Introduction: Pseudo-reality and the Soviet Union
Understanding the evil empires : two case histories
The dictators' gamble
Into the maelstrom : the first seventeen days
Deep battle : from the breakthrough to the fall of Kiev
The campaign of compromises : October-December 1941
The hollow victories of 1942
The planets and paradoxes of 1942-43
Summer 1943 : the turning point
Deadlock : the great retreat
Death of the phoenix : the last eleven months of the war
The war of extermination : allies, partisans, criminals
Conclusions: False victories, mistaken beliefs
Epilogue: The Great Patriotic War and the collapse.