Sven Hassel

Sven Hassel (1917–2012) was a Danish author best known for his series of Second World War novels, which depict the brutal, dehumanising experience of combat on the Eastern Front through the eyes of a penal battalion of German soldiers. Legion of the Damned, his first and most famous novel, drew on his claimed experiences as a soldier in the German army. His books became international bestsellers, translated into over thirty languages. Whether memoir or fiction, Hassel's war novels are vivid, unflinching, and deeply affecting. His audiobooks and books continue to find readers and listeners fascinated by the raw, unglamourised reality of war.