'Prologue to the battle' : Exercise in patriotism. 'What are little boys made of?' : constructing Soviet social identity ; 'The land begins in the Kremlin' : reinventing the socialist Motherland ; 'If tomorrow brings war' : a nation in uniform ; Overview -- 'Greatcoat, weapons and war' : soldiers in the making. 'All for the front! All for victory!' : a mandate to action ; Babes in grey : children in the regular army ; Imps and eaglets : children in the forest ; Sea whelps : children on shipboard ; Overview
Summary
Germany's war against the Soviet Union raised a small army of child soldiers. Thousands of those below the enlistment age served with regular and paramilitary formations, even though they were not formally mobilised or allowed at the front. This book tells their stories