital. After some time, he gets better from a major injuring to the knee he is able to walk again. This is when he starts helping around the hospital and finally meets Tamara Imanov, a young nurse who cares for Erik and quickly becomes the object of his affection. When he learns that her brother was a Russian soldier killed in the war, his secret becomes the source of more tension for Erik. The setting switches between the frontlines of Germany and Russia, but later on gets to America. But soon he and Tamara need to leave the hospital and everyone else in it to survive. Their goal is to get to America. After weeks on the road, he and Tamara reach an abandoned city where they are looking for shelter. When a machine gun starts shooting, hitting both of them but not fatally. After some time being unconscious, they both find themselves in an American Red Cross hospital.
The theme for this book would be to never give up and that war (major conflicts in general) affect people to a point that can’t be fixed by therapy. This would be a good theme because the major characters are changed by war and that the only reason why he is still alive.
I really liked this book of the non-stop action, one moment you could be reading about Erik helping in the military hospital, and the next moment he is killing Germans in the grass. I would rate this book a 4.5/5 just because I don’t like historical fiction books. Anyone that likes non-stop action and a mixture of history and suspense.

Sherry Guice

Rating: really liked it
I had read this book before; one of my 8th grade groups chose this to read and finished this morning. One of the students said, "This book makes me want to read more WWII books; it was so inspiring."

I like the structure of the book--it is written almost as a memoir starting with the protagonist as an old man, then telling his story. The end ties up neatly, which students often find satisfying though plenty of characters die and suffer greatly with enough detail to keep the reader engaged.

Edwina Callan

Rating: really liked it
Highly recommended!

Art

Rating: really liked it
"I don't know who I am!" I told him with half-feigned terror. He glanced around at his look alikes. " Join the group, he said with a pained, raspy laugh. "We're not sure who we are, either!" p.87
Soldier X is a young man who fights for both Germany and Russia and the terror of battle, youth, love and the process of survival from war wounds and life.

Megan BG

Rating: really liked it
I only read this to fulfill an "X" book and because it sounded like it might be interesting. It was! I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a quick read.

Paul

Rating: really liked it
Paul Harrington

Soldier X by Dun Wulferson is a true story. READ: Therefore it does not have the normal plot line of a normal novel! The book is set in WWII during the last part of the war. The book takes place in Germany then Russia then Germany again.

The main character’s name is Soldier X. He is a soldier drafted into the Nazi army at 15. But this is complicated by the fact that he is half Russian. This means he can speak fluent Russian, making him invaluable as an interpreter. However everything goes wrong when he is trapped behind enemy lines. To give a hint he ends up in a Russian hospital where his Russian is put to the test! Later he meets a Russian girl named Tamara and this creates problems. To find out what happens next you will have to read!

Although “names, dates, and places were altered wherever necessary,” the story is true and very amazing. Also according to the author’s note this story closely parallels the stories of other Nazis trapped behind enemy lines. These characters I found incredible, almost fictional, which is why the truth behind the story surprised me. One character, Dobelman, had his face so scarred he faked death so he would not have to return home.

I had trouble relating to the book. The extremes that the characters go through are, well… extreme to say the least (for example I have never been shot in the face!). But through it all, the characters survive. That is a situation I believe we can all relate to.

Whether or not I would recommend this book determines on what you are looking for. For someone looking for an amazing WWII story this is for you. However, should you be looking for an entertaining novel with a normal story plot I would not recommend this book. (The action reaches a climax halfway through, then tapers off very slowly as they walk across Euroe I also would not recommend this to a younger child. There are many gruesome scenes, scenes that often end in more than one friend’s death.

Recommendations aside the book was entertaining. It also pays respect to the absolute destruction to Europe, as well as the sheer number of deaths. (Many of the characters friends die early on; one of his friends even gets his hand shot off! This character later gets killed). So I enjoyed the book but for it’s historical accuracies and it’s story, not necessarily for it’s plotline.