FINLAND AT WAR – VESA NENYE-PETER MUNTER-TONI WIRTANEN-CHRIS BIRKS

The story of the ‘Winter War’ between Finland and Soviet Russia is a dramatic David versus Goliath encounter. When close to half a million Soviet troops poured into Finland in 1939 it was expected that Finnish defences would collapse in a matter of weeks. But they held firm. The Finns not only survived the initial attacks but succeeded in inflicting devastating casualties before superior Russian numbers eventually forced a peace settlement. This is a rigorously detailed and utterly compelling guide to Finland s vital, but almost forgotten role in the cataclysmic World War II. It reveals the untold story of iron determination, unparalleled skill and utter mastery of winter warfare that characterised Finland s fight for survival on the hellish Eastern Front. Now publishing in paperback, Finland at War: The Winter War 1939–40 is the premiere English-language history of the fighting performance of the Finns, drawing on first-hand accounts and rare photographs to explain just how they were able to perform military feats that nearly defy belief.